In my first days in Japan i really was surprised seing so many pannels, telling me what to do and what not. I recall someone telling me about a sign saying "stick to the rules". Of course there is no such sign, but that's the impression you get.So i have been thinking about that. It's not that there are more or radically different things you are told to do/omit. So what's the fuzz about it?
As you can see on this page, japanese signs tend to be manga style. They're funny and most imortant of all, these images are real eyecatchers. (Who cares for all the "strictly forbidden"blabla to be seen in western countries anyway). It's just like advertisement. By the way mangas are rooted in early stage publishing business, where one-sheeted graphic stories for the (low educated) masses preceeded modern newspapers. So the imagry is something to be understood by everyone.
Of course rules and social order is something very very important in this country. That doesn't only mean you have to "stick to the rules" but also that the authority is responsible to provide and ensutre them, to never leave the subject without guidance.
Moreover, the concept of a soul, in that special case the notion of a good and or bad conciousness rooted in christianism, is not that important. Moral is something rather practical. It's achildrens phrase "If noone sees it, it's ok".So the omnipresence of signs is also intended to remind you of the social framework you're alway in, even if "noone sees"...
