During a discussion between Paul Valery and Paul Claudel, it was said that, “If there were one nation in the world whose demise would have serious consequences it would be the Japanese.” I interpret this statement to mean that we mustn’t allow the characteristic Japanese aesthetic to die out. Aesthetics also include things like a sense of responsibility and a sense of justice. They also incorporate a respect for other people and for nature, an appreciation of the gift of life, and courtesy. They even extend to the ability to look at the world around one, properly.

However, with the arrival of a period of rapid economic growth during the 1960s, the idea that making a profit became the most important thing. With it, came the idea that so long as one had money one would be well off, became fashionable, and the “old” aesthetics all but vanished. One only needs to look at the streets of Tokyo to understand the consequences: it is not a cityscape that speaks of the pursuit of beauty, but the result of putting economic efficiency before everything else.