The Japanese Art of （Not） Sleeping 日本人的“居眠”藝術(shù)

溫純

睡覺是一件再自然不過的事情，然而作者通過觀察和分析日本人看待睡覺的有趣態(tài)度探討了日本社會(huì)的價(jià)值觀。日本人對(duì)自己的勤奮刻苦有一種優(yōu)越感，晚睡早起自然被視為美德；而對(duì)于在公共場(chǎng)合（比如開會(huì)、上課時(shí)，在地鐵上）打瞌睡，他們不僅能夠容忍和接受，甚至在某些時(shí)候是一種“故意而為”。這又是為什么呢？

The Japanese dont sleep. They dont nap. They do “inemuri1”.

日本人不睡覺，也不打瞌睡，他們“居眠”。

The Japanese dont sleep. This is what everyone—the Japanese above all—say. Its not true， of course. But as a cultural and sociological2 statement， it is very interesting.

I first encountered these intriguing3 attitudes to sleep during my first stay in Japan in the late 1980s. At that time Japan was at the peak of what became known as the Bubble Economy， a phase of extraordinary speculative boom.4 Daily life was correspondingly hectic.5 People filled their schedules with work and leisure appointments， and had hardly any time to sleep.

Many voiced the complaint： “We Japanese are crazy to work so much！” But in these complaints one detected a sense of pride at being more diligent and therefore morally superior to the rest of humanity.6 Yet， at the same time， I observed countless people dozing on underground trains during my daily commute.7 Some even slept while standing up， and no one appeared to be at all surprised by this.

I found this attitude contradictory8. The positive image of the worker bee， who cuts back on sleep at night and frowns on sleeping late in the morning， seemed to be accompanied by an extensive tolerance of so-called ‘inemuri—napping on public transportation and during work meetings， classes and lectures.9 Women， men and children apparently had little inhibition about falling asleep when and wherever they felt like doing so.10

If sleeping in a bed or a futon was considered a sign of laziness， then why wasnt sleeping during an event or even at work considered an even greater expression of indolence？11 What sense did it make to allow children to stay up late at night to study if it meant that they would fall asleep during class the next day？12 These impressions and apparent contradictions led to my more intensive involvement with the theme of sleep for my PhD project several years later.13

Initially， I had to fight against prejudice as people were reluctant to consider sleep a serious topic for academic enquiry.14 Of course， it was precisely15 such attitudes that had originally caught my attention. Sleep can be loaded with a variety of meanings and ideologies； analysing sleep arrangements and the discourse on it reveals attitudes and values embedded in the contexts in which sleep is organised and discussed.16 In my experience， it is the everyday and seemingly natural events upon which people generally do not reflect that reveal essential structures and values of a society.17

We often assume18 that our ancestors went to bed “naturally” when darkness fell and rose with the sun. However， sleep times have never been such a simple matter， whether in Japan or elsewhere. Even before the invention of electric light， the documentary evidence shows that people were scolded for staying up late at night for chatting， drinking and other forms of pleasure.19 However， scholars—particularly young samurai—were considered highly virtuous if they interrupted their sleep to study， even though this practice may not have been very efficient as it required oil for their lamps and often resulted in them falling asleep during lectures.20

Napping is hardly ever discussed in historical sources and seems to have been widely taken for granted. Falling asleep in public tends to be only mentioned when the nap is the source for a funny anecdote， such as when someone joins in with the wrong song at a ceremony， unaware that they have slept through most of it.21 People also seem to have enjoyed playing tricks on friends who had involuntarily dozed off.22

Early rising， on the other hand， has clearly been promoted as a virtue， at least since the introduction of Confucianism and Buddhism.23 In antiquity， sources show a special concern for the work schedule of civil servants， but from the Middle Ages onwards， early rising was applied to all strata of society， with “going to bed late and rising early” used as a metaphor to describe a virtuous person.24

Another interesting issue is co-sleeping. In Britain， parents are often told they should provide even babies with a separate room so that they can learn to be independent sleepers， thus establishing a regular sleep schedule. In Japan， by contrast， parents and doctors are adamant that co-sleeping with children until they are at least at school age will reassure them and help them develop into independent and socially stable adults.25

Maybe this cultural norm helps Japanese people to sleep in the presence of others， even when they are adults—many Japanese say they often sleep better in company than alone.26 Such an effect could be observed in spring 2011 after the huge tsunami27 disaster destroyed several coastal towns. Survivors had to stay in evacuation shelters，28 where dozens or even hundreds of people shared the same living and sleeping space. Notwithstanding various conflicts and problems， survivors described how sharing a communal sleeping space provided some comfort and helped them to relax and regain their sleep rhythm.29

However， this experience of sleeping in the presence of others as children is not sufficient on its own to explain the widespread tolerance of inemuri， especially at school and in the workplace. After some years of investigating this subject， I finally realised that on a certain level， inemuri is not considered sleep at all. Not only is it seen as being different from night-time sleep in bed， it is also viewed differently from taking an afternoon nap or power nap30.

How can we make sense of this？ The clue lies in the term itself， which is composed of two Chinese characters.31 “I” which means “to be present” in a situation that is not sleep and “nemuri” which means “sleep”. Erving Goffmans concept of “involvement within social situations” is useful I think in helping us grasp the social significance of inemuri and the rules surrounding it.32 Through our body language and verbal expressions we are involved to some extent in every situation in which we are present.33 We do， however， have the capacity to divide our attention into dominant and subordinate34 involvement.

In this context， inemuri can be seen as a subordinate involvement which can be indulged in as long as it does not disturb the social situation at hand—similar to daydreaming.35 Even though the sleeper might be mentally “away”， they have to be able to return to the social situation at hand when active contribution is required. They also have to maintain the impression of fitting in with the dominant involvement by means of body posture， body language， dress code and the like.36

Inemuri in the workplace is a case in point37. In principle， attentiveness and active participation are expected at work， and falling asleep creates the impression of lethargy and that a person is shirking their duties.38 However， it is also viewed as the result of work-related exhaustion. It may be excused by the fact that meetings are usually long and often involve simply listening to the chairs reports. The effort made to attend is often valued more than what is actually achieved.39 As one informant40 told me： “We Japanese have the Olympic spirit—participating is what counts.”

Diligence， which is expressed by working long hours and giving ones all， is highly valued as a positive moral trait41 in Japan. Someone who makes the effort to participate in a meeting despite being exhausted or ill demonstrates diligence， a sense of responsibility and their willingness to make a sacrifice.42 By overcoming physical weaknesses and needs， a person becomes morally and mentally fortified43 and is filled with positive energy. Such a person is considered reliable and will be promoted. If， in the end， they succumb to sleep due to exhaustion or a cold or another health problem， they can be excused and an “attack of the sleep demon” can be held responsible.44

Moreover， modesty45 is also a highly valued virtue. Therefore， it is not possible to boast about ones own diligence—and this creates the need for subtle methods to achieve social recognition.46 Since tiredness and illness are often viewed as the result of previous work efforts and diligence， inemuri—or even feigning inemuri by closing ones eyes—can be employed as a sign that a person has been working hard but still has the strength and moral virtue necessary to keep themselves and their feelings under control.47

Thus， the Japanese habit of inemuri does not necessarily reveal a tendency towards laziness. Instead， it is an informal feature of Japanese social life intended to ensure the performance of regular duties by offering a way of being temporarily “away” within these duties.48 And so it is clear： the Japanese dont sleep. They dont nap. They do inemuri. It could not be more different.49

1. inemuri： “居眠”，指日本人隨時(shí)隨地都可以打盹睡覺的行為，是日本獨(dú)特的睡眠文化。

2. sociological： 社會(huì)學(xué)的。

3. intriguing： 有趣的，迷人的。

4. 當(dāng)時(shí)日本正處于所謂的“泡沫經(jīng)濟(jì)”的頂峰——投機(jī)熱潮階段。speculative： 投機(jī)的。

5. correspondingly： 相應(yīng)地； hectic： 繁忙的，忙亂的 。

6. 但我們可以從這些抱怨里察覺到一種自豪感，他們認(rèn)為自己更加勤奮努力，因此是在道德上優(yōu)越于其他民族的人。superior：（級(jí)別、地位）較高的，（在質(zhì)量等方面）較好的。

7. doze： 打盹兒，打瞌睡；com-mute： 通勤，上下班。

8. contradictory： 矛盾的。

9. 一邊是“工蜂”的正面形象，減少晚上睡覺的時(shí)間，對(duì)睡懶覺嗤之以鼻，另一邊又對(duì)所謂的“居眠”給予容忍——在公共交通工具上或在工作會(huì)議、上課和講座過程中打瞌睡。frown on： 對(duì)……皺眉，不贊同；accompany： 伴隨，陪伴；tolerance： 寬容，容忍。

10. 男女老少，無論何時(shí)何地，只要他們想睡，沒有什么可以阻擋他們。inhibition： 抑制，壓抑。

11. futon： 日本床墊，蒲團(tuán)；indolence： 懶惰，好逸惡勞。

12. 如果讓孩子熬夜學(xué)習(xí)意味著第二天在課堂上睡覺，那這又有什么意義呢？make sense： 講得通，有意義。

13. contradiction： 矛盾；intensive： 加強(qiáng)的，密集的。

14.一開始我還得與一些偏見作斗爭(zhēng)，因?yàn)槿藗儾辉敢獍阉X當(dāng)作一個(gè)嚴(yán)肅的學(xué)術(shù)研究課題。 prejudice： 成見，偏見；enquiry： 同inquiry，研究，探究。

15. precisely： 確切地。

16. 睡覺可以被賦予各種不同含義和觀念，因此，分析睡眠安排以及相關(guān)論述反映了睡眠在進(jìn)行和被探討的過程中所體現(xiàn)的人們的態(tài)度和價(jià)值觀。be loaded with： 載滿；ideology： 思想意識(shí)，意識(shí)形態(tài)；discourse： 論述，交談；embed in： 把……嵌入。

17. 以本人的經(jīng)驗(yàn)來看，恰恰是這些人們通常不加以思考的日常自然事件最能反映一個(gè)社會(huì)的基本結(jié)構(gòu)和價(jià)值觀。

18. assume： 假設(shè)，認(rèn)為。

19. 有文獻(xiàn)資料證明，在電燈發(fā)明之前，人們甚至?xí)驗(yàn)榘疽沽奶?、飲酒和其他娛樂活?dòng)而受到責(zé)罵。scold： 責(zé)罵，斥責(zé)。

20. 然而，如果是學(xué)者——特別是年輕的武士，為了學(xué)習(xí)而犧牲睡眠，則會(huì)被認(rèn)為是崇高的美德，即便這一行為不是那么高效，一方面夜里燃燈耗油，另一方面會(huì)導(dǎo)致他們次日聽講時(shí)睡著。samurai：（日本舊時(shí)的）武士；virtuous： 有道德的，有德行的。

21. 在公共場(chǎng)合睡著通常只會(huì)在由打瞌睡引起的趣聞中被提及，比如有人在慶典上睡著，醒來之后唱錯(cuò)歌，渾然不知自己已錯(cuò)過大部分內(nèi)容。anecdote： 趣聞?shì)W事。

22. play trick on： 開……玩笑；involuntarily： 不由自主地，非出于本意地。

23. 而另一方面，早起顯然被拔高為一種美德，至少自儒家文化和佛教傳入日本時(shí)起就如此。Confucianism： 孔教，儒家文化； Buddhism： 佛教。

24. 有資料表明，在古代，人們特別關(guān)注公務(wù)人員的工作時(shí)間，但從中世紀(jì)開始，早起被推廣到社會(huì)各階層，“早起晚睡”成為有德之人的象征。antiquity： 古老，古代；civil servant： 公務(wù)員，官方機(jī)構(gòu)工作人員；strata： stratum的復(fù)數(shù)形式，社會(huì)階層；metaphor： 隱喻。

25. 相反地，日本的家長(zhǎng)和醫(yī)生都堅(jiān)信，必須陪伴孩子睡到至少學(xué)齡期，這樣可使孩子安心，幫助他們成長(zhǎng)為獨(dú)立、穩(wěn)定的社會(huì)人。adamant： 堅(jiān)硬無比的，牢不可破的；reassure： 使……安心，使消除疑慮。

26. 也許這一文化準(zhǔn)則讓日本人可以在他人面前睡得著，即便是成年人——很多日本人說他們?cè)谟邪榈那闆r下通常比單獨(dú)時(shí)要睡得好。norm： 標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，規(guī)范；in the presence of： 在……在場(chǎng)的情況下；in company： 一同，一起。

27. tsunami： 海嘯。

28. evacuation： 撤離，疏散；shelter： 避難所，居所。

29. 盡管存在各種矛盾和問題，幸存者們說共用睡覺空間給了他們慰藉，有助于他們放松和重拾睡眠節(jié)奏。notwithstanding： 盡管，雖然；communal： 公共的，公用的； rhythm： 節(jié)奏，韻律。

30. power nap：（有效的）打盹，小憩。

31. be compesed of： 由……組成。

32. 我認(rèn)為爾文·戈夫曼的“社會(huì)情境中的參與”這個(gè)概念有助于我們理解“居眠”的社會(huì)含義及其規(guī)則。Erving Goffman： 爾文·戈夫曼（1922—1982），美國(guó)著名社會(huì)學(xué)家。

33. 我們通過肢體語言和口頭表達(dá)在某種程度上參與了我們所處的每一個(gè)情景。verbal： 言語的，口頭的。

34. subordinate： 下級(jí)的，附屬的。

35. 在這種情況下，“居眠”可看作一種次要的參與，只要不影響當(dāng)下的社會(huì)情景，它就可以進(jìn)行，跟做白日夢(mèng)差不多。indulge in： 沉溺于。

36. 同時(shí)他們還通過身體姿勢(shì)、肢體語言、著裝規(guī)定等來維持一種與主要參與保持一致的印象。fit in with：（使）適合，（使）與……一致。

37. a case in point： 恰當(dāng)?shù)睦?，明證。

38. 原則上來說，工作時(shí)一般需要專注和積極參與，打瞌睡會(huì)給人一種懶散和偷懶的印象。lethargy： 昏睡，沒精打采；shirk： 逃避（工作），偷懶。

39. 相比會(huì)議達(dá)成的成果，人們更加看重的是積極參與。

40. informant： 提供消息者。

41. trait： 特征，特性。

42. 無論多累或是多不舒服，人們只要努力使自己出現(xiàn)在會(huì)議上，就可以展現(xiàn)其勤勉努力、有責(zé)任感和犧牲精神。

43. fortify： 增強(qiáng)，加強(qiáng)。

44. 即便到最后他們因?yàn)檫^于疲勞、感冒或其他健康原因而打起瞌睡，都是可以被原諒的，罪魁禍?zhǔn)资恰八У墓簟?。succumb to： 向……屈服。

45. modesty： 謙遜，謙虛。

46. 因?yàn)槿毡救瞬豢赡艽祰u自己的勤奮，所以有必要通過某種微妙的方式來贏取社會(huì)認(rèn)同。boast： 自夸，自吹自擂；subtle： 微妙的，敏感的。

47. 疲憊和生病常被看作工作勤奮努力的后果，所以瞌睡——甚至閉上雙眼假裝瞌睡，會(huì)被看作一個(gè)人工作努力但仍然有毅力和美德控制身體和情緒的體現(xiàn)。feign： 假裝。

48. 相反，這是日本人社會(huì)生活的一個(gè)非正式特征，這種讓你身在其中而“心不在焉”的方法可確保人們履行常規(guī)職責(zé)。temporarily： 暫時(shí)地。

49. 這是一個(gè)完全不同的概念。