Reisetsu(civility&sbquomanner&sbquocourtesy&sbquopropriety)

Reisetsu means code of conduct&sbquo courtesy&sbquo or manner to acknowledge and respect other people's sense of order in human relationships and social life. This is without doubt the essence of human existence related to order and mutual understanding in any cultural system&sbquo east or west. Moreover&sbquo reisetsu has been handed down as the rules of etiquette to acknowledge and maintain each other`s sense of order in the process of establishing ethnicity&sbquo religious quality and society. There exist strong discriminatory feelings in human relationships&sbquo and these can be eliminated only by the order of the code of conduct in reisetsu. As the proverb says&sbquo "Sharp stomachs make short graces(reisetsu)." such etiquette &sbquo courtesy&sbquo and manners will not gain social relevance unless the amenities of civilization are guaranteed. Considering the present state of international relations&sbquo it can be said that lack of respect&sbquo which is the opposite of acts based on reisetsu&sbquo is proliferating as if to destroy the culture of international diplomacy.
　The essence of design has an extremely close continuity or link with reisetsu and manners. As Moholy-Nagi once said in the Bauhaus era&sbquo "Design is an attitude towards society&sbquo" it can be considered that design is a form of etiquette in society&sbquo or directly linked to the establishment of social order. Is it too conclusive to say reisetsu or manners are the core of human-centered design? Anthropocentrism is not to prioritize human subjectivity&sbquo but to clarify the manners the human being should accomplish in the relationship between mankind and the environment or society&sbquo and even mutual relationships among human beings&sbquo and the relationship between the human being and artifacts. Losing reisetsu is congruent with such anti-social acts as unscrupulous littering. The ultimate examples of humankind lacking or losing reisetsu&sbquo for certain&sbquo are war and disputes&sbquo and racial and human rights discriminations. Design must always include the principles of reisetsu.

Copyright © 2009 Kazuo KAWASAKI All rights reserved.