The State of the Kiss in Modern Japan

There is all kinds of kissing all over the world, but traditionally, in Japan there has only been two kinds and they are the romantic kissing done by couples or kissing babies.  Public displays of affection have always been frowned upon, and still are: a kiss on the lips is serious business.

Not to mention how unnaturally kissing comes to most Japanese.  The moment for a romantic kiss on any Japanese drama looks excruciatingly uncomfortable, especially in comparison to the ”eat each other up” passion of western dramas.  The jidaigeki, or Japanese period dramas, feature absolutely no kissing.  With this in mind, SK Planet Japan did a survey on 400 20 to 30-year-old men and women to find out young Japanese people’s views on kissing—which is actually pretty interesting considering that kissing has always been an almost taboo subject.

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