Ritual Of Social—Research On Japanese Gift Package Cultrue

Gift plays a critical role in Japanese culture.In Japan,gift giving is one of the most significant means of communication,as well as a glimpse of the whole social relationships.Therefore,for Japanese,the gift packaging design is equally important as three meals a day,infiltration in their social relations and life details.What is more,Japan’s gift packaging design has also been widely recognized and praised by the world because of its unique appearance.As an essential material carrier in interpersonal relationships in Japan,gifts’ are not only the material itself,but also the representation of the Japanese humanistic spirit and a symbol of societal culture.Its packaging forms and graphic symbols carry Japanese wisdom,knowledge,technology and emotions.Japan’s gift packaging can be read as a materialized manifestation of the spirit of"conveying one’s tender feeling via gift".From the perspective of aesthetic psychology,"materialization" is also the empathy theory.Empathy is a kind of thinking phenomenon,which means that the subject moves his feelings to the object in the aesthetic process,thus giving the aesthetic object a psychological activity of emotion and life.Accordingly,"materialization" could also be read as an "emotional projection" of empathy.Hence,in order to figure out why Japanese gift packaging design catches a unique appearance,the study of Japanese gift packaging is not only about the presentation of its formats,but also about exploring the cultural connotations shinned behind it.Based on the research and understanding of Japanese gift giving culture and social etiquette,this dissertation focuses on Japanese gift packaging design.The methodological approach takes in this study is a mixed methodology based on literature research method and the case study method,and also relies on theories such as anthropology,folklore,and design.Firstly,from the perspectives of Japanese religious thoughts and "He" culture(harmonious),traces the cultural roots of Japanese ritual gift giving—thought determines the behavior.Secondly,under the concerns of Japanese etiquette and custom culture,and their interpersonal interaction,probes into the external and internal reasons for the emergence and formation of Japan’s ritual gift giving culture-the behavior decides habit.Thirdly,from the aspects of "use and beauty" and"type and shape" of gift packaging,this essay deals with the visual features and characteristics presented by Japanese gift packaging-habits determine character.Fourthly,from the visual point of view,combined with living examples,it will go on to analyze the concrete manifestation of the "materialization" of Japanese national culture in gift packaging.Fifthly,according to the folk art ideas presented in Japanese gift packaging,investigates the aesthetic characteristics of Japan’s gift packaging and decodes the cultural code contained in their designs.