Here are some interesting articles from The Atlantic’s archive:
1898: The Social and Domestic Life of Japan — written by a Japanese visitor to the US. Fascinating.
1941 (Feb): An American rationalizes the weaknesses they see in Japan as a reason to ignore Japan. Whoops.
1947: The Japanese language needs to be simplified if the nation is going to prosper.
1964: Can Japan pull off the Olympics?
1986: The Japanese Are Different From You and Me, i.e., trying to understand our “competitors”
1986: Why are the Japanese thin? The author claims “no fat” but “less sugar” also plays a role, IMO.
1989: Americans may have a hard time competing with the Japanese when it’s culturally acceptable to sacrifice one’s self (long hours, low consumption) for the greater good.