In Europe and America, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa, people always sign their names. So too, in trading companies like Mitsubishi and Mitsui, letters sent to other countries are signed. But all domestic correspondence and paperwork are stamped with the hanko. When employees of these companies were asked about this dual practice, they commented: "When we sign our name to something, sign our full name by our own hand, we feel as if the document is an individual responsibility and that we personally are offering the information. However, when we put our hanko on some papers that have been prepared by a typist, our own name is just a representation of the group, and using the hanko makes us feel more like it's a group project." This casual explanation is not far from the point.
In an ordinary Japanese household, the wife stamps the hanko of her husband on forms from the ward office or the tax bureau. She uses it even when she withdraws money from the bank. Since only the family name is inscribed on the hanko, it is very useful for all members of the household. In Western society, people use personal checks, which they validate with their signatures. Perhaps the popularity of the hanko is the reason personal signatures are not officially used in Japan. People do write personal checks, but they validate them with the hanko. The stamp is eminently useful in a group-oriented, cooperative society, and for that reason is unlikely to fall out of favor.
In a society where the group is the social core, consensus is extremely important. As an expression of consensus, a series of stamped hanko, all arranged in the proper hierarchical order, can be more effective than a series of signatures. The more hanko that appear on a document, the easier it is to process the document in a consensus-oriented society. Of course, the effort to collect as many hanko as possible leads to an extremely inefficient "administration by hanko." Although the system consolidates the strength of the group, it slows down decision making considerably. Furthermore, no single person feels special responsibility for the final action. Everyone tends to cooperate, but at the same time a person can shift responsibility to another's shoulders. Nevertheless, the hanko remains an integral part of the machinery of the government bureaucracy and of post offices, banks, real estate agencies—anywhere public business is carried on.
In the West, a stamp of a signature is sometimes used when the inefficiency of signing a large number of documents is too great. In this case, of course, there is no circle or border enclosing the signature. The stamp is simply a convenience, not an expression of the self. In the border enclosing the hanko is symbolized the special "closedness" of Japanese society and the way it encircles the individual. The Japanese live by depending upon each other in their closed system and have little desire to escape from this protective environment. This is why the lifetime employment system enjoys such great popularity in Japanese industry (see Chapter 4), and also why it is difficult for people to abandon the hanko.
Kao (Face)
It is well known that the Japanese word kao (face) refers not only to the physical features of the face but also to the totality of the individual. In fact, its use in the latter connotation is extremely common. The expression "He crushed my face" (Kao-o tsu bushita) means, of course, that someone has insulted my integrity; the expression "He flung mud in my face" (Kao-ni doro-o nutta) has the same meaning. My face is my "self"—my reputation, my integrity.
In like manner, the common expression "a broad face" (Kao-ga hiroi) refers, not to the width of the physical face, but to the fact that the person in question has a great many acquaintances. Here the self that moves through society, and more specifically the channel through which that self moves, is broad and expansive, coming into contact with many other people. Because this "broad face" has extensive contact with others, it can be employed to resolve social difficulties that may arise between conflicting parties, or may act as a go-between in various kinds of social negotiation. As a result of such activities, the "broad-faced" person possesses a certain social voice, and as he exercises that voice to resolve conflicts and difficulties, his social power increases. For this reason, the Japanese refer to someone who has a voice in society or in a group—someone who is counted upon to resolve conflicts and harmonize personal and social relationships—as kao-yaku (the face role). The person who plays the face role in a group takes responsibility for representing the wills of many people and communicating their wishes collectively to the larger society. Naturally, this person comes to possess what is known as a kao-pasu (face pass). His recognition, or face pass, sometimes becomes a free meal ticket for him. His recognizability can also be of benefit to others, who "borrow his face" (kao-o kariru). It's a simple fact that in Japan borrowing the face of another—that is, taking along some sort of reference from a person with a recognized face—is much more effective than attempting to identify yourself with a calling card or a driver's license when you wish to be introduced to someone you do not know.
The Japanese also say, "Don't make a big face" (Okina kao-o suruna). The person with a "big face" is pushy; he says what he wants without any regard for the etiquette of the group. Of course, this pushy attitude is expressed with the person's entire presence, not just the face. But the word "face" is used because the expressions and wishes, the overweening self-confidence and aggressiveness of such a person are immediately apparent in his face. The face is the external manifestation of the self to the world.
The expressions "I can see by your face" and "It shows in your face" tell us that the face does reveal the inner self. Abraham Lincoln is reported to have said, "After forty a man becomes responsible for his own face." Every passing day, the sufferings, the worries, the efforts, the joys, and the ambitions of each of us are engraved on our faces, creating the "face" that represents us to the world. It shows our character and our past. It is our living history, written in flesh. This is what Lincoln meant. Since the face is the living record of our growth and maturation, it is, for each and every one of us, the individual we are. The Japanese expression "He's got a good face" (li kao-tsuki-o shiteru) really means "He looks like an adult," or "He's masculine; he's tough." Those who excel in some art or those who have achieved a degree of recognition in professional sports have carefully cultivated this kind of "good face." The face is the self that people most seek to be proud of.
The Japanese also use the expressions "Won't you just show your face?" (Kao-o misete kurenaika) and "Could you lend me your face?" (Kao-o kashite kurenaika). These expressions mean simply "Won't you come?" and "Can you be there?" Again, such expressions refer to the person in his totality, but the word "face" is used to give a personal, emotional touch to the request. Japanese gangsters often use the expression "Give us your face!" (Kao-o kase), which is an order to come. The phrase has an extremely threatening effect because of the gut response that statements with the word "face" call up for the Japanese.