The media have been replete this week with comparisons between Japan’s Princess Mako marrying the commoner Kei Komuro and Britain’s Prince Harry marrying the commoner Meghan Markle. Yet a cursory reading of their respective courtships, engagements, and weddings would disabuse any reasonable mind of those comparisons.
Therefore, I see no point in doing any disabusing here. Except I’d be remiss not to note that nothing betrays such comparisons quite like their wedding days. After all, Harry and Meghan’s was truly an occasion fit for a prince; whereas Mako and Kei’s was clearly one fit for a pauper.
Also, it might just be me, but the way the “mature” Mako still pulls of that endearing coy look makes the one the virginal Lady Di made famous look positively courtesan.
Anyway, here in part is how The New York Times reported on this occasion on Tuesday:
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When Princess Mako, 30, a niece of the current emperor and an older sister of the likely future sovereign, married on Tuesday, there was just a simple trip to a registry office in Tokyo, handled by royal representatives. …
The path to that tender moment had been torturous. To be with Mr. Komuro, a commoner, Princess Mako had to renounce her royal heritage.
Princess Mako’s father withheld approval of the marriage, citing the curdled public opinion. The paparazzi chased Mr. Komuro, 30, after he left for New York to attend Fordham Law School and tracked his shaggy hair and food truck habits. Savage attacks on social media left the princess suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
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It’s really a shame that Japanese royalists trolled Mako and Kei so mercilessly. But, apropos of comparisons, Mako clearly showed Harry the direct, discreet, and dignified way to marry for love. For she not only renounced her royal status with regal serenity, but also rejected the $1.4 million royal dowry she was entitled to without any reported resentment.
Still, the stress Mako suffered must have made that which caused Naomi Osaka to “withdraw” so famously seem like little more than fleeting anxiety. But you’d think the Japanese people would be a little more lenient and understanding with Mako after their unreasonable expectations forced Crown Princess Masako to become a veritable recluse.
As it happened, I commented on Masako’s ordeal in “A Royal Disappointment: Masako Owada – the putative Princess Diana of Japan,” September 20, 2005, and “Japan’s Crown Princess Resumes Official Duties,” March 4, 2009.
In any event, reports are that the newlyweds plan to relocate to New York City, where Kei has already secured work at a law firm, and I suspect museums are already vying for the cachet of having Mako on staff.
But, here too, viral comparisons with Harry and Meghan do this couple an injustice. Because, when it comes to royals living authentic lives in exile, Mako and Kei will be like genuine diamond compared with the cubic-zirconia lifestyle Harry and Meghan are living, which is tantamount to trying to live like British royals in America without all the fussy duties and responsibilities.
Related commentaries:
Masako… Harry and Meghan… Osaka withdraws… Osaka podcast…
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