Essay Questions

Summarize Kondo's ideology in "Why I can't Keep My house in Order."

Kondo writes, “In most societies tidying, the job that keeps a home livable, is completely disregarded because of the misconception that the basic ability to tidy is acquired experience and therefore doesn’t require training.” Kondo implies that tidiness is not an inherent skill. Individuals ought to be trained on neatness for them to be organized. If neatness were an innate ability, there would be no clutters anywhere.

Which postmodern style does Kondo employ in “Tidy a little a day and you’ll be tidying forever”?

Kondo writes, “The subject of tidying first caught my attention when I was in junior high school. I came across a book called The Art of Discarding by Nagisa Tatsumi (Takarajishama, Inc.), which explained the importance of throwing things away.” Alluding to Tatsumi’s text and its impact on her ideology is Intertextuality. The allusion is substantial in accentuating the essence of tidiness which Tatsumi metaphorically equates to an art.

How does tiding foster clarity in one’s life?

In the course of tidying, one reorganizes various items under one's own possession. Such items may have been acquired in the past and can be useful when formulating future decisions. Some possessions hold remarkable memories that are received in the course of tidying up especially when one comes upon the treasured item. The item could have been forgiven had the tidying not transpired. In other cases, some sentimental possessions can be disposed of in the course of tidying to keep the sad memories which they represent at bay.