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Second place
David Guttenfelder The Associated Press
"THE LONELY MAN"
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Japanese 'salary men' company employees gather after work in gravel
lot outside the Imperial Palace overlooking the financial district
of Tokyo in September 2006. The loyal, black-suited cog of Japan Inc.
_ 'the Salary Man' _ has been the symbol of Japan's post-war economic
miracle.
But monotonous commutes, long days marked by emasculating
work, absence from family, and the isolation of trying to get ahead
in a business culture where individual achievement is frowned upon
often makes the life of the Salary Man a lonely struggle.
Moving
through the landscape of Tokyo like anonymous ghosts, the salary man
is up at dawn for his two-hour train commute. His workday begins at
8:30 a.m., when the tardy bell sounds in his office. After an 11-hour
day, there is obligatory excessive drinking and karaoke with superiors.
The last train home leaves at midnight. Repeat... |
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