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

温纯

睡觉是一件再自然不过的事情，然而作者通过观察和分析日本人看待睡觉的有趣态度探讨了日本社会的价值观。日本人对自己的勤奋刻苦有一种优越感，晚睡早起自然被视为美德；而对于在公共场合（比如开会、上课时，在地铁上）打瞌睡，他们不仅能够容忍和接受，甚至在某些时候是一种“故意而为”。这又是为什么呢？

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

日本人不睡觉，也不打瞌睡，他们“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”，指日本人随时随地都可以打盹睡觉的行为，是日本独特的睡眠文化。

2. sociological： 社会学的。

3. intriguing： 有趣的，迷人的。

4. 当时日本正处于所谓的“泡沫经济”的顶峰——投机热潮阶段。speculative： 投机的。

5. correspondingly： 相应地； hectic： 繁忙的，忙乱的 。

6. 但我们可以从这些抱怨里察觉到一种自豪感，他们认为自己更加勤奋努力，因此是在道德上优越于其他民族的人。superior：（级别、地位）较高的，（在质量等方面）较好的。

7. doze： 打盹儿，打瞌睡；com-mute： 通勤，上下班。

8. contradictory： 矛盾的。

9. 一边是“工蜂”的正面形象，减少晚上睡觉的时间，对睡懒觉嗤之以鼻，另一边又对所谓的“居眠”给予容忍——在公共交通工具上或在工作会议、上课和讲座过程中打瞌睡。frown on： 对……皱眉，不赞同；accompany： 伴随，陪伴；tolerance： 宽容，容忍。

10. 男女老少，无论何时何地，只要他们想睡，没有什么可以阻挡他们。inhibition： 抑制，压抑。

11. futon： 日本床垫，蒲团；indolence： 懒惰，好逸恶劳。

12. 如果让孩子熬夜学习意味着第二天在课堂上睡觉，那这又有什么意义呢？make sense： 讲得通，有意义。

13. contradiction： 矛盾；intensive： 加强的，密集的。

14.一开始我还得与一些偏见作斗争，因为人们不愿意把睡觉当作一个严肃的学术研究课题。 prejudice： 成见，偏见；enquiry： 同inquiry，研究，探究。

15. precisely： 确切地。

16. 睡觉可以被赋予各种不同含义和观念，因此，分析睡眠安排以及相关论述反映了睡眠在进行和被探讨的过程中所体现的人们的态度和价值观。be loaded with： 载满；ideology： 思想意识，意识形态；discourse： 论述，交谈；embed in： 把……嵌入。

17. 以本人的经验来看，恰恰是这些人们通常不加以思考的日常自然事件最能反映一个社会的基本结构和价值观。

18. assume： 假设，认为。

19. 有文献资料证明，在电灯发明之前，人们甚至会因为熬夜聊天、饮酒和其他娱乐活动而受到责骂。scold： 责骂，斥责。

20. 然而，如果是学者——特别是年轻的武士，为了学习而牺牲睡眠，则会被认为是崇高的美德，即便这一行为不是那么高效，一方面夜里燃灯耗油，另一方面会导致他们次日听讲时睡着。samurai：（日本旧时的）武士；virtuous： 有道德的，有德行的。

21. 在公共场合睡着通常只会在由打瞌睡引起的趣闻中被提及，比如有人在庆典上睡着，醒来之后唱错歌，浑然不知自己已错过大部分内容。anecdote： 趣闻轶事。

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

23. 而另一方面，早起显然被拔高为一种美德，至少自儒家文化和佛教传入日本时起就如此。Confucianism： 孔教，儒家文化； Buddhism： 佛教。

24. 有资料表明，在古代，人们特别关注公务人员的工作时间，但从中世纪开始，早起被推广到社会各阶层，“早起晚睡”成为有德之人的象征。antiquity： 古老，古代；civil servant： 公务员，官方机构工作人员；strata： stratum的复数形式，社会阶层；metaphor： 隐喻。

25. 相反地，日本的家长和医生都坚信，必须陪伴孩子睡到至少学龄期，这样可使孩子安心，帮助他们成长为独立、稳定的社会人。adamant： 坚硬无比的，牢不可破的；reassure： 使……安心，使消除疑虑。

26. 也许这一文化准则让日本人可以在他人面前睡得着，即便是成年人——很多日本人说他们在有伴的情况下通常比单独时要睡得好。norm： 标准，规范；in the presence of： 在……在场的情况下；in company： 一同，一起。

27. tsunami： 海啸。

28. evacuation： 撤离，疏散；shelter： 避难所，居所。

29. 尽管存在各种矛盾和问题，幸存者们说共用睡觉空间给了他们慰藉，有助于他们放松和重拾睡眠节奏。notwithstanding： 尽管，虽然；communal： 公共的，公用的； rhythm： 节奏，韵律。

30. power nap：（有效的）打盹，小憩。

31. be compesed of： 由……组成。

32. 我认为尔文·戈夫曼的“社会情境中的参与”这个概念有助于我们理解“居眠”的社会含义及其规则。Erving Goffman： 尔文·戈夫曼（1922—1982），美国著名社会学家。

33. 我们通过肢体语言和口头表达在某种程度上参与了我们所处的每一个情景。verbal： 言语的，口头的。

34. subordinate： 下级的，附属的。

35. 在这种情况下，“居眠”可看作一种次要的参与，只要不影响当下的社会情景，它就可以进行，跟做白日梦差不多。indulge in： 沉溺于。

36. 同时他们还通过身体姿势、肢体语言、着装规定等来维持一种与主要参与保持一致的印象。fit in with：（使）适合，（使）与……一致。

37. a case in point： 恰当的例子，明证。

38. 原则上来说，工作时一般需要专注和积极参与，打瞌睡会给人一种懒散和偷懒的印象。lethargy： 昏睡，没精打采；shirk： 逃避（工作），偷懒。

39. 相比会议达成的成果，人们更加看重的是积极参与。

40. informant： 提供消息者。

41. trait： 特征，特性。

42. 无论多累或是多不舒服，人们只要努力使自己出现在会议上，就可以展现其勤勉努力、有责任感和牺牲精神。

43. fortify： 增强，加强。

44. 即便到最后他们因为过于疲劳、感冒或其他健康原因而打起瞌睡，都是可以被原谅的，罪魁祸首是“睡魔的攻击”。succumb to： 向……屈服。

45. modesty： 谦逊，谦虚。

46. 因为日本人不可能吹嘘自己的勤奋，所以有必要通过某种微妙的方式来赢取社会认同。boast： 自夸，自吹自擂；subtle： 微妙的，敏感的。

47. 疲惫和生病常被看作工作勤奋努力的后果，所以瞌睡——甚至闭上双眼假装瞌睡，会被看作一个人工作努力但仍然有毅力和美德控制身体和情绪的体现。feign： 假装。

48. 相反，这是日本人社会生活的一个非正式特征，这种让你身在其中而“心不在焉”的方法可确保人们履行常规职责。temporarily： 暂时地。

49. 这是一个完全不同的概念。