My friend who eats fermented soybeans

A friend of mine eats natto, which is basically fermented soybeans. He's doesn't really enjoy it, but neither does he dislike it. Eating natto is just part of living a health life, one more thing in addition to exercising, getting enough sleep, and eating fruits and vegetables. He sometimes has natto rolls when he goes out for sushi, and he eats natto at home too, mixed with a variety of ingredients such as salmon. The natto does kill most of the salmon flavor though. He likes the light natto a little better than the dark natto. My friend -- we will call him Fred -- doesn't tell anyone Japanese about his natto-eating unless he is asked directly.

He is not ashamed of eating natto, but just doesn't want to participate in the natto dialogue. Natto, if you have never tasted it before, has a rather strong taste. Fred won't even try and describe it. If I push him, he asks me to describe vegemite. I search for words and can only say that it is really strong and salty, not exactly an eloquent description. Fred relents and says that natto is really strong and tastes a bit like beans. He is the first to say that his description is not very good. If you really want to know what natto is like, buy some and try it sometime. Remember that natto is kind of a topping or something you mix with food. The same as with Australian vegemite, you don't eat it straight.

Due to natto's strong taste, many Japanese seem to love talking about natto. He thinks this is just one more example of the Japanese passion for Japan and all things Japanese. Historically, people in colder climates in Japan ate natto as it would spoil quickly in the warmer climes. Fred doesn't really care that much about natto or natto history. Fred says natto is an acquired taste like vegemite, beer or blue cheese. Fred says to refer to Wikipedia if you want to know more.

Returning to the natto dialogue, many Japanese ask Westerners if they can eat natto. This is one of the stock questions in Japan, right up there with can you use chopsticks and what do you think about Japan. Answer negatively and you reinforce the questioner's originally held belief that Japan and Japanese are unique and basically only Japanese eat natto. Fred isn't sure if the question, when asked in English, uses the word can due to a mistake in English or due to a belief that eating natto is an ability. Either you can or you can't. Anyway, Fred doesn't like to affirm such beliefs.

Fred doesn't want to say he eats natto though for other reasons. If he replies affirmatively, that just leads to other questions or comments about him, other Westerners, and natto eating. Comments range from those saying that is incredible that he eats natto to comments that he is more Japanese than some Japanese. Fred is never sure how to respond to any of this. Fred doesn't want to be rude or insult anybody, but he doesn't really follow the logic. Eating natto really has no connection with nationality. Nor does it connect with national culture. Regional culture, yes, but national culture no. Fred simply doesn't want to hear what he privately considers more silliness. All cultures have their own silliness and Fred has no desire to listen to any of it - not Japanese and not American.

Natto is just another food to Fred and he would just like to be able to eat his natto in peace and not have to talk about it.

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At Aaron Language Services (www.aaronlanguage.com/), we offer translation from Japanese to English, editing of English and other European languages, and online English coaching to a primarily Japanese client base.

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