Japan is trendy, thanks in part to the fact that the euro is now stronger than the yen, the currency of the Land of the Rising Sun, making it possible to visit the Japanese archipelago without breaking the bank. But what do people like about Japan? You're spoiled for choice, as Tokyo's "soft power" has permeated mass culture for decades: from manga to anime, from video games to literature, from cinema to J-pop, Western adolescents and adults are absorbing Japanese influences, sometimes without even realizing it. Sushi is now as global as pizza. If you list all the fashions born in the Land of the Rising Sun, a striking analogy is drawn to the England of the Beatles in the 1960s. Even its spirituality, from Shintoism to Zen Buddhism, has exerted a powerful hold on us Westerners, anticipating environmentalism and the worship of nature as a "widespread deity."
Alongside this widespread soft power, however, there is something deeper, more “structural” as confirmed by Federico Rampini who dedicated his latest essay, The lesson of Japan (Mondadori, 2025, Euro 20.00, pp. 336. Also available as an ebook), to the Land of the Rising Sun:
The rediscovery of Japan has many faces. One finds oneself faced with an ancient and fascinating civilization, a country that combines modernity and respect for tradition like no other, yet must confront numerous paradoxes: the paradise of good manners can be experienced as a prison of conformity, so much so that some decide to disappear, evaporating into thin air. And how can one reconcile the world's lowest crime rates with the existence of the feared Yakuza mafia?
In short, Japan is a kind of paradox…
Yes, and that's why we love it: we love it, but we ignore its true depth. For decades, manga, anime, sushi, and design have influenced our imagination, yet Tokyo remains 'invisible' as a power. The misunderstanding arises from an excess of superficiality: we see only the sweetness, the grace, but we miss the self-discipline, the resilience, the ability to question itself. It is a civilization that combines harmony and hierarchy, beauty and rigor. Japan is proof that you can be ultramodern without breaking with your roots.
The title of your book evokes the lesson Japan can teach us all. In what sense?
"Let's see: it was the first non-Western country to face the challenges we face today: demographic decline, aging, and apparent stagnation that hides a formidable capacity for adaptation. Japan has entered its mature years and is showing us how it can remain an advanced and stable country even without explosive growth."
In short, he has faced or is facing challenges that belong to us…
Japan was the first country to embrace the future that awaits us: an aging society that must reconcile well-being and sustainability. It has learned to age well, to innovate without destroying the social fabric. Its businesses have reinvented themselves, shifting toward invisible but essential production, from semiconductors to robotics. Environmentally, it has combined aesthetics and technology. It is a country that lives within its limitations, accepts them, and transforms them into strength. Furthermore, it has been a model for all others: the Chinese economic miracle was born by copying the Japanese one. Tokyo anticipates the crises and the solutions of the West, and for this reason its lesson is precious.
Speaking of China: Japan also seems ready to face the geopolitical challenges of our time. In your opinion, what role will it play in the Far East in the coming years?
The country remains the Asian pillar of the alliance with the United States. Today, under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi—a conservative and pragmatic "Japanese Meloni"—Tokyo is taking on new defense responsibilities, reacting to Chinese rearmament and American uncertainty. Japan does not reject constitutional pacifism, but updates it: it wants to defend the liberal order in Asia with modern tools.
But then, what are the worst stereotypes about Japan, the ones we absolutely must free ourselves from?
The first is economic stagnation. The country remains among the world's leading economies, with a very high quality of life and a social cohesion we can only dream of. Another cliché: the idea that it's a conformist country oppressed by rules. In reality, its rules have guaranteed security, order, and fairness. Even its dark sides—the toil of work, alienation, and hikikomori—should be seen as the price of a unique social balance. And finally, it's a technological powerhouse that supplies the world with the most sophisticated components, hidden inside smartphones, computers, and electric batteries: far from the living 'museum' it's sometimes described as!