Essay 4

In the Japanese culture your children are suppose to be filial. Their first born son is to quit school and work to pay their parents debt. This is a rule passed down form generation to generation. Most of the boys obey this rule without question, but Toshio, the son of Mr. Mrs. Oyama, doesn’t think that it is fair. Toshio and his parents get in to many arguments about him not being a filial son. Kiyoshi is know as the Filial son in the family, even though he is not the first born. Why is Kiyoshi and Toshio responsible for paying off their parents debt? Well, that is just like asking why in the United States do most women have their fathers walk them down the isle on their wedding day. This is just a tradition passed down by generation. It’s just the right thing to do in the eyes of the people involved. Toshio and Kiyoshi are from the Japanese culture, were as a young man in the family, you work hard and pay off the family debt before going off and starting a life of your own. Pretty much your parents own your body until the debt is paid.
As a young girl growing up I dreamed of the day my father would walk me down the isle. Why did I just assume it would be my father walking me down the isle? This is just something you grown up learning. Just like as if you were a first born son in a Japanese family. You grow up knowing that you will be quitting school to work in the cane fields for little pay, to just hand your pay over to your parents until their debt is paid off. These young men are not allowed to attend College or most the time even Highschool, they are also not allowed to started a family until the family debt is paid off or they are considered dishonorable or not “filial” in the Japanese language. A lot of the young men do this for their families with out a word said. They know that it is their duty. Toshio on the other hand feels its not fair. He doesn’t understand why he is paying off a debt that has nothing to do with him.
I have mixed feelings about weather or not Toshio and Kiyoshi should have to pay off their parents debt. I understand where Toshio is coming from when he says he doesn’t think it should be their responsibility. Why do these young men have to give up their life? They are not allowed to go to college but any of their younger siblings are allowed to off of their pay. These parents should not be having more children then they can afford. As a parent I could not imagine sending my son off to work at 15 years old to pay off my debt. I personally feel that the parents should take care of the children, not the other way around.
Kiyoshi has a little different way of handling this situation. He is not happy working in the cane fields but he never tells his parents this. He understands that his parents are in debt and he needs to do what he can to help them. He never talks back to his parents. He is not even the first son but he works hard and hands over his pay. In the end he ends up giving his winnings form the craps games he plays to his parents to pay off their debt. Kiyoshi was considered the good son, the filial son. This is because he never talked back or yelled at his family. I also understand why Kiyoshi does as his parents ask. Even though I do not agree with the fact that these boys have to put their life on hold and practically be slaves to their parents. I do understand that you need to respect your parents and do what is right. There were many things my father did with his children, because that is what his father did to him growing up. A lot of these things I didn’t understand or even agree with but I would never tell my father that. It was not my place as his child to tell him what I thought was right or wrong. I just told myself that I would not raise my children the same way. This is something that Toshio could do. If he doesn’t believe that it is right then he needs to raise his son differently. Not having him pay off his debt and allowing him to go thru school. This will teach his grand children the same thing and it would stop the tradition of the children paying off their parents debt. In the end, I think it is wrong to make your children slave over your debt. I do believe in tradition and respect like having your father walk you down the isle if you’re a young lady or that you are to always respect our elders no matter how old you are, and to always address someone by Mr. or Mrs. Parents are suppose to support their children. You should not be having children to just pay off the debt that you got yourself into. I do think that Toshio and Kiyoshi are both in the right. Toshio sticks up for himself and what he believes is right, and Kiyoshi doesn’t like it but respects his parents and always does as he is told.