--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My observation is that after one hundred…" description: "\"My observation is that after one hundred and twenty years of modernisation since the opening of the country, present-day Japan is split between two opp..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc2/kenzaburo-oe-12342_ambiguity_my-observation-is-that-after-one-hundred_1085882.jpg" --- # My observation is that after one hundred and twenty years… ![“My observation is that after one hundred and twenty years of modernisation since the opening of the country, present-day Japan is split between two opposite poles of ambiguity.” quote by Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc2/kenzaburo-oe-12342_ambiguity_my-observation-is-that-after-one-hundred_1085882.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc2/kenzaburo-oe-12342_ambiguity_my-observation-is-that-after-one-hundred_1085882.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc2/kenzaburo-oe-12342_ambiguity_my-observation-is-that-after-one-hundred_1085882.jpg) > “My observation is that after one hundred and twenty years of modernisation since the opening of the country, present-day Japan is split between two opposite poles of ambiguity.” [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Japan’s rapid modernization created a cultural split between tradition and contemporary ambiguity. **In simple terms:** Modernization left Japan divided between old and new. Key Takeaway Recognize and bridge cultural tensions. Themes culture modernization identity ambiguity change Mood reflective analytical Type critical observational When to use this quote - urban planning - education reform - media analysis - corporate strategy Key Concepts post‑war development national identity globalization Questions to Reflect On - How does ambiguity affect Japanese innovation? - Can tradition and modernity coexist peacefully? A Different Perspective The split may oversimplify diverse regional experiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambiguity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambiguity/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Japan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/japan/) [Observation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/observation/) [Opposites](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposites/) [Twenties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twenties/) ## Related quotes > [As a developing country, China needs a favorable neighbouring and international environment for its modernisation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-keqiang/as-a-developing-country-china-needs-a-favorable-neighbouring-and/) [Li Keqiang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-keqiang/) > [We want to be masters of our own destiny. We need no Gods or Emperors. 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I doubt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/ambiguity-is-necessary-in-some-of-my-stories-not-in-all-in-those-it/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [The position is clear - there is no ambiguity in Sinn Fein's position. We, along with all the other parties, have signed up to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-mcguinness/the-position-is-clear-there-is-no-ambiguity-in-sinn-fein-s-position/) [Martin McGuinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-mcguinness/) ## More by Kenzaburo Oe > [“Bird, hesitating, recalled a line from the English textbook he was reading with his students; a young American was speaking angrily: Are you kidding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/bird-hesitating-recalled-a-line-from-the-english-textbook-he-was/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [“In introducing himself, he had said, "I'm the father," and the doctors had winced. Because something else must have echoed in their ears- I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/in-introducing-himself-he-had-said-i-m-the-father-and-the-doctors-had/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [“I thought about death and was gripped by feelings which choked my chest and made my throat dry, a sudden pushing and shoving in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/i-thought-about-death-and-was-gripped-by-feelings-which-choked-my/) [Kenzaburō Ōe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [To be upright and to have an imagination: that is enough to be a very good young man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/to-be-upright-and-to-have-an-imagination-that-is-enough-to-be-a-very/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [The writer's job is the job of a clown …the clown who also talks about sorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/the-writer-s-job-is-the-job-of-a-clown-the-clown-who-also-talks-about/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [If any suffering was fruitless it was the agony of a hangover; what he suffered now could not expiate suffering of any other kind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/if-any-suffering-was-fruitless-it-was-the-agony-of-a-hangover-what-he/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [The ambiguous orientation of Japan drove the country into the position of an invader in Asia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/the-ambiguous-orientation-of-japan-drove-the-country-into-the/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [“If I'm a monster then I want to be a real monster. 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But its first job is to destroy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/it-is-the-second-job-of-literature-to-create-myth-but-its-first-job/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [In the recent years there have been criticisms levelled against Japan suggesting that she should offer more military forces to the United Nations forces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/in-the-recent-years-there-have-been-criticisms-levelled-against-japan/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [There's no better reading experience than going to the place where a text was written.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/there-s-no-better-reading-experience-than-going-to-the-place-where-a/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [“The fear of blindness created a moment's vacuum, serving as a relaxant for my exhausted and overheated brain.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/the-fear-of-blindness-created-a-moment-s-vacuum-serving-as-a-relaxant/) [Kenzaburō Ōe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [“The baby was no longer on the verge of death; no longer would the sweet, easy tears of mourning melt it away as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/the-baby-was-no-longer-on-the-verge-of-death-no-longer-would-the/) [Kenzaburō Ōe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) > [However, please allow me to say that the fundamental style of my writing has been to start from my personal matters and then to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzaburo-oe/however-please-allow-me-to-say-that-the-fundamental-style-of-my/) [Kenzaburo Oe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) [Explore all 55 Kenzaburo Oe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzaburo-oe/) ## More Ambiguity quotes > [The position is clear - there is no ambiguity in Sinn Fein's position. 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I don't think there's any ambiguity there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-l-trump/i-blame-my-grandfather-100-percent-for-his-oldest-son-s-death-i-don-t/) [Mary L. Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-l-trump/) > [I think the relationship between social-dominance orientation in people and the extent to which they're made uncomfortable by ambiguity and novelty is really important.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-sapolsky/i-think-the-relationship-between-social-dominance-orientation-in/) [Robert Sapolsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-sapolsky/) > [Yet again, an ancient answer echoes across the centuries: Listen! Listen to stories! For what stories do, above all else, is hold up a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-kurtz/yet-again-an-ancient-answer-echoes-across-the-centuries-listen-listen/) [Ernest Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-kurtz/) > [My path to wisdom began when I stopped pretending to know things I didn't know. When I explicitly admitted to the limits of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tucker-max/my-path-to-wisdom-began-when-i-stopped-pretending-to-know-things-i/) [Tucker Max](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tucker-max/) > [If there is a single tragic flaw that mars our biggest enterprises, it is conservatism - the failure to fail, and fail big, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/if-there-is-a-single-tragic-flaw-that-mars-our-biggest-enterprises-it/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [In order to be as free as I possibly can, in my own imagination, I can't take positions that are closed. 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