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Is bullying in Japan really that extreme like it's on anime?

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Jun 1, 2021 12:31 PM
#1

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Dec 2016
2747
Whenever I see bullying portrayed in anime I always wonder if it really is that extreme. Some bullied characters go through a lot of really messed up stuff.
For example in Jujutsu Kaisen


I have seen bullying in real life since it was in my schools as well but they never were as extreme like they are in anime. The worst thing that could happen irl was a regular fight and most of the time the bullying was psychological. Also if you got into a fight you would risk expulsion.

Do Japanese school close an eye to physical violence or vandalism of desks?

Maybe I am just lucky that the schools I went weren't full of psychos.





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Jun 1, 2021 12:45 PM
#2
Twintail Expert

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Feb 2019
1578
I don't think anime is the only thing that does this, western media does it plenty as well. The most blatant bullying that is usually unrealistically extreme and ignored. While I can't say for sure, I am confident the fact I feel its unrealistic in western media probably means its unrealistic in anime. Pretty sure the most realistic bullying would be the classic ostracization.
Jun 1, 2021 12:46 PM
#3
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Jul 2018
564055
I honestly can't say. Even in American teen dramas I've seen, bullying gets depicted to an intense degree (ex: Thirteen Reasons Why). Maybe I'm just ignorant because I haven't seen that type of bullying before. I don't recall bullying being real extreme when I was younger. But the kids I went to school with weren't afraid to fight. That's for sure.
Jun 1, 2021 12:47 PM
#4

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Nov 2008
27805
For the most part, yes it is, I've read academic papers which had stuff such as bullies constantly dunking a kid into a toilet, then there's a case almost 10 years ago of bullies drowning a kid.


Jun 1, 2021 12:50 PM
#5

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Sep 2018
11666
Usually bigger schools experience more bullying, and it is often done to make people conform from what I percieve of it in US. I imagine the push to conform is even heavier in nationalistic countries like Japan.
Jun 1, 2021 12:51 PM
#6

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Apr 2020
337
Hmm, I'm not really sure. I doubt it's as bad as in anime (hopefully) I think all cultures have shows/movies where bullying goes pretty extreme. Though depending on where a person lives in Japan I think it can go as far as bullying in anime...
Jun 1, 2021 1:52 PM
#7

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Jul 2020
541
yes it is, i have a friend who came to the US from Japan, because every school he went to he would get bullied, and from what it sounds like, if the teachers dont see it, then they wont do anything about it. and im pretty sure that most of their youth related suicides are from bullying. feels bad.
he also said that what he expierenced is worse than what any anime has shown, but idk about that
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Jun 1, 2021 1:53 PM
#8

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May 2016
5535
I would think it would be 10x worse in America because culture difference
and I saw some obviously(but never at girls) and it was still not that bad. Also none of it was race related like the media would make you believe.

Then again, I didn't live in a shithole
Jun 1, 2021 2:11 PM
#9
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Jan 2012
2782
I can't attest to how often it happens, but I can at least confidently say that the severity of the bullying isn't completely made up. I'm sure how bad the bullying is is rarely as bad as you see in anime, but it can reach those levels, and because Japan has such an issue with self-image, how people fit into society and not being outspoken, both the staff and the students will normally sweep it under the rug.

For those that aren't aware of Japan's history with crime, their crime rate isn't as low as people believe, but they are prone to hiding it because it reflects poorly on the country. Same thing with bullying, a lot of the staff don't like dealing with it and publicizing it because suddenly the school's image is tarnished, even if that comes at the cost of students becoming traumatized, which honestly they probably don't give a fuck about anyway with how Japan treats mental health.
Jun 1, 2021 2:20 PM
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Onii Chan

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Mar 2018
1803
I live in Canada and the bullying is even more extreme than depicted in Japan, and Canada is a country with a reputation for having a very nice and polite population. I have no doubts at least some degree of the bullying in Japan is accurately depicted in anime.
Jun 1, 2021 2:22 PM

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Jan 2013
1181
uwaifutrsh said:
yes it is, i have a friend who came to the US from Japan, because every school he went to he would get bullied, and from what it sounds like, if the teachers dont see it, then they wont do anything about it. and im pretty sure that most of their youth related suicides are from bullying. feels bad.
he also said that what he expierenced is worse than what any anime has shown, but idk about that


lol go watch Mahou Shoujo Site. If it was worse than that I don't see how your friend wouldn't be dead by now. At the very least they should be calling the police, fuck the schools and internal investigations. Assault is a crime. Rape is a crime. Theft is a crime. Property damage is a crime.
Jun 1, 2021 2:29 PM

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Apr 2020
1686
Only cringe writers resort to that stuff. That stuff from JJK probably hardly ever happens, maybe before the 2000's it was more prevalent. But JJK takes place around our time.

HxH remains the GOAT, fictional setting but keeps it more real than all you m********
Jun 1, 2021 2:38 PM

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Sep 2017
3139
The bullying in most anime is on the contrary lighter than reality imo (not everytime, fortunately, but still)


In anime it's mostly verbal bullying and intimidation or stealing the student's shoes/throwing them into the toilet (hi 3-gatsu)

In real life bullying can be more brutal, and it has even worse repercussions on the student
(and here I'm talking about bullying leading to the student's suicide, it already happened with middleschoolers in my country)
Jun 1, 2021 2:39 PM

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Jun 2019
336
I have been face bullying but luckily it's not that ectemm. I think in almost every school teachers always ignore the casual bullying. Not in Japan but I heard about lots of real bullying shit in my country. If you want to experience more extreme and hardcore bullying you can try Wonder egg priority.
Jun 1, 2021 2:47 PM

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Mar 2018
25
Kaasfondue said:
Only HxH remains the GOAT, fictional setting but keeps it more real than all you m********


You're repping one of the most popular/highest rated anime on this site
Almost everyone already loves that show.
Josuke99Jun 1, 2021 2:51 PM
Jun 1, 2021 2:49 PM

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Aug 2018
17117
Yeah, extreme bullying happens in Japan. How often, I'm not so sure.
Jun 1, 2021 4:22 PM
🦆👑

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Jan 2020
66666
Bullying is common in a lot of places so naturally, I would say it's safe to assume there's moments here and there that are that extreme



Jun 1, 2021 4:27 PM

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Jan 2019
2448
As far as I know, bullying is common in every country.
Jun 1, 2021 4:31 PM

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Apr 2020
2186
I saw more bullying within my schooling in Australia than I did while living in Japan. I was definitely othered as a white boy in a fairly small highschool of all Japanese students but it was more just people not talking to me.

At my highschool in Australia, there were several "fights" where it was like 4 students v 1 and the 1 usually ended up in hospital. There was a lot of fake gang mentality.

Edit: oh also there was a group of boys that would go around town at night looking for men they perceived to be gay with the intent to beat them. One of these boys was a neighbour of mine.
Jun 1, 2021 7:04 PM
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Jun 2020
776
well, there was a japanese Nike commercial about racism, somehow it got more dislikes than likes, because it seems there are people can't accept that Japan has bullying related to racism there, or just racism in general. Unfortunately, it's historical the reason why it happens, and why they are so nationalist, so i would guess bullying related to that exists, the same goes to the "normal" bullying, which is the one that is depicted in anime the most.
Nissan 350Z
Jun 1, 2021 7:09 PM

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Dec 2018
2170
This reminds me of a Youtube vid I avoided yesterday, about "How Twitter bullied a Japanese wrestler to suicide". Not sure if it's Japanese Twitter or worldwide Twitter, which I'm sure is equally ass. But I guess with all their strict principles and moral codes, it wouldn't surprise me if bullying is common in Japan. Though I'm not quite sure about the degree. I suspect it would rarely be as bad as how entertainment media portrays it.
. . .
Jun 1, 2021 7:59 PM

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Sep 2014
9563
Why only Japan? This sort of things happen all around the world except in your school apparently. I live in Canada and I've seen some fucked up shit similar to what's in anime, so I wouldn't be surprised if it does happen anywhere else in the world. And my remark was only based from my limited awareness of my surrounding. I'm confidently thinking there are worse things going on hidden from the public eyes.
Jun 1, 2021 8:18 PM

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Aug 2020
1138
If bullying in Japan is not like in koe no katachi, I will be disappointed.
a wise user of MAL said:
Just to clarify, adaptations should absolutely stand on their own
Jun 1, 2021 8:28 PM

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Apr 2018
3218
Yes, nowadays bullying isn't that extreme. Pre 2010s, bullying gets to that degree in Asia in general. In China it is much worse because of Films like Young and Dangerous, which got the film banned.
Jun 1, 2021 9:29 PM

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Mar 2020
407
I think it's safe to assume that it is like that, but I think most of the times bullying is just psychological and more like isolating someone type of thing
Jun 2, 2021 12:49 PM
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Jul 2018
564055
Bullying is bad everywhere from what I've heard, Japanese bullying probably isn't much different from other places.
Jun 2, 2021 1:15 PM
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Jul 2020
594
Well here in my country bullying is not much violent. Rather it leans towards the humiliation side
like being made to strip naked and do poses.
It has become rather a norm for seniors to bully the Junior and if you complain to authority,stuff happens. It's mostly happens in junior year, so you have to bear with it for one year
Jun 2, 2021 1:26 PM

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Jan 2013
2186
Bro where I'm from people would BEAT YOUR ASS - Japanese bullying is pussy shit.
Jun 2, 2021 1:31 PM
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Oct 2020
73
i cant really say that it is but sadly the teenage suic*ide rates in japan says it all
𝕿𝖔 𝖑𝖎𝖛𝖊 𝖎𝖘 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖗𝖆𝖗𝖊𝖘𝖙 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖎𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖜𝖔𝖗𝖑𝖉. 𝕸𝖔𝖘𝖙 𝖕𝖊𝖔𝖕𝖑𝖊 𝖏𝖚𝖘𝖙 𝖊𝖝𝖎𝖘𝖙
Jun 2, 2021 1:36 PM
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Oct 2020
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Leoradiuju2004 said:
If bullying in Japan is not like in koe no katachi, I will be disappointed.
it can be worse unfortunately like psychical bullying is pretty present in every school
𝕿𝖔 𝖑𝖎𝖛𝖊 𝖎𝖘 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖗𝖆𝖗𝖊𝖘𝖙 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖎𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖜𝖔𝖗𝖑𝖉. 𝕸𝖔𝖘𝖙 𝖕𝖊𝖔𝖕𝖑𝖊 𝖏𝖚𝖘𝖙 𝖊𝖝𝖎𝖘𝖙
Jun 2, 2021 1:55 PM

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Nov 2016
32007
The most extreme thing I've witnessed was an asian guy that was forced to jump out of the window from the first floor.

There was also that fat goth girl who was constantly bullied by pretty much the whole school. She also had scars from hurting herself on her thighs, which apparently made her an even easier target.

Anyway, one day during recess it happened. A guy I used to know from the soccer field was bored. He already had a bit beef with the chick and we saw her going through the big hall. He started off with shouting "Sarah Schenkel" which essentially means Sarah thigh. That caught the attention of everyone around. People started to flock around her. She was ignoring the situation and kept going at a fast pace. Then the guy kicked her from behind. Not as hard as to make her fall, but she stumbled slighlty. He went for another kick and another guy spat at her. Yet another guy joined and before I even realized it everyone did. The girl switched from walking fast to running. The crowd went after her for a few meters until they let her off.

That was pretty fucked up tbh.

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Jun 6, 2021 5:01 PM

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Aug 2017
11501
It looks worse in real life at least in Japan.
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Jun 6, 2021 5:07 PM

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Aug 2018
8394
I highly doubt it. Most bullying in anime is so over the top and melodramatic, it's impossible to take seriously. If the author had any experience with real bullying, they'd write it believably. Like how Mob Psycho did.
Jun 7, 2021 1:01 AM

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Apr 2020
351
Well i guess American Shows/Movies show even more hardcore bullying than any anime do. There they actually beat people up, put their heads in the toilets or destroy their phones, food and more.

Or which anime are you talking about?
Jun 7, 2021 2:57 AM

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Oct 2008
8519
If anything anime is sugarcoating it. Bullying is much, much worse. And is a deadly circle.

A kid is bullied for simply standing out, in some way or another. The kid bullying him/her relieves stress by the act of bullying. And from this point on, the sicle is repeated, or degrades further and then repeats itself.
Jun 7, 2021 3:01 AM

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Jul 2019
2289
I have heard that Japanese School bullying is very extreme compared to many countries. There have been times when students have committed suicide due to bullying.
Jun 7, 2021 5:36 AM

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Jan 2021
109
Don't really have much knowledge about Japanese schools but in Korea it used to be common to line for example desks with razorblades so I imagine Japan is going to be similarly fucked up.
Bullying can get so much worse and so much more cruel than you'd think.
Jun 7, 2021 5:57 AM

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Dec 2015
2800
Bullying in Japan is one of the cases why the country has been dying the last 10 years.

When it comes to males that gets bullied, they lose interested in humans and end up single or in a relationship with a 2D girl or boy.

Cases like this is rather common.

Jun 7, 2021 5:59 AM

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Feb 2008
495
Depictions of bullying in anime versus what I’ve heard or seen…hmmm… Well, a person I know moved back to Tokyo from Osaka because of the bullying their son experienced in school. Kid was in mid years of elementary school I think. Aside from that, I haven’t come across any others. Not to say it doesn’t happen. I once took in a student as a refugee in one of my classes because she wasn’t getting along with some students from her regular schoo in another class. Given the wrong conditions that could’ve boiled over as bullying at her regular school.
Aug 6, 2021 10:42 AM
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Jul 2021
126
I don't live in Japan so I'm not aware of the situation there, but bullying is everywhere. And I am happy that there are anime that address these social issues, especially bullying, because it is the most dangerous challenge a person may face, but you must be strong because one day you will find someone who understands you and loves you as you are.

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