Wasshoi! Magazine #1 by Wasshoi! Magazine

WASSHOIMAGAZINE.ORG/MAGAZINE • ISSUE 1, AUTUMN 2020

WASSHOI! Interdisciplinary Magazine on Japan

A SIMPLE PHOTOGRAPH Discoveries and Research into Japan and Switzerland

NETSUKE 根付: A LOST TRADITION An Accessory out of Fashion

LOCATING JAZZ IN INTERWAR JAPAN Dance Halls, Jazz CoffeeHouses and Cafés

ON SHINTO’S SACRED BOTANY When Myths Speak about

WASSHOI! Meaning & History

Long Forgotten Pasts 1

TABLE OF CONTENTS 1

EDITORIAL 3

WASSHOI! A POWERFUL CHEER FOR ALL TO JOIN AS ONE ARTS

HISTORY

KEYNOTE

A SIMPLE PHOTOGRAPH: DISCOVERIES AND RESEARCH INTO JAPAN AND SWITZERLAND PROF. DR. HANS BJARNE THOMSEN 13

ANTHROPOLOGY

HISTORY

GENDER ROLES AND PHILIPPINE BRIDES IN TŌHOKU KIMBERLEY SCHLEGEL 17

ARTS

NETSUKE 根付: A LOST TRADITION – AN ACCESSORY OUT OF FASHION LUIGI ZENI 21

EDUCATION

SOCIOLOGY

BILINGUAL

「多文化共生社会」の実現をめぐる教育の役割 THE ROLE OF EDUCATION IN BUILDING A MULTICULTURAL SOCIETY HARUKA SHIMOGAI, AMELIA LIPKO (TRANS.) 31

MUSIC

HISTORY

LOCATING JAZZ IN INTERWAR JAPAN: DANCE HALLS, JAZZ COFFEEHOUSES AND CAFÉS AUREL BAELE

POPULAR CULTURE

RELIGION AND MYTHOLOGY

KITSUNE 狐: THE JAPANESE FOX – ITS AMBIVALENT PRESENCE IN JAPANESE RELIGION, MYTHOLOGY AND CULTURE PAOLA CITTERIO 45

RELIGION AND MYTHOLOGY

HISTORY

ON SHINTO’S SACRED BOTANY: WHEN MYTHS SPEAK ABOUT LONG FORGOTTEN PASTS MARTY BORSOTTI 51

SOCIOLOGY

ANTHROPOLOGY

‘CRISIS 2025’: BABY BOOMERS IN NEED OF CAREGIVERS SAMIRA HÜSLER 57

FILM

REVIEW: DRUNKEN ANGEL MANUEL JOSE FLORES AGUILAR 59

MUSIC

REVIEW: YAMAZAKI AOI – HIDDEN GEM OF HOKKAIDŌ JULES LAURENTI

EDITORIAL a u r e l b a el e , l ui g i z eni and m arty bors ot t i People’s lives connect like threads intertwined in a multitude of possible patterns. Each unique interaction between individuals is a weaving of minds that can lead to a long-lasting relationship; interlaced perspectives allowing ideas to be continuously exchanged, adapted, and rearranged. It was during a workshop at Kansai University in September 2019 that the lives of this magazine’s two founders were joined together. The first link in this international project was made. Soon, the founding duo became a trio and a decision was taken: to turn our ideas into concrete actions. During the Spring of 2020, when the pandemic forced many across the world into isolation, we managed to band together digitally and bring Wasshoi!: Interdisciplinary Magazine on Japan into reality. This was made possible by the enthusiasm and reliability of all the members now contributing to this young project. The main reasoning behind this project stems from a consideration of cultural panorama related to Japan. There is already an abundance of information to be found, both in digital and physical formats, yet we thought that we could offer something original and innovative. We found our niche between the mainstream magazines, mainly covering touristic attractions and pop culture, and scholarly journals, which might prove difficult to access for the average reader. With Wasshoi! we hope to share academic knowledge with everyone who holds an interest in Japan. Therefore, the purpose of this magazine is to act as an ‘in-between’ source of information, combining the best of both mainstream and academic publications. Each article featured in Wasshoi! introduces a specific topic in a short and comprehensive way to spark the reader’s curiosity. Yet, we also strive to make our content verifiable and accurate by adopting footnotes, bibliographic references and a content-reviewed editing process. Wasshoi! aims to discover and explore the lesser-known aspects of Japan, by presenting a variety of insights into multiple topics. We hope that our magazine will inspire our readers and help in deepening knowledge and understanding of this complex country, its society, and its culture(s). In addition, the word, interdisciplinary - included in the magazine’s sub-heading - reflects the reality that Japanese studies, while bound by one language, are an amalgam of different academic disciplines. Therefore, we will present Japan from different perspectives throughout this magazine. Wasshoi! will strive to implement two additional features: bilingual articles (in English and Jap1

anese) and regular contributions from scholars, which will be highlighted as keynotes. For this first issue, Prof. Dr. Hans Bjarne Thomsen, Chair of the Section for East Asian Art History at the University of Zurich, trusted our project and kindly agreed to contribute with his article: ‘A Simple Photograph: Discoveries and Research Into Japan and Switzerland’. His article illustrates in a brilliant way how historical and little-known photographs can lead to illuminating new research questions. Following the trend of this digital age, our magazine will be published in a digital format only. This will allow us to ease the creative process behind the production of each issue and reach the reader more directly. However, a magazine still has some material costs, such as website hosting and domain acquisition. Therefore, we have included an option for readers to make donations to the project directly through our website. Every contribution will be gratefully received and go entirely towards the continuation of the magazine. Wasshoi! Magazine was conceived through the passion and ambition of young researchers and students who are eager to share their works related to Japanese studies. Following Prof. Thomsen’s contribution, Samira Hüsler will tackle the contemporary demographic challenges that Japan is facing. Next, Luigi Zeni will present netsuke - small carvings typically used as fashionable and functional accessories up to the late 19th century - and then Kimberley Schlegel will bring us back to social issues in the form of the role played by Filipino brides in revitalizing rural areas in the Tohoku region. Aurel Baele continues with an overview of pre-war Japanese jazz venues, where enjoying such music was more than just a simple pastime. The bilingual article by Haruka Shimogai featured in this issue deals with the possible role of education in Japan’s increasingly multicultural society. Thereafter, we will embark on a more historical journey with Paola Citterio, who will discuss how foxes became an important part of Japanese religion and popular culture. Marty Borsotti will conclude our first issue by explaining the role of plants during the formation of religious thoughts and practices in prehistoric and classical Japan. Finally, a remark on the choice for ‘wasshoi’ is needed. Nowadays the shout is used by a group of people during an event to create a positive atmosphere and raise morale. However, what is crucial here is that Wasshoi! stands for more than the tying of various threads. Wasshoi! also represents strong bonds and the enthusiasm gained from people coming together to make a common goal a success.

WASSHOI! A POWERFUL CHEER FOR ALL TO JOIN AS ONE MEANING & HISTORY ma r t y b orsotti If you have the chance to wander around in Japan during summertime, you might stumble upon a local festival (matsuri 祭り). Chances are that among the voices of people gathered to enjoy street food purchased at food stalls (yatai 屋台 ) you will hear distinguishable shouts resonating in the air. If you give in to your curiosity and follow them, you will come across a group of men wearing a traditional undergarment (fundoshi 褌 ) and a short-sleeved jacket (happi 法被 ), gathered to carry a huge palanquin (mikoshi 神輿 ). With people crowding to watch the scene, most probably the only thing you will hear loud and clear are the voices of the men, cheering: ‘Wasshoi! Wasshoi!’. ‘Wasshoi’ is a chant typically used by a group of people to synchronise their movements, encourage each other and, most importantly, gather strength to keep carrying a heavy load. Usually the team split in two, shouting ‘wasshoi, wasshoi!’ at each other to create a rhythm that will orchestrate their movements. This cheer is closely connected with festivals, when the community gathers together to celebrate their local deity (kami 神 ) and channel its protection. One of the core events of such a festival is the palanquin procession, a rite during which the deity is brought out of its shrine and carried throughout the area in a sacred palanquin. To extend the protection of the deity to its land the mikoshi is brought along an established path by a team usually made up of local residents or people who have a connection with the community. In almost all cases they are exclusively men, but some special events do engage women, an example of which can be the ‘Gal Mikoshi’ during Tenjin Matsuri in Osaka. A mikoshi can weight up to 1.5 tons, so carrying it is not an easy task. Therefore, members of the mikoshi team need to share its weight equally and synchronise their movements to ensure not only their safety, but also stability for their deity. And so, ‘wasshoi!’ was born – a powerful cheer that falls into the category of kiai 気合い , Japanese words meant to materialise the energy, strength and commitment of a person through a shout. There is actually no consensus on the origin or the meaning of ‘wasshoi’. The most probable hypothesis sees the constitution of the word during the late Edo period, 3

around the 18th century, when it came to signify the harmony and cohesion of a group. Nowadays, ‘wasshoi’ has become, first of all, a cheer meant to coordinate the movement of the mikoshi, embodying the efforts and the burning spirit of its bearers. As such, ‘wasshoi’ can be interpreted as a commitment of the individual to be a part of a group, the willingness to lend your strength for a shared goal. However, this feeling goes both ways – the group encouraging each individual to carry on with the heavy task. Finally, it is a shout the individual addresses to oneself in order to gather enough strength to go beyond one’s physical limits. In this way ‘wasshoi’ returns to its figurative meaning of being all together in harmony. Over time ‘wasshoi!’ came to be used also outside its festival context – it is not uncommon to hear it chanted during a sports event. In such a case, ‘wasshoi!’ conveys the crowd’s energy and support to the team. However, it is not necessarily a feature of cheerful events. During student protests of the 1960’s, ‘wasshoi!’ was one of the chants shouted by rioting students facing the police. Summing up, ‘wasshoi!’ is a powerful cheer that contains the will of an individual to gather one’s strength and transmit it to the group. It is an aid that encourages all members of a group and allows them to act as one entity. At last, it is a metaphor for the commitment to work towards a common goal. And it is together we stand as one body and soul, we the people carrying this project, so without further ado let us call out together this cheer that gathers us all and musters our strength: ‘Wasshoi! Wasshoi! Wasshoi!’

Hakata Gion Yamakasa festival in Fukuoka

5 Fig. 1 Members of the Swiss Rifle Club, 1871*

ARTS HISTORY

A SIMPLE PHOTOGRAPH

DISCOVERIES AND RESEARCH INTO JAPAN AND SWITZERLAND prof. dr. hans bjarne thomsen university of zurich section for east asian art history How do we select our research topics? For some it may be an auspicious happening, a trip to an exciting new location, or the discovery of a previously unknown document. For others it may have been a sudden inspiration while washing dishes or taking a shower. For me, it was a simple photograph. In fact, one of the main research topics of my department has arisen due to this photograph (Fig. 1). It shows a group of well-dressed men, most holding rifles, in an outdoor location. There seems to be a celebration of sorts, with a central pavilion clad in garlands of leaves and with flags flying in various places. From the way these men are positioned, there is an implied hierarchy â&#x20AC;&#x201C; presumably with the more prominent individuals at the front, and those of lower status receding towards the far background. In a contemporary newspaper, we can see the same photograph, but without the names of the people depicted. The newspaper titles the event as the meeting of the Swiss Rifle Club in Yokohama in 1872. What is so special about the photograph? It is in the series of names underneath, signed by Charles Ziegler, who supplies a small fillip under his 6

Fig. 2 Charles Ziegler and friends enjoying swimming at Miura Beach, 1870s*

name, signaling that he wrote the inscription. The names are significant, as they portray a Swiss community that was active in Yokohama at this time. Moreover, the inscription identifies the names of the individual members. Who are they then? Going through the figures, from left to right, we can identify them as:

Caspar Müller Swiss technician and silk production engineer. An expert in Italian spinning techniques and influential in the knowledge transfer of modern European technology to Japan. Brought to Japan in 1869 by Siber and Brennwald. Helped to create Japan’s first spinning factory in Maebashi in 1970, designing silk spinning plants 7

in Tsukiji in 1871 and Akasaka in 1873. Returned to Switzerland in 1874.

J.M. Jacquemont Swiss trader and friend of Brennwald, who described the death of Jacquemont’s son in his diary. Lived in Yokohama with his wife, daughter and son – the children were born in London. Arrived earlier than the other Swiss citizens as part of the British delegation.

Fritz Abegg (1839-?) Swiss trader and silk inspector. Became a partner in the Trade Company Bavier & Co. Later created companies with Luis Borel and Paul Colomb. Worked for Siber and Brennwald and then, finally, Sieber & Waser. Married the much younger Hermine Abegg (1860-?) in 1886 while on a short home trip – she accompanied him

back to Japan. Announced his permanent return to Switzerland at the Swiss consulate in 1892, having lived in Japan for almost 30 years.

A. Bachmann (1821-1873)

James Fauvre-Brandt

F. Colomb

(1841-1923)

Arrived in Japan during the 1863 mission at 22 years of age, staying in Japan until his death. Married a Japanese woman and founded a successful import company. Played an important role in the rebellion of the Satsuma and Chōshū domains (which led to the establishment of the Meiji regime) with modern French infantry rifles. With his extensive connections, was actively involved in trade between Japan and Europe during his lifetime. Buried in the Foreigner’s Cemetery in Yokohama.

Charles Ziegler (1833-1912) Swiss trader from Winterthur. Founder of Ziegler & Co. Silk inspector and actively involved with the export of raw silk from Japan. Returned to Winterthur with his wife and three boys, and then built a large house in the city, now owned by Kanton Zurich.

Eduard de Bavier (1842-1926) Swiss trader from Chur. Authority on silk production in East Asia. Founded a highly successful trading company with branches across the world. Employed a number of his brothers over the years in key positions. Retired with great wealth to Switzerland.

A. Mottu Swiss trader and president of the Swiss Rifle Club. Worked in the trading company, Vermale, Schoene & Milsom Co. This company later became Schoene & Mottu between 1882-96 with Mottu as its partner.

Swiss trader and clerk at Sieber & Brennwald Trade and Insurance (which later became DKSH).

Swiss trader, active in Yokohama as a merchant in Swiss watches. Funder of J. Colomb & Co. Was a nephew of Aimé Humbert, the leader of the Swiss mission who successfully concluded a treaty between the two countries in 1864. Wrote a best-selling book about Japan.

H. de Freudenreich Swiss trader and diplomat. Not much is presently known about this enigmatic person.

Hermann Siber (1842-1918) Swiss trader from Zurich. Founding partner of Siber & Brennwald Trade and Insurance (DKSH). Acting consul general for Switzerland, 1865.

Louis Borel Swiss trader and resident of Yokohama.

François Perregaux (1834-1877)

Swiss trader from Le Locle. Watch dealer and co-founder of the Girard-Perregaux watch company.

Arnold Dumelin (1844-1905) Swiss trader from Frauenfeld. Worked in the Siber & Brennwald Trade and Insurance company (DKSH). Was the consul general for Switzerland from 1888-93. Returned to Switzerland in old age and married a young woman from Frauenfeld.

A. Schmidt Swiss trader living in Yokohama. 8

Casper Brennwald (1838-1899) Swiss trader and co-founder of DKSH. Consul general for Switzerland, 18661881. Left behind an extensive diary during his years in Japan, filled with valuable information, presently in the archives of DKSH; it is being translated and researched by the National Museum for Japanese History. Arrived in Japan in 1863 as Aimé Humbert’s secretary and soon teamed up with another Swiss businessman, Hermann Siber; together founding, in 1864, a trading house that is still thriving throughout Asia: Diethelm Keller Siber Hegner.

Arnold Wolff (1846-1909) Worked as partner in Siber & Brennwald Trade and Insurance (DKSH). Also worked as the consul general for Switzerland, 1881-87.

G. Dorn Swiss trader and assistant at the C & J Favre Brandt Co. Working from the image in this way, it was possible to identify, at least by name, almost everyone in the photograph, including an Englishman (Mr Collins on the extreme right 1). 2 Obviously, many details still need to be fleshed out. It is an unfortunate fact that the biographies of the Japanese men in the far background remain unknown. The Swiss in Japan formed an influential group of people, creating several of their own companies, some of which are still in existence today. This suggests a close-knit community active in various fields. They were members of an informal club, generally spending many years in Japan (for some, thirty years or more), where they learned the language and came to know the culture. Those who did return to Switzerland, rich from their years in Japan, brought back with them many Japanese works of art, which were later donated to local institutions. 9

Through the photograph and the backgrounds of the individuals, it became possible to understand the mystery of why so many Japanese works of art – that differ greatly from mere tourist souvenirs – were donated to museums in Switzerland. The long-time exposure to and presumed study of Japanese culture must have given these Swiss traders significant insight into the Japanese arts. The short biographies above (and much more) were gathered through: the identification of the person in the photograph and his city of origin; by contacting local Swiss archives and the local governments for information (such as applications for passports, birth and death dates, and names of wives and descendants); finding descendants and asking them if they had any information, photographs, or personal effects; and exploring local newspapers, which would often carry articles on their illustrious fellow citizens who had travelled to the other side of the globe. Architectural traces were also found, as many rich returnees would build great mansions in their home towns (Ziegler, Dumelin) or buy local landmarks, such as castles (Bavier). A grandson of Dumelin still had, in a corner of his basement, two large notebooks containing copies of all official business letters hand-written by his grandfather while he was working as the Swiss consul in Yokohama from 1888-93. This has proved to be an extremely valuable document, as it gives us insight into the workings of a Swiss consul who was at the same time working as a merchant in Japan. This type of work carried out by merchants was a trademark of Swiss diplomacy at the time. The letters are written in English, German, and French and provide a treasure trove of information, for example, the news that one hundred mulberry trees were sent from Japan to Ticino in order to help the local silk production in southern Switzerland. The grandson

graciously agreed to donate the documents to the Swiss Federal Archives, where they now hold an honoured place. 3 Likewise, other connections gave valuable findings, such as the aforementioned Charles Ziegler archives, which provided numerous original photographs, kindly donated to the photography collection of the Section for East Asian Art History at the University of Zurich. Examples include images of Zieglerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s company members, where the order of importance is plain to see: Ziegler and his Swiss partner, flanked by Chinese men and, in a clearly lesser position, Japanese colleagues. (Due to their language proficiency and experience with foreign trade in Chinese ports, many Yokohama companies hired Chinese specialists to guide their business.) Other photographs in the collection show the Ziegler family at leisure, on travels, in their summerhouse, bathing by the beach (Fig. 2), and so on. There is an obligatory image of Ziegler

Henry Collins was an English journalist who first worked for the China Mail and then for the Japan Herald newspaper in Yokohama. He later became a printing manager for the Japan Mail newspaper. 2 I hereby acknowledge the help that I received from Mr Bernd Lepach and his Meiji-Portraits project. See: http://meiji-portraits.de/ 3 For more information: https:// www.news.uzh.ch/de/articles/2015/ arnold-dumelin.html 1

and friends by the Kamakura Daibutsu (Fig. 4) and even one of the previously mentioned Rifle Club meeting, taken from another angle, but clearly at the same location (Fig. 3). Such images dispel the presumption that in the latter half of the 19 th century, Yokohama photography was catered exclusively to tourists, and fea-

Fig. 3 Meeting of the Swiss Rifle Club, 1871*

Fig. 4 Charles Ziegler and friends at/on the Kamakura Daibutsu, 1870s*

tured only famous sights of Japan and various genre scenes reenacted within photography studios. 4 While these undoubtedly existed in great numbers and many were exquisitely hand-coloured and mounted in albums, we also need to be aware of the photographs produced for and by local residents, both native and foreign, who were interested in documenting their lives in Japan. 5 Another point that has become abundantly clear through the research is the fragility of such legacies. Switzerland is perhaps outstanding in this respect, as many objects and documents could be found and institutions have generally recorded the provenance of their collections. Yet this is also partly a race against time, as some of the private collections have been consigned to local auction houses, from where they have been scattered to the winds, without any trace of the collector who brought them to Switzerland or records of their origins. Auction houses tend to clear all signs of provenance and thus the item loses its history. While financial incentives are clear, it is, nonetheless, a great loss when this happens – for instance, when the entire archival documents of Hugo Wolff (who also worked as a Swiss consul in Yokohama) were discarded during a house renovation, just a few months before I was able to identify the descendant who had received the papers. None of this would have happened, were it not for an unexpected encounter with a simple photograph in a sunny Winterthur terrace. It also gives us an important lesson. For Japan-related researchers it is not enough to react to texts, images, and objects that have long been available. We must be active and seek out new understandings based on new discoveries. This photograph has shown how one simple object can influence various fields: Swiss and Japanese history, diplomatic history, museum studies, art history, and global studies. The object is to make such

As, for example, Johannes Bächer, ‘Das kommerzielle Bild Japans: Souvenierfotographie des 19. Jahrhunderts’, in Paul Hempel, et al, eds., Fragende Blicke: Neun Zugänge zu Ethnografischen Fotographien. München: Institut für Ethnologie der LudwigMaximilians-Universität München, 2019, 118-126. 5 See description of such an album in Katrin Baumgarten, ‘Ein Glücksfall der Erinnerung – Impressionen deutschen Lebens in Japan während der Meiji-Zeit: Der Aufenthalt des Marine-Stabarztes Dr. Richard Kleffel in Yokohama im Spiegel von Fotografien und Tagebüchern (1887–1889)’. OAG Notizen (Dec., 2018), 11-39. 4

discoveries that help to illuminate our disciplines, in this case, rediscover a history of contact between Switzerland and Japan: the artefacts, the personal histories, and their many connections. In short, the purpose is to make objects speak of a forgotten past.

* All the photographs belong to the Collection of the Section for East Asian Art at the University of Zurich.

ANTHROPOLOGY HISTORY

GENDER ROLES AND PHILIPPINE BRIDES IN TŌHOKU kimbe rly s chl e ge l

Hanayome-san 花嫁: Asian Brides of Japanese Farmers The societal issues of an ageing population and low birth rates already posed problems in the late 1970s – especially in rural parts of Japan, where these issues were accompanied by a lack of young Japanese women available for marriage. In Tōhoku, located in the northeast of Honshū, the situation was so dire that it endangered the existence of some rural villages during the 1980s. Reasons for this surplus of single Japanese farmers were manifold, but a major influence seemed to be the incompatibility of the predominant, traditional family structure with the identities and modern gender roles of young Japanese women. The solution to this imbalance in the marriage market was to ‘import’ Asian brides. In this regard, Japan is seen as a special case, as the ‘mail order bride’ phenomenon was initially supported by private agencies as well as local governments. 1 These foreign brides, also named hanayome-san, were often painted as victims by the public and in academia, until more qualitative and gender-focused research into migration acknowledged the brides’ agency in making their own decisions.

Family Structures and Changing Gender Roles The ie 家 , which was once the family structure of the samurai, ‘has been re13

garded as the core of Japanese cultural identity since the Meiji period’ 2, and was the predominant family structure in Japan until 1945. The ie is a patriarchal structure, viewing all members of the family as an economic unit, and in which the eldest son has the duty to continue the paternal lineage. Younger sons can establish their own branch families (bunke 分家 ), which remain subordinate to the main branch (honke 本家 ) of the family. If there is no male heir, one has to be adopted. Daughters, however, leave their original ie once they marry and enter their husband’s family. The hierarchy within this traditional system is strict: elders above youth and men above women. Thus, upon entering her husband’s ie, the bride occupies the lowest position in the family. In an attempt to democratise Japanese society, the nuclear family was introduced as the new family ideal during the American occupation. The married couple was supposed to be equal; but in the case of Japan, slightly transformed and distinct gender roles emerged within the nuclear family: the husband took over the role of the sole breadwinner and the wife became the housewife and family manager. As the husband was working long hours, the major anchor point within families was formed by the relationship between the mother and her children. In the 1970s and particularly in the 1980s, feminist ideals became more widespread amongst the Japanese population, leading to an increasing number of young Japanese women prioritising their careers over family. As a result, the ie family system, which has survived almost exclusively in the rural mountain regions of Japan, was at odds with the values of modern feminism. There are also other reasons at play, relating to changing gender roles. Why a woman desiring a career might not want to move to the countryside and become a farmer’s wife is obvious. The self-image of a career woman

Nicola Piper, 'Wife or Worker? Worker or Wife? Marriage and Cross-Border Migration in Contemporary Japan,' International Journal of Population Geography 9, no. 6 (2003): 463. 2 Emiko Ochiai, 'The Ie (Family) in Global Perspective,' in A Companion to the Anthropology of Japan, ed. Jennifer Robertson (Malden, Mass: Blackwell Publishing, 2005), 355. 1

undoubtedly clashes with the traditional view of an obedient and subservient housewife. However, why would a Japanese woman with the dream of being a housewife not want to move to Tōhoku? In this case, similarly to the career woman, the self-image of a modern Japanese housewife would clash with her position in the traditional hierarchy of the ie. The Japanese bride would occupy the lowest position in the family system and would have to submit to her in-laws, with whom she would be living. Occupying the lowest level within the ie is not compatible with a young woman’s wish to be a managing housewife, as this role requires a higher position in the hierarchy.

The Solution: Philippine Brides The solution to the surplus of single men was to attract Asian women of a marriageable age to these rural communities. While some brides came from Thailand and China, the majority came from the Philippines. Private agencies as well as local governments provided the means to promote such matchmaking between Japanese farmers and Filipino women. Although remittances to the brides’ families were often a part of the marriage contracts, many Filipino women searched for work outside the domestic sphere. Some did so to increase or finance such remittances. Other reasons include the desire to earn their own money, avoid conflict with in-laws, pursue self-develop14

Fig. 1 Nationwide development of international marriages from 1995-2005 between Japanese men and women with foreign nationality 3

ment, and dispel loneliness. The Asian brides were numerous and contributed to ameliorating the pressing societal issues of a low birth rate and high life expectancy. According to demographic statistics, the Philippine wives had a positive effect on the birth rate in rural areas, whilst also helping to care for the senior members of communities.

Criticism of Asian Brides and Ensuing Discussions of Gender and Agency This kind of marriage migration was so heavily criticised by the public that the involved communities had to withdraw official support. The phenomenon of ‘mail order brides’ was seen as official modern-day human trafficking, as exploitation of women from economically weaker countries, or abuse of these women as birth and work machines. Nonetheless, this kind of criticism was rebuffed by experts as well as the Philippine brides themselves, as it fails to acknowledge their agency. Furthermore, the criticism indicates the public’s, as well as academia’s, tenden15

cy to portray women as victims. For example, in migration studies, female migratory movements had only been seen as a reaction to male migration. Up until the emergence of second wave feminism and the increasing feminisation of global migration flows in the 1960s, the woman had always occupied a passive role, devoid of volition and victim to her circumstances. Thus, analysing the Philippine brides’ situation from such a perspective not only neglects their own decision-making power but frustrates the women themselves, because they are involuntarily cast as defenseless third-world women.

Philippine Wives as Female Agents While it cannot be said that these Philippine brides are unaffected by their circumstances, it is too simplistic to see them only as reactionaries. It is true that many hanayome emigrated to Japan in order to finance their own families, and when they arrived, initially occupied the lowest position in their husband’s family; they also had to negotiate their new social position with-

in the entire rural community. However, many communities set up programs that helped Philippine brides to orient themselves and to preserve their own culture. The low divorce rate of these international marriages tells the story of an overall successful integration into rural communities. Evidence of how Philippine brides have overruled their victimised femininity and asserted their agency is found through acts such as taking over the family finances, and the establishment and maintenance of an active support system by and for Philippine brides.

Data (in Japanese) from ‘The annual development of marriages divided by the nationality of husbands and wives,’ Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, https:// www.mhlw.go.jp/toukei/saikin/hw/jinkou/suii09/marr2.html 3

tims Reading Narratives of ‘Filipina Brides’ in Japan.' Critical Asian Studies 35, no. 3 (2003): 399–420.

Changing family structures, and their associated gender roles, have been identified as one of the reasons for the lack of Japanese women in the rural marriage market during the 1980s. Asian women, predominantly from the Philippines, helped to support and sustain those endangered communities in Tōhoku. Although these Philippine brides have often been seen as victims, new narratives of agency must be forged to show how these women have influenced and contributed to Japanese society.

Suggested Readings Chiavacci, David. 'Gender und internationale Migration: Heiratsmigrantinnen in den Bergregionen Nordostjapans.' In Gender im Blick: Geschlechterforschung in den Geschichts- und Kulturwissenschaften, edited by Karin Gludovatz and Anja Middelbeck-Varwick, 147-164. Frankfurt: Peter Lang, 2010. Ochiai, Emiko, 'The Ie (Family) in Global Perspective.' A Companion to the Anthropology of Japan, edited by Jennifer Robertson, 355–379. Malden, Mass: Blackwell Publishing, 2005. Piper, Nicola, 'Wife or Worker? Worker or Wife? Marriage and Cross-Border Migration in Contemporary Japan.' International Journal of Population Geography 9, no. 6 (2003): 457–469. Suzuki, Nobue. 'Transgressing ‘Vic16

ARTS

NETSUKE 根付: A LOST TRADITION AN ACCESSORY OUT OF FASHION l uigi ze ni ‘Even more important than the formal qualities of netsuke are the subjects depicted and the manner of their depiction. Netsuke are remarkable for their almost encyclopaedic range of subjects.’ 1

Etymology and Function The word netsuke 根付 stems from the Japanese characters ne 根 and tsuke 付 . Ne means ‘root’ and tsuke means ‘attached’. This derives from the fact that the first netsuke were probably roughly worked pieces of wood or bone, employed to hold regularly used objects on a kimono sash. As kimonos were not provided with pockets, women used to carry their valuables within their sleeves, while men hung them on a cord passed behind their sash (Fig. 4). To prevent them from falling, they used small carved artefacts – called netsuke – as a counterweight firmly positioned on top of the sash. Netsuke were carved in various shapes, from animals to mythological and religious figures, and were made of various materials, the most common being ivory, wood and deer antler. Since the range of netsuke’s types and subjects was so vast, Japanese people could choose what kind of netsuke they wanted based on their taste and financial means. Unfortunately, nowadays the practice of using netsuke has been lost, as Japanese people no longer wear kimonos on a daily basis. A common feature of netsuke is the presence of holes, used to attach it to the box containing one’s valuables. The holes are either carved, as seen at the bottom of the puffed sparrow in Fig. 1 Ashinaga and Tenaga with an octopus, 17 18 th century

Figure 2, or correspond to the natural openings produced by the design, such as the holes between the legs of a person or animal (Fig. 1).

History For a clearer understanding of netsuke’s history, it is helpful to divide it into three periods according to the main changes in function, subject and degree of appreciation (both in Asia and in the West): the early phase, from the 16th century until the beginning of the Meiji period (1868–1912); the middle phase from the Meiji period until the end of the Second World War; and the last phase, from the Second World War until the present day. After 1543, when the Portuguese introduced, among others, the practice of smoking tobacco to Japan, the number of accessories carried by Japanese people increased. Among them, netsuke was a very popular article. This was a time when rich merchants wanted to show off by wearing luxurious items, such as cases for personal objects or medicine (inrō 印籠 ), or small pouches to carry tobacco (tabakoire 煙草入れ ). In this context, netsuke was the ideal functional and aesthetic accessory that perfectly matched these containers, which were often elaborately decorated (Fig. 3).

Fig. 2 Puffed sparrow, early Meiji period

Brown, Kendall. ‘Why Art Historians Don’t Study Netsuke and Why They Should’. International Netsuke Society Journal 17 (1997): 8–24, 17. 1

While the early netsuke were rather simple in form, usually shaped like a ring, they quickly developed into more intricate designs. Not insignificant in this process was the Chinese cultural influence to which many Japanese art forms were subject, including netsuke. Figure 1, an 18 th century piece portraying the characters Ashinaga 足長 and Tenaga 手長 , is a representative example of this phenomenon. These mythical beings were introduced to Japan a century earlier through illustrated Chinese books. They represent the importance of mutual help and support: Ashinaga was frequently portrayed stepping into deep water, made possible thanks to his elongated legs, while Tenaga was fishing from the back with his long arms. In this light, netsuke can be said to have included references to popular culture, responsive to the time in which they were produced. The subject matter was also influenced by encounters with other cultures and their popular beliefs,

Fig. 3 Inrō with netsuke

which led to the use of mythological and religious themes. After the Meiji Restoration in 1868, the Japanese population began adopting a more modern lifestyle, including replacing the traditional kimono with Western clothing. The widespread introduction of Western garments and cigarettes gradually eliminated the use of containers and, as a consequence, of netsuke. At the same time, more foreigners started visiting Japan and were confronted with the beauty and charm of these small craftworks. It was a relief for the carvers, who could go on producing netsuke, exported in rather large quantities. However, as a consequence of higher production rates and the inexperience of some foreign buyers, their quality fell. Only a small number of carvers carried on working in the traditional way, creating small masterpieces that appealed to the tastes and considerable appreciation of art collectors, both in Japan and abroad. The netsuke produced nowadays span a broad spectrum of quality, which is also true of the netsuke from the past; however, it is more difficult to keep the tradition of high-quality carving alive in this day and age, as the objects’ functional purpose has disappeared, and the demand decreased. Refined netsuke – which we might suspect are currently made less frequently than when these objects were used on a daily basis – are now mainly bought by collectors. An excellent example is the Reclining Ox in Figure 5, a netsuke signed Kaigyokusai Masatsugu 懐玉齋正次 (1813–1892). The author was an Osaka-based carver renowned for his flawless technique, stainless carved ivory forms and bright inlaid eyes. Masatsugu was one of those artists who, in spite of modernisation, continued to produce netsuke according to traditional craftsmanship rules. 19

Fig. 4 Kimono with netsuke, sash, and a box for valuables

Fig. 5 Kaigyokusai Masatsugu (1813-1892), Reclining Ox, 1850–1892

Another crucial change observed during this last phase was the introduction of variations on traditional subjects in line with Western tastes. For example, Kōhōsai (unknown), who carved this boar in the late 19 th century (Fig. 6), must have felt that the conventional representations of the boar (Fig. 7) were no longer adequate. In his view a ‘somnolent but ferocious animal’ 2 would have been far from appealing, so he adapted the original shape. The boar’s head was made unusually large compared to its body, and its facial features were particularly exaggerated, almost caricatured, with its oversized mouth and nose. In addition to this, the back of this animal was decorated and covered with a pompous dragon pattern. Ultimately, although the subject matter remained the same, the style was modified and adorned with decorative elements that were thought to please the Western market in the late 19 th century. Furthermore, by that time, the concept of Orientalism had entered the discourse and become part of this process of aesthetic mutation: rather than an anatomically realistic boar, the animal came to resemble an exotic Indian elephant with vague traits of the original animal, such as shorter fangs and divided hoofs. Following the growing demand from the Western market, especially after the Second World War, the makers released countless mass-produced items, lowering the overall status of netsuke. Although

Fig. 6 Kōhōsai, Boar, late 19 th century

Okada, Barbra Teri. ‘Netsuke: The Small Sculptures of Japan’. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 38, no. 2 (1980): 3–48, 45. 2

the vast majority of netsuke carved during this period were mass-produced as simple souvenir items or good luck charms, there were nonetheless a handful of carvers who remained faithful to the production of high-quality netsuke, crafted either in the traditional way or according to more modern and contemporary designs.

Suggested Readings Hutt, Julia. Japanese Netsuke. London: V&A Publishing, 2012. Kinsey, Miriam. Contemporary Netsuke with a Forward by Hans Conried. Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle Company, 1977. Pao, Maureen. ‘In the Art of Netsuke, Tiny Toggles Tell Delightful Stories of Japan’. National Public Radio (2017) Tokyo National Museum 東京国立博物館 , ed. Netsuke: Takamado collection 根付高円宮コレクション (Netsuke: The Prince Takamado Collection). Tokyo: Tokyo National Museum 東京国立博物館 , 2011.

Fig. 7 Tomotada, Boar, late 18 th century

EDUCATION SOCIOLOGY

「多文化共生社会」の実現をめぐる教育の役割著者: 下雅意遥訳者: アメリア・リプコ近年、日本では社会のグローバル化とそれに伴う多様化を背景として、「多文化共生」「異文化理解」といった言葉があらゆる場面で聞かれるようになった。歴史を振り返ると、1980年代より「ニューカマー」と呼ばれる人々の定住化が進行し、国際結婚や日本国籍の取得が増加しはじめたことが、昨今多文化共生が推進されるようになったきっかけの一つであると見ることができる。増加の一途を辿る在留外国人は、2019年末時点で約293万3千人(前年比7.4% 1 )に上っている。しかし、ここで挙げた国籍や民族における多様性というのは、多様化や多文化共生というテーマのあくまで一例にすぎない。ジェンダーや性的指向、障害の有無など、あらゆる多様性が溢れているのが日本の現代社会の実態なのである。例えば、少子高齢化による労働人材の不足を受けて、従来その男性優位な状況が問題視されてきた労働市場においても女性や労働者に対する雇用支援、「ダイバーシティの尊重」という風潮が高まっている。しかし実際のいわゆるマイノリティと呼ばれる人々を取り巻く状況に目を向けると、先に述べたようなダイバーシティの尊重といった風潮も一種のトレンドのように謳われるに留まる場面も多く、真の意味で多様性が尊重される社会の実現には、未だ課題が山積みであると言わざるを得ない。今後ますます多様化が予測される今日の日本において、マイノリティをめぐる問題を把握し、その解決策を探ることは喫緊の課題であるといえよう。多文化共生社会 2を実現するにあたり、マイノリティの人

THE ROLE OF EDUCATION IN BUILDING A MULTICULTURAL SOCIETY haruka s himogai ame l ia l ipko (t rans .) Following the globalisation of Japanese society and its gradual diversification, terms such as ‘multicultural coexistence’ and ‘cross-cultural understanding’ have come to be heard often in recent years. Looking back, the current promotion of multicultural coexistence can be linked to the influx of so-called ‘newcomers’ in the 1980s, which led to an increase in international marriages and more cases of Japanese nationality being granted. The number of foreigners residing in Japan is steadily growing. As of the end of 2019 it amounted to about 2.93 million people (a 7.4% increase in comparison with the previous year 1). However, the differences mentioned here, relating to nationality and ethnicity, are not the only issues within the wider topic of diversification and multicultural coexistence. The fact is that modern Japanese society is overflowing with diversity connected to gender, sexual preferences and disability. For example, the problematically male-dominated labour market, after experiencing worker shortages due to declining birth rates and an aging population, has been showing increased support for women and workers in general, more and more actively following the trend of respect for diversity. However, when we look at the actual situation of those referred to as minorities, in many cases the aforementioned respect for diversity is but a kind of 22

々が被る社会的な不利益や困難を解消する取り組みは必須のものである。また、こうした文脈で使われる「マイノリティ」とは、「少数集団」といいった意味で理解されるが、マイノリティと一口に言っても、国籍や性別、宗教や障害など様々な集団が想定され、直面する問題や課題も様々あまた。場面によってマジョリティとマイノリティの立場が入れ替わるような状況も往々にして生じる。他方で、彼らが「マイノリティ」として共通して抱える困難がある。端的に述べると、スティグマによる差別と機会の不平等である。これまでのマイノリティ研究では民族、性、障害などそれぞれ個別に現状や解決策が検討されることが多かった。しかし、それでは今後増える可能性のある「新たな」マイノリティや注目されないマイノリティ、ダブルマイノリティ3など見落とされる集団の存在や、カテゴライズすることによるマイノリティ集団内での多様性の不可視化という危険が想定される。そこで、スティグマによる差別と機会の不平等という彼らが共通して抱える困難に対する解決法を探るという根本的な原因へのアプローチが、マイノリティを包摂する多文化共生社会の実現にとって有用であるといえよう。こうしたアプローチのあり方について、本稿では学校教育の果たす役割に着目して論じていく。 23

fashion – the road to building a society wherein diversity is truly respected still holds many challenges. As modern-day Japan is expected to become only more diverse in the future, it is fair to say that the necessity of grasping the problems relating to minorities and seeking solutions to them is an urgent issue. In order to build a functioning multicultural society 2, it is essential to eliminate the social disadvantages and difficulties suffered by its minorities. Furthermore, the term ‘minority’ is generally understood to mean ‘a small group’, but, while being one word, it actually applies to persons of various nationalities, genders, religions, and disabilities, who all face different adversities. Depending on the situation, oftentimes the tables turn and the majority and the minority switch places. On the other hand, all minorities share the same struggle. In short, they must all deal with discrimination caused by stigma and unequal opportunities. Many of the previous minority studies have examined the situations, problems and their possible solutions for various minorities as separate groups. However, it is speculated that there is the potential for numbers of newly emerging minorities to increase in the future, as well as a risk of groups such as lesser-known minorities and ‘double-minorities’ 3 being overlooked, and of diversity within minority groups lacking visibility due to categorisation. Consequently, in order to build a society based on multicultural coexistence, it might be useful to adopt an approach that aims to seek solutions to the fundamental reason these groups are stigmatised, discriminated against and given unequal opportunities. In this article, I will discuss the role of education in such an approach.

Multicultural Society and School Education As mentioned in the previous section,

法務省ホームページ「令和元年末現在における在留外国人数について」よりhttp://www.moj.go.jp/nyuu1

kokukanri/kouhou/nyuukokukanri04_00003.html

2 「多文化共生社会」という語にはいくつかの解釈が見られるが、「国籍や民族の異なる人々が互いの違いを認め合い、対等な関係を築こうとしながら生きていける社会」という定義が最も一般に受け入れられていると考えられる。しかし本稿では、以下、「国籍や民族」に限らず、性別や性的指向、障害の有無などあらゆる「違い」を認め合う、ということを意図してこの語を使用する。 3 外国人でありながらLGBTであり、民族および性的指向の二つ以上のカテゴリーにおいてマイノリティであるなどが想定される。

多文化共生社会と学校教育前節で述べたように、本稿では多文化共生社会の実現を目標として、マイノリティが抱える課題を解決するアプローチについて、学校教育の役割に着目して考察するが、ではなぜここで学校教育という視点が有用であるといえるのであろうか。その理由としてここでは二つ挙げておきたい。一つ目が、学校という組織、またそこで行われる教育が、不平等の拡大に大きな影響を与えることである。学校が不平等の再生産機能を持つということは、言い換えれば問題を解消した教育を実現することで、不平等の是正にも一役買う余地があるということであろう。二つ目が、日本の子ども達を取り巻く環境においては学校化された領域が極めて広いということである。彼らは小学校から高等学校までの 12年間、家庭外の大半の時間を学校で過ごすため、学校教育が子どもの価値観や能力に与える影響は非常に大きいということである。こうした、日本の現代社会における学校教育の立ち位置を踏まえると、多文化共生社会の実現に向けて学校教育が果たす役割は以下のように考えられる。

[‘The Number of Foreigners Residing in Japan at the End of the First Year of Reiwa’]. Ministry of Justice http://www.moj. go.jp/nyuukokukanri/kouhou/ nyuukokukanri04_00003.html 2 There are several interpretations of the term ‘society based on multicultural coexistence’, but the most common one is ‘a society in which people of different nationalities and ethnicities can live while acknowledging each other’s differences and trying to build equal relationships’. However, in this article, the term is used with the intention of acknowledging all differences, including also those connected to gender, sexual orientation, or disability, and not only limited to nationality and ethnicity. 3 Being, for example, a foreigner and a member of the LGBT community, in result identifying with multiple minorities - in this case one connected to ethnicity and sexual orientation. 1

this article examines a certain approach to solving problems faced by minorities with the goal of building a society based on multicultural coexistence, focusing on the role of school education. Why is school education so important for this aim? I would like to suggest two reasons. The first is that schools, both as organisations and through the education they provide, have a significant influence over the spread of inequality. However, the fact that schools have this ability to perpetuate inequality also means that, once the problem is solved, they can help in improving the situation. Secondly, educational facilities are a common denominator when it comes to the environment in which children live. Young people spend twelve years in the education system, from elementary school to high school, which is second only to the time they spend at home, so the impact schools have 24

民族、性、障害の有無等にかかわらずマイノリティと呼ばれる子ども達が学力を向上させ、不平等の再生産という悪循環を断ち切ること、それを実現するにあたっての他者理解の姿勢を身につけさせることである。再生産を断ち切るための学力の向上にあたっては、マイノリティの子ども達が学校において帰属意識 4を持つことができる、排除されない環境を整えることが求められる。こうした環境の実現にあたっては、差別や偏見を生まない他者理解の姿勢を養うことが必要である。次節からは、この他者理解を養う教育の在り方について道徳教育の抱える課題と可能性に着目して論じる。

道徳教育と他者理解の姿勢ここでまず、マイノリティをめぐる教育社会学における先行研究について概観しておきたい。日本の教育社会学においてマイノリティと教育という領域は、欧米の状況とは異なり注力されてこなかった。障害者を例に取ると 2000 年代に至ってようやく、障害者の受ける不利益は社会の側にあるという「社会モデル」が浸透しはじめた 5 。近年に至るまで教育社会学がこのテーマに関

on children’s values and abilities is immense. Considering the role of school education in modern Japanese society, the part that it could play in building a society based on multicultural coexistence can be described as follows: It would improve the academic ability of minority children – regardless of factors such as ethnicity, sex and disability – to break the vicious cycle of perpetual inequality, and at the same time cultivate children’s understanding of others. In order to do this, schools need to create an environment in which all children can feel they belong 4 and will not be excluded. Creating such an environment requires that schools cultivate attitudes based on mutual understanding, to prevent children from falling into the trap of discrimination and prejudice. In the next section, which focuses on the challenges and possibilities of moral education, we will discuss how the education system should foster an understanding of others.

Moral Education and the Understanding of Others First, I would like to give an overview of the previous studies on minorities in the field of sociology of education. According to research, in Japan, unlike in Europe and the United States, minority themes and education have been kept separate. Taking people with disabilities as an example, it was only in the 2000s that the ‘social model’ of blaming society for the disadvantages that disabled people struggle with finally began to permeate. 5 Originally, since the sociology of education was not involved in this subject, the problems of minorities were viewed as personal issues. As a result, before developmental disorders started being widely treated and before schools acted more in line with modern psychology, minority children were cut off from everyday school life and considered as medical patients,

学力と帰属意識の相関関係については OECD の学習到達度調査 (PISA) を参照されたい。 5 志水宏吉高田一宏堀家由妃代山本晃輔 2014「マイノリティと教育」『教育社会学研究第 95 集』:134-170 吉田武男・中井孝章 2003『カウンセラーは学校を救えるか「 - 心理主義化する学校」の病理と変革-』昭和堂 6 木村裕子 2006「医療化現象としての発達障害教育現場における解釈過程を中心に」『教育社会学研究第79 集』:5-24 4

与してこなかった結果、マイノリティが抱える問題は個人の問題として見なされてきた。その結果、発達障害の医療化や学校の心理主義化という傾向が見られるまでにマイノリティの子ども達は学校の日常から切り離され、治療の対象、排除の対象となってきた 6 。こうした医療化・心理主義化によって、不適応行動が教師が学級という社会の中で対応するべき対象ではなく医療や心理療法によって治療される個人の問題として捉えられ、日常の文脈における教育的介入の可能性や同級の他の子ども達に対する働きかけなどが軽視されるようになった。これにより、スティグマによる周囲からの差別や偏見により学級への帰属意識の低下、それによる学力の低下、その結果として不登校や成績不振を経験する悪循環が生まれているのである。次に、現在の日本の学校教育の概要について学習指導要領を踏まえてまとめておきたい。日本の幼稚園、小学校、中学校、高等学校では、教育基本法および学校教育法を踏まえて文部科学省(以下、「文科省」と表記)により制定された学習指導要領に基づいた教育が行われている。2017年、この学習指導要領は10年に一度の改訂の時期を迎え、2020年より各学校種において新しい学習指導要領への移行が行われているところである。今回の改訂 7 において重視されたのが、多様化・複雑化する現代

OECT in their Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) shows the correlation between academic ability and a sense of belonging. 5 Shimizu Kokichi, Takada Kazuhiro, Horiie Yukiyo, Yamamoto Kosuke. [‘Minorities and Education’]. [Sociology of Education Research], no. 95 (2004): 134-170. Yoshida Takeo, Nakai Takaaki. [Can Counselling Save Schools? Pathology and Reform in ‘Psychologised Schools’]. Shōwadō, 2003. 6 Kimura Yuko. [‘Developmental Disorders as a Medicalisation Phenomenon. Focusing on the Interpretation Process in Educational Facilities’]. [Sociology of Education Research], no. 79 (2006): 5-24 4

subject to exclusion 6. With the development of medicine and psychology, maladaptive behaviour stopped being something that teachers were expected to deal with within the classroom arena and became a more personal problem, requiring medical treatment or psychotherapy. At the same time, educational intervention in an everyday context and guiding the minority child’s classmates became unimportant. Subsequently, the minority children came to experience discrimination and judgement caused by stigma, which made them feel more alienated and less apt to learn, resulting in truancy and poor grades – a vicious cycle. Next, I would like to give an outline of the school education system in contemporary Japan based on the government curriculum guidelines. All Japanese kindergartens, primary schools, junior and senior high schools provide education based on the guidelines established by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in accordance with 26

社会を生き抜くための資質や能力の育成であり、本稿で論じる多文化共生に向けたそれらも念頭に置かれているものの一つである。こうした一連の改訂の中で注目を集めている項目の一つが、道徳教育の教科化である。以前は特別活動の一貫として行われていた道徳教育を、今回の改訂で一教科として位置付けたことで、教科書の導入や成績評価が行われることとなる。この教科化の理由として文科省は、増加・深刻化するいじめ問題への対応としての倫理観の確立の重要性やグローバル化する社会において多様性を尊重する姿勢の育成を挙げている。しかし、いわば国が理想とする画一化された価値観を身に着けるための道徳教育の教科化が果たしてグローバル化する現代社会において、多様な価値観の共存に寄与する姿勢を子ども達に身に付けさせる役割を果たしうるのかについては疑問を持たざるを得ない。ここまでマイノリティを包摂へと導くにあたって、他者理解の姿勢を養うことの必要性について述べてきたが、以下にそのために有用であると考えられる教育の在り方について具体的に述べる。現在の教育では子ども達は学校の道徳教育においてマイノリティ集団について学ぶ機会はあるものの表面的な学びに留まっていることを指摘したい。マイノリティに属する人々がいかなる不平等や差別を経験してきたのかについて学び、「差別はしてはいけない」「偏見を持たずに平等に接することが大切だ」といった「唯一の正解」にあたる感想を子どもに述べさせ、教師も子どもも満足する、というが現状のマイノリティに関わる道徳教育の在り方である。差別はいけないことてはあると分かっているにも関わらず、何故人は差別をしてしまうのか、マイノリティの人々が経験する不平等はどうすればなくなるのか、などについて更なる議論が行われることは多くの場合ない。こうした教育は現実に即していないため、日常に活きる学びにつながらない。自己を含むマジョリティと遠い存在のマイノリティという二項対立の分類 27

the Fundamental Law of Education and the School Education Law. The curriculum is revised every ten years, and was reworked in 2017, with the transition to the new guidelines starting in all schools from 2020. In this revision 7, the emphasis was put on the development of qualities and abilities necessary for a complex, diversifying modern society. The strategies aimed at promoting multicultural coexistence discussed in this article were at its forefront. One item that has attracted attention in this series of curriculum changes is the conversion of moral education into a school subject. Moral education, which had previously been conducted as a part of extracurricular activities, was assigned school subject status in this revision, and discussions are underway on what types of textbooks should be used and how students could be graded on this subject matter. As a reason for this decision, MEXT cites the importance of establishing a sense of ethics as a response to the growing problem of bullying, as well as the need to encourage respect for diversity. However, one cannot help but question whether moral education as a subject, which will instil in children a set of values standardised according to an ideal vision of the country, can fulfil the task of fostering attitudes that will contribute to the peaceful coexistence of diverse sets of values in a modern globalised society. I have mentioned the necessity of fostering an understanding of others in guiding minorities towards inclusion, but I would like to talk more specifically about what education could do to fulfil this aim. I would like to point out that while the children do now have the opportunity to learn about minority groups during moral education classes, it is very superficial. They merely learn about the inequality and discrimination that minorities experience, and then are made to say that discrimination is wrong, we

新学習指導要領の詳細な内容及び改訂のポイントについては文部科学省ホームページ 7

h t t p s : / / w w w. m ex t . g o . j p / a _ m e n u / s h o t o u / n ew - c s / y o u r y o u / 1 3 0 4 3 8 5 . htm 8 原沢伊都夫 2014 『多文化共生の

ための異文化コミュニケーション』明石書店 9 久保田賢一 2003「『総合的な学習』における異文化間教育- 学びのパラダイム転換」『異文化間教育 17 号 ,2003 』:12-25 を前提とした現在のマイノリティ理解教育では子ども達が日常に即して考えることが出来ないことから、先に述べたような建前の綺麗事、机上の空論に留まる現状がある。ここでマイノリティ、マジョリティという分類から一度離れることを提案したい。多文化社会研究において今後ますます多様化する社会で求められる異文化コミュニケーションの在り方として指摘される8ように、自己以外の周りの人々は全て異文化に属する他者であるという定義のもとでの

The details of the revisions in school guidelines on the MEXT website h t t p s : / / w w w. m e x t . g o . j p / a _ menu/shotou/new-cs/youryou/1304385.htm 8 Ito Harasawa. [Communicating with Other Cultures for the Sake of Multicultural Coexistence]. Akashi Shoten, 2014. 9 Kubota Ken’ichi. [‘Cross-cultural Education in General Education – Changes in Learning Paradigms’]. [Cross-cultural Education], no. 17 (2003): 12-25 7

are all equal, and you should not have prejudices. The teacher and the students are happy with this ‘one and only correct answer’, and that is the whole lesson about minorities. In many cases there is no further discussion about why people discriminate against minorities even though they know that it is wrong, or about what should be done in order to remove inequality experienced by minority groups. Because such education is not set in reality, it does not teach the students how to behave in everyday life. Current education on minorities presumes a binary opposition between a majority that includes the student and the remote concept of a minority, which does not let the child see this as a problem belonging to their own reality. It ultimately amounts to no more than the aforementioned lip service and armchair theory. I would like to suggest that we try to move away from the distinction between minority and majority. As pointed out in research on multicultural societies, the most desirable way to communicate in a progressively diversifying society 8 would be to assume that all those around us are members of a different culture, and conduct education about understanding ‘other cultures’ in this way. During lessons on the understanding of other cultures, both 28

「異文化」理解教育を検討することが有用ではないだろうか。異文化理解の姿勢を育む教育においては教師と子どもが異文化接触のリアリティを共有し、現実的な課題設定をおこなう必要があり9 、先に述べた様な「異文化」を定義することで、マイノリティという特別視されがちな存在を、広く異文化を持つ他者として捉えることで、リアリティを持ち、現実に即した考えや議論が期待できる。そして本稿で繰り返し指摘している現在の他者理解、道徳教育に欠けている「現実性」を実現するために重要なのが、他者を理解できない、という感情は時に自然で当然のものであると肯定することである。日本の道徳教育が目指してきた「いい子」の価値観を育てることから脱却し、異文化に属する他者の価値観や行動の中には賛成出来ない、受け入れられないものもあるという事実は認め、肯定するべきである。その上で、どの集団に属する人々も差別や不平等を経験することはあってはならないということを理解させ、異なる他者を尊重し、「異文化」に自文化と等しい価値を置く、という意味での他者理解の姿勢を育むことが、今後のますます多様化する社会において多文化共生社会の実現を目指すにあたり求められるのではないだろうか。

推薦図書 Bourdieu, Pierre, and Margareta Steinrücke (Hrsg.). Wie die Kultur zum Bauern kommt: über Bildung, Schule und Politik. Hamburg: VSAVerl., 2006. Conrad, Peter, Joseph W Schneider, 進藤雄三, 杉田聡, and 近藤正英. 逸脫と医療化: 悪から病いへ (Itsudatsu no Iryōka: Aku kara yamai he). Tokyo: ミネルヴァ書房 (Minerva Shobō), 2003. Gudykunst, William B. 異文化に橋を架ける― 効果的なコミュニケーション (Ibunka ni Hashi wo Kakeru - kōkatekina Komyunikeshon). Tokyo: 聖文社 (Seibunsha), 1993.

the teacher and the student would feel that they share the reality of actually interacting with other cultures and raise realistic issues 9. By deciding on this definition of ‘other cultures’, minorities, who tend to be viewed as distinctly ‘other’, would instead be perceived simply as individuals from different cultures, as can be found anywhere. One can expect that this would bring about discussions grounded more firmly in reality. In other words, to achieve this understanding of others for which I have repeatedly advocated in this article, we have to add the ‘sense of reality’, which is currently lacking, to the moral education curriculum. In order to do this, we must acknowledge that the feelings we sometimes have of not being able to understand others are natural and normal. We should move away from fostering the values of ‘good children’ that Japan has been aiming for in its moral education curriculum, and instead affirm the fact that we may not agree with some of the values and actions of others who belong to different cultures. With this in mind, we must also accept that no member of any group should experience discrimination and inequality. It is necessary to respect others who are different from ourselves and agree that their cultures are just as legitimate as our own. Such is the attitude of understanding others that we should foster, and this is how we should aim to create multicultural coexistence in an increasingly diverse society.

Suggested Readings Bourdieu, Pierre, and Margareta Steinrücke (Hrsg.). Wie die Kultur zum Bauern kommt: über Bildung, Schule und Politik. Hamburg: VSA-Verl., 2006. Conrad, Peter, Joseph W Schneider. Deviance and Medicalization: From Badness to Sickness. Temple University Press, 2010. Gudykunst, William B. Cross. Bridging Differences: Effective Intergroup Communication. Sage, 2004.

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31 for the music sheet of the Nikkatsu film Miss Nippon from 1930 Fig. 1 Cover

MUSIC HISTORY

Kaoru Tsuneda, Tōkyō jazu chizu, Tokyo: Kotsū shinbunsha, 2016. 1

LOCATING JAZZ IN INTERWAR JAPAN DANCE HALLS, JAZZ COFFEEHOUSES AND CAFÉS a u r e l b a el e A fact you regularly hear about the internationally renowned Japanese author Murakami Haruki is that he was once the owner of a jazz bar. In fact, the relationship between Japan and jazz goes back a long way, and one can find more jazz venues like the one Murakami owned all over the country. There are some who might even view the country as a kind of jazz haven, because of the seemingly endless collection of rare recordings that can be found and listened to. The reality, however, is that jazz is not considered a popular music genre – young people prefer J-pop among others. Nevertheless, Japan offers a vibrant scene for jazz aficionados with a rich choice of venues at which to enjoy their favourite music, from the exquisite but expensive Blue Note jazz club to the more commonplace bars and cafés. That’s not to mention the jazz coffeehouses with their huge, specialized collections of LPs. And thanks to the internet, finding one’s way to these different places has never been easier. The centennial of the birth of jazz in 2017 certainly helped to bring renewed attention to these sorts of jazz venues, as illustrated by the publication of The Jazz Map of Tokyo. 1 What is mostly known by the broader public about the history of jazz places in Japan is related to the post-war decades. What is less well-known, however, is their history during the Interwar Period. The syncopated beats of jazz could already be heard in the different corners of the world soon after the release of the first record by the Original Dixie-

land Jazz Band in 1917. In the beginning of the 1920s jazz had arrived in Japan. Of course, jazz has never been limited to only one of the senses; it was, and still is, as much about seeing and experiencing the music as it was about hearing it. For such an experience in Interwar Japan, one could choose between three types of places: dance halls, jazz cafés, and jazz coffeehouses.

Jazz in the Urban Context of Japan Before introducing these places, it is important to offer a brief overview of the context wherein they developed. The decade after the First World War, often referred to as the ‘Roaring Twenties’, was characterised by a myriad of artistic and cultural developments, social and economic changes, and a wave of cosmopolitanism. Japan followed this global trend as its society saw a heavy transformation with cities playing a central role. The booming war economy of the 1910s – Japan was an ally of the UK during World War I – had accelerated the industrialisation process tremendously, with steel and chemical industries leading the way. Their location in urban areas created more work opportunities as the demand for labour rose. In addition, cities offered better infrastructure and quicker modes of transportation, such as a tram and subway network – Tokyo opened the first East Asian subway in the late 1920s. Furthermore, technological advancements meant that the production of goods became cheaper, more efficient, and more numerous. Increasingly available and accessible commodities allowed the rise of a society of mass consumption – or consumerism. Contemporary critics even spoke 32

Fig. 2 Frontside of the Rokumeikan, ca. 1883-1900

of this phenomenon as massification or taishūka 大衆化 . Due to global trade and having their own empire, the Japanese came more directly into contact with exotic concepts from overseas regions without going there themselves: Western music, clothes, food, and drinks, but also political ideas such as Marxism. These things could be easily experienced in daily life. Department stores showcased the latest trends in fashion, foods, and electrical appliances, and news was disseminated via a booming mass media, which included new forms (radio, cinema) as well as old ones (newspaper, magazines). All of this allowed cities to present themselves as futuristic places of progress. It is no wonder, then, that Japanese cities grew tremendously in population. 33

To give an idea of the scale of change, between 1900 and 1920 Tokyo has seen its population double by more than two million inhabitants. These demographic changes were also clearly visible in everyday life, where the middle class had increased tenfold in roughly the same period, and by the beginning of the 1920s represented about ten percent of the total population nationwide. Additionally, the number of working women rose in both blue-collar and white-collar jobs, resulting in a greater financial freedom to individually consume as well as changing gender patterns. Against the backdrop of consumerism and gradual decline of traditional gender roles, Japanese city life of the 1920s and 1930s also saw discussions on erot-

icism. According to Miriam Silverberg, this can be understood in a stricter sense, as in Figure 1, and more broadly as ‘a variety of sensual gratifications, physical expressiveness, and the affirmation of social intimacy’. 2 A central figure was the iconic modern girl or moga モガ who was subject to heated discussions and frequently displayed in advertising. Although more imaginary than real, the idea of a pretty girl in flappers with bobbed hair who enjoyed window shopping in Ginza and dancing to jazz was a ‘powerful symbol of Taishō modernity’. 3

Dance Halls With more disposable income, people increasingly began participating in leisure activities such as watching movies at the cinema, drinking beer in cafés, and going to dance halls. Dance halls were the places to find jazz music in Japan, and were mainly located in the entertainment districts, or sakariba 盛り場 . In famous establishments like Union in Osaka, men and women shuffled together on the dance floor to syncopated melodies as they embraced each other. Whilst social dancing started to become popular among city dwellers in the 1910s, it was not until the 1920s that dance fever (dansu netsu ダンス熱 ) truly hit Japan. In the Meiji Period dancing had been an upper-class form of leisure to learn and accustom to Western ‘civilised' social practices, as happened in the spe-

Fig. 3 The jazz band of the neighbour’s in The Neighbor’s Wife and Mine

Miriam Silverberg, Erotic Grotesque Nonsense: The Mass Culture of Japanese Modern Times, Berkeley: University of California Press, 2006, 29. 3 Barbara Sato, The New Japanese Woman: Modernity, Media, and Women in Interwar Japan, Durham: Duke University Press, 49. 2

cially built elite hall, the Rokumeikan 鹿鳴館 (Fig. 2). Now it was a lucrative business and successful form of entertainment. What made dance halls and jazz music so alluring to Japanese urbanites was the opportunity to experience the modern. Both place and music were cosmopolitan in nature and not easily confined to one category. Likewise, an ambiguous relationship existed between dance halls and cafés, not only in their similar working (dancing to live jazz versus recorded jazz with the addition of enjoying a meal, respectively), but also in their creation. Some establishments were built to be dance halls, while others, like the Union, had originally been cafés, but were later transformed into true dance halls. Moreover, both types of establishment employed exotic, contemporary names such as Paulista, Florida, and Parisian. A similar relationship was encountered within the music. As a clear-cut definition of the genre did not exist at the time – even to this day, it is difficult to say if there can be one at all – the Japanese often used ‘jazz’ as an umbrella term for every kind of foreign music. It essentially became a buzz word, referring not only to exotic music styles, but to ideas of speed, industrialisation and the new. The theme song Speed Times (Supido Jidai スピード時代 ) from the first Japanese sound film of 1931, The Neigh34

bor’s Wife and Mine (Madamu to nyōbō マダムと女房 ) by Gosho Heinosuke 五所平之助 (1902-1981), illustrates this perfectly (Fig. 3). Indeed, the speed at which jazz tunes stirred up one’s soul symbolised the pace at which life in the modern city was transforming. Another element was that dancing to jazz meant physical contact with the opposite sex. The dance hall was therefore the site where traditional notions relating to gender and identity could be challenged. One could partner up with one’s lover or friend, but there was also another possibility: the so-called ’taxi dancers’ (Fig. 4). Taxi dancers were women who sold tickets to clients so to dance with them for the length of a single song. Of course, this system was initially designed to maximize profits, and as time is money, musicians played shorter songs which enabled the taxi dancers to sell more tickets to patrons. These women were also often dressed in western style clothing with a bobbed hairstyle, thereby conforming to the image of a modern

girl or moga. Of course, for the men, such beautifully clothed young ladies were extremely attractive, thus inducing more erotic fantasies. As a result, the boundary between the sensual and outright prostitution was often blurred. When the dance halls became involved in scandals, the media and critics eagerly exploited these opportunities to point out the ‘dangers’ of mogas, dance halls, and jazz. These messages incited further debate about the Japanese collective identity and its social mores. By 1928, the first nationwide ordinance had been implemented to regulate the sector. 4 Regulations would only become more stringent in the following decade with the rising militarism and nationalism. As Western culture, particularly American, was increasingly denounced in public as a threat to ‘traditional’ Japanese values, some dance halls reverted to cafés, which were less subject to control. Nevertheless, jazz and dance halls remained popular in the 1930s, though repression became all the more severe toward the end of the decade.

Fig. 4 Taxi dancers in a dance hall around 1930. From the collection of Steve Sundberg – OldTokyo.com

Cafés and Jazz Coffeehouses An alternative to dance halls were the cafés and jazz coffeehouses, or jazu kissaten 喫茶店 . A café was often decorated with Western style furniture, illuminated with electric lamps. One could listen to the latest popular jazz songs while consuming Western-style drinks and dishes that were brought by a waitress, or jokyū 女給 . When the concept of a café was originally introduced in the Meiji Period, it was considered a peaceful public place to meet with others. According to Merriam White, individuals such as the author Nagai Kafū ( 永井荷風 , real name: Nagai Sōkichi 永井壮吉 ; 1879-1959) distinguished the ‘pure’ café, or junkissa 純喫茶 , as a place that allowed for intellectual exchange in a peaceful setting, without female servers and alcohol. 5 However, a divergence took place after the Great Kantō Earthquake of 1923 (Kantō dai-jishin 関東大地震 ) when many in the entertainment industry moved to Osaka. There, the Osakan ideas of entertainment melded with café practices to create a new norm: dancing to jazz from a record while enjoying the company of a waitress. However, because the Osakan authorities deemed these practices inappropriate, many cafés transitioned to dance halls, yet this did not stop cabaret-style cafés spreading to other Japanese cities. Inevitably, this development was criticised as being vulgar and decadent. The renowned author Tanizaki Junichirō ( 谷崎純一郎 ; 1886-1965) is known to have had a particular aversion to the Tokyo variants, seeing them as an infestation. Due to the increasingly stringent regulations on dance halls at the end of the 1920s, many halls reverted to cafés. As in dance halls, the female element played a key role in the café experience: a part of the modern allure of cafés was the presence of the waitresses and the romantic ideas surrounding them. They

‘Dansu hōru saisho no torishimari kisoku – zenkoku kakutoshi ni sakigake, Hyōgo-ken de kenrei happu’, Tōkyō Asahi Shinbun, Morning Edition, 6 November 1928, 3. 5 Merriam White, Coffee Life in Japan, Berkeley: University of California Press, 2012, 54. 4

were hired to attract male patrons and flirt with them, though real affection played no part in it. On the contrary, it again had more to do with fantasies. For working and middle-class men, waitresses were much easier to get in contact with than the geisha. The popularity of cafés was further boosted by the frequent representation of waitresses in literature, most famously in Tanizaki’s A Fool’s Love (Chijin no ai 痴人の愛 ), as well as in film, music, and art. The coffeehouse differed from the café in a subtle way by promoting itself – to this very day – as a more intimate, special establishment with a unique collection of records. Today there still exist a lot of jazu kissaten, though their numbers are declining, but nearly all of them, such as Eigakan (Fig. 5), are from the post-war years – except for Chigusa in Yokohama that has run almost continuously since 1933. Jazz coffeehouses were a cheaper alternative to dance halls for listening to jazz. Although smaller in size, these establishments had three main selling points when promoting themselves. First, like today, the coffeehouses advertised their superb sound installation, the gramophone. Second, the record collection served to attract customers, with titles of the latest acquisitions displayed at the window. Naturally, foreign labels that were difficult to import were the most prestigious ones and possessed more authenticity. Some American jazz stars were available on domestically produced record labels, but this had also to do with the fact that those labels were 36

it illegal to own jazz records. While not all records were turned in or found, the jazu kissaten themselves had to close. Moreover, acquiring records gradually became impossible as the war continued, because the resources used to make them were increasingly being diverted to the war effort.

Fig. 5 Jazz coffeehouse Eigakan, Tokyo

subsidiaries to big multinationals such as Nippon Victor and RCA Victor. Most importantly, the collection functioned as a vault of jazz knowledge. It gave Japanese musicians the chance to take notes on all the latest tricks and innovative sounds their American counterparts used. Like cafés and dance halls, coffeehouses also played the sex-appeal card. In a competitive industry, the beauty of the female employees could make all the difference. These places used the celebrity status of some waitresses, having them pose as sign girls (kanban musume 看板娘 ) to promote their establishments. What set the coffeehouse apart from the café was that there were two specialized waitresses working in the jazz coffeehouse: the kissagirl (kissagāru 喫茶ガール ) or servicegirl (sābisugāru サービス・ガール ), and the record girl (rekōdogāru レコード・ガール ). One took orders for drinks while the other played records on request.

A Wartime Interlude When the country entered the war in December 1941, jazz was labelled as enemy music (teki no ongaku 敵の音楽 ) in Japan. The year before, the Japanese government had decreed that all dance halls were to shut down. As a result, on the final night before their closure, the dance halls were packed. During the war, a list of forbidden recordings was published, thereby making 37

Nonetheless, jazz never left the Japanese collective memory, and after the war the music quickly regained popularity. Whilst the Allied Occupation of Japan (1945-1952) heavily influenced this development, it can be argued that the Interwar jazz venues were still relatively fresh in the people’s memories. What made these places so special was how they reflected their times. As hot spots of modernity, the dance halls, coffeehouses, and cafés each offered images of what modern life could be. Jazz was a word that connected a set of shared characteristics of this modern life: ambiguity, cosmopolitanism, and eroticism. Each type of venue therefore provided access not only to the latest technical developments in jazz, but to the very cultural movement that music embodied.

Suggested Readings Atkins, E. Taylor. Blue Nippon: Authenticating Jazz in Japan. Durham: Duke University Press, 2001. Mōri, Masato. Nippon Swing Time. Tokyo: Kodansha, 2010. Shipton, Alyn. A New History of Jazz: Revised and Updated Edition. London: Bloomsbury, 2007. Silverberg, Miriam. Erotic Grotesque Nonsense: The Mass Culture of Japanese Modern Times. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2006. Young, Louise. Beyond the Metropolis: Second cities and Modern Life. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2013.

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39 Fig. 1 Kitsune, Inari Shrine in Kyoto

POPULAR CULTURE RELIGION AND MYTHOLOGY

KITSUNE 狐: THE JAPANESE FOX

ITS AMBIVALENT PRESENCE IN JAPANESE RELIGION, MYTHOLOGY AND CULTURE pao l a ci tteri o The Japanese fox, or kitsune, is a very important yōkai 妖怪 - supernatural creature - which often appears in Japanese culture. It can be found in many fields of Japanese religion, mythology and popular culture. You can see it in the shrines (specifically, Inari shrines), fairy tales and legends; in theatre, poetry, and paintings; in netsuke (for further information see page 17), festivals (matsuri 祭り), and in manga and anime. Here we will explore the diverse aspects of this mythological creature and the ways in which it is portrayed.

Etymology There are different interpretations regarding the etymology of the word kitsune 狐 . According to Professor Nozaki Kiyoshi, kitsu is strictly onomatopoeic, since in the past it was used to imitate the call of a fox, while –ne describes an affectionate feeling or mood. Others support the theory that kitsu means ‘to come’ and -ne ‘sleep’. This follows a legend in which a man discovers that his wife is a fox in disguise and they are forced to separate; but since the man is still in love with her and she is the mother of his children, he tells her to come and sleep with him, so she comes back every night.

Origin and Powers The origin of the concept of kitsune, as a magical being is still unknown,

but the creature appears in Nihonshoki, the second-oldest Japanese history book (written in 720), where it is associated with both good and bad omens. As a yōkai, this intelligent animal with a long lifespan is also attributed supernatural skills. It can shape-shift into a beautiful woman and seduce its pray, while some also believe that it is capable of possessing people. The fox grows more tails as its skills develop, reaching its most powerful form with nine tails.

Inari Shrines and the Fox One of the first things with which many people in Japan associate the fox is a Shinto shrine, and a particular one at that – the Inari shrine. Such shrines can be found all over Japan, typically with kitsune present, and so have become synonymous with these animals. The main Inari shrine, known as Fushimi Inari-Taisha, was built in 711 by the Hata, a Japanese clan from the Chinese continent, and located in Kyoto, on a mountain that they used as a graveyard and a place where they could pay respect to their ancestors. The shrine was dedicated to the goddess Ukanomitama, who is said to have appeared before the leader of the Hata during a hunt. Academics suppose that the fox cult was related to sightings of these animals among the tombs across the mountain, which were thought to be a manifestation of spirits and ancestors’ souls. The Fushimi Inari shrine is quite famous for its paths of lined-up red torii gates leading to the main shrine. Notably, it has two foxes at the entrance guarding statues instead of lion-dogs, more commonly associated with Buddhist temples throughout East Asia. On the right, there is a fox which holds a stick in its mouth (Fig. 1), while the one on the left holds a ball or a jewel. These red-bibbed foxes represent 40

Fig. 2 Utagawa Hiroshige, New Yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Eve foxfires at the changing tree in Oji, 1857

Fig. 3 Koma Ansho (Yasuaki), Case (Inrō) with Design of Fox Wedding Procession in Rain, Edo (1615– 1868) or Meiji period (1868–1912)

guardians and messengers of the deity of the shrine. The Inari deity can be represented both as male and female, and is usually accompanied by one or two white foxes. It is the god of rice, fertility, love, fortune, fields and foxes. Aside from the more mythical explanations, the association of foxes with Inari was also due to their hunting habits, as they chased away rats that might infest barns and waste the stored rice. The foxes of the Inari shrines are not to be confused with the mischievous monster-like kitsune from the legends, referred to as nogitsune (wild foxes), which possess and play with people.

Legends about Foxes The kitsune and are also paintings and company the

appear in many legends portrayed in numerous ukiyo-e prints, which acstories. In the legends,

kitsune are associated with various supernatural powers and phenomena. In some legends, the foxes are able to produce fire (fox fire, kitsune-bi) with their mouths or by wiping their tails on the ground (Fig. 2), or are able to possess a person (fox possession, kitsune tsuki) in order to communicate with someone, or for revenge. It is also said that in the paradoxical moment when it is raining while the sun is shining, a fox is getting married (fox wedding, kitsune no yomeiri). It is not known, however, whether or not the fox’s powers are the reason for this mysterious natural phenomenon. Another peculiar meteorological phenomenon associated with the fox wedding is the so called ‘atmospheric ghost lights’, in which lights or fire materialize without an apparent source. As we can see in the scene of the small portable case (Fig. 3), foxes organise wed42

ding parades at night, using lanterns, the lights of which float in the darkness. These lights are said to be fire associated with the phenomenon. The fox is often associated with tanuki (raccoon-dogs), who have the ability to shape-shift. The big difference is that the raccoon-dog is a positive, playful character, while the fox is sly and dangerous. For one the aim is to play and for the other it is to kill (Fig. 4).

Foxes in Modern Festivals: The Ōji Fox Parade An annual Fox Parade takes place in the town of Ōji (Kita-ku, Tokyo) on New Year’s Eve (Fig. 5). People dress like foxes, put on fox masks or make up, and walk with lanterns from Shozoku Shrine to Ōji Inari Shrine. They gather there to offer the first prayer of the year. This tradition began in 1993 as a recreation of a Hiroshige Utagawa print (ukiyo-e) from 1857 (Fig. 2). In the legend, which the print illustrates, foxes gather with their fox fires under the changing tree, a large tree in Ōji, on New Year’s Eve.

Foxes in Popular Culture The character of the fox also appears frequently in popular culture media such as anime and manga. In fact, it is quite a beloved trope. The main protagonist of Naruto hosts in his body the spirit of a nine-tailed fox, which brings to mind the power foxes have to possess humans. In another anime, Inari, Konkon, Koi Iroha, the protagonist saves a little fox and becomes friends with a deity called Uka-sama, referencing the deity enshrined in the Inari shrines. Foxes also appear in animes such as Kami-sama Hajimemashita and Otome Yōkai Zakuro. Additionally, in Akira Kurosawa’s 1990 Dream, one of the episodes is dedicated to a fox wedding procession. A young child disobeys his mother and runs into the forest to look at the supernatural scene, but is quickly caught by the foxes 43

that cast a curse on him as punishment.

The Ambivalence of Kitsune In Japan, foxes can be associated with good omens when they are in the service of a deity and with bad ones when they are in their savage state. When regarded as folkloristic yōkai, kitsune possess different powers (e.g. kitsune bi, kitsune tsuki, shape shifting). They appear in various contexts within Japanese culture, such as religion or mythology. They are feared for their power, as well as being loved and worshipped, the ambivalence of which makes it an extremely fascinating creature.

Suggested Readings Alt, Matt, and Tatsuya Morino. Yokai Attack! - the Japanese Monster Survival Guide. Tuttle Shokai Inc, 2012. © Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau. 'Oji Fox Parade (Kitsune No Gyoretsu).' The Official Tokyo Travel Guide, GO TOKYO. Accessed August 1, 2020. https://www.gotokyo.org/ en/spot/ev107/index.html. Ellwood, Robert S. Introducing Japanese Religion. New York: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2016. Foster, Michael Dylan, and Kijin Shinonome. The Book of Yōkai: Mysterious Creatures of Japanese Folklore. Oakland, CA: University of California Press, 2015.

Fig. 4 Utagawa Kuniyoshi, Prince Hanzoku terrorised by a nine-tailed fox, 1798â&#x20AC;&#x201C;1861

RELIGION AND MYTHOLOGY HISTORY

ON SHINTO’S SACRED BOTANY

WHEN MYTHS SPEAK ABOUT LONG FORGOTTEN PASTS mart y bors ot t i In modern Shinto, the indigenous belief system of Japan, plants are considered to have a connection with the divinities. Some plants are thought to have the ability to channel supernatural powers, others are used for their purifying properties, and many more are considered to be vessels for the gods. The history of plants in Shinto closely follows a progressive increase in the complexity of the role of plants in wider religious thought, influenced by philosophies imported from the Asiatic continent. Shinto is a highly syncretic system of belief, in which the autochthonous animism was continually reshaped over the centuries by elements stemming from Buddhism, Confucianism, Onmyodo (a Yin and Yang esoteric thought), and many other philosophical and religious ideas. Shinto, in its modern form, is the result of more than fifteen centuries of syncretism, and the redevelopment of concepts to better fit the needs of society. This article aims to trace an idea of what Shinto was like in its earliest form and how it came to be structured as an institutional religion. In order to do that, I will present two plants important in Shinto lore and rituals: the sacred branch of sakaki, used in purification rites, and the cryptomeria tree (Fig. 1), by which gods are thought to descend from their celestial home, the Takamagahara plain 高天原 .

The Sacred Branch of Sakaki, Cleyera Japonica Sakaki 榊 , the etymology of which literally means the tree ( 木 ) of gods ( 神 ), Fig. 1 A45 cryptomeria tree

is an evergreen tree found in warmer regions of Japan. It is easily recognisable by its spear-shaped leaves, and for its small white flowers. This plant is similar in many aspects to the European oval-leaved privet. The use of sakaki for its purifying properties is perhaps one of the most ancient practices still existing in modern Shinto. Sakaki is mainly employed in two forms: as a sacred wand waved by Shinto priests and as a decorative item. In both roles it serves to expel evil spirits and abet the protection of deities. Observations of practices involving sakaki are as old as the development of writing culture in Japan. Scholars assume that sakaki has been used since the emergence of the first civilization on the archipelago, during the late Jomon period (10,000 to 300 b.c.). Communities of hunter-gatherers may have developed animistic cults in order to understand and explain the many mysteries of the environment in which they lived. The concept of spirits

living in moving objects, such as green leaves blowing in the wind, is heavily represented in mythological imagery, particularly in relation to the first written document of Japan: the Kojiki, a record of the mythological history of Japan written in 712. The first agricultural communities might also have been inspired by the vegetation surrounding them, leading to the inclusion of plants in religious symbolism. Similar animistic cults were already present in Japan from as early as the late Jomon period and the Yayoi period (300 b.c. to 300 a.c.), influencing all subsequent developments of the amalgamated beliefs that came to be called Shinto. However, any analysis of pre-Heian religious behaviours can only be made on a speculative or interpretative basis, since written records were not adopted in Japan until the 8 th century. Nevertheless, some plausible hypotheses have been proposed based on a detailed study of the first written

Fig. 2 Ama no Iwato, representation of the myth of the Heavenly Rock-Dwelling, 1890

documents, such as interpretations of myths recorded in the Kojiki and Nihongi, (the latter being a similar compilation of Japanese history destined to be sent to the Chinese Empire) as well as official records related to religious practices and the administration of the realm. For the sake of brevity, we will focus only on the mythological episode of the Heavenly Rock-Dwelling (Fig. 2). This piece tells the story of how the sun goddess, Amaterasu, hid herself behind a rock and all the gods of the pantheon gathered and brought her back out again, restoring the sun to its place in the sky. This was only made possible through the intervention of the heavenly priestess, Ame no Uzume, and her sensual dance. Here is the story, paraphrased from the translation of the Kojiki by Basil Chamberlain: ‘So thereupon Amaterasu, terrified at the sight, closed behind her

the door of the heavenly Rock-Dwelling. Then the whole Takamagahara was obscured. The eight hundred myriad deities (yaoyorozu no kami 八百万の神 ) assembled and bid the god Omoki-kane to think of a plan. He asked them to bring forth the shoulder of a stag and some cherry-bark from the Heavenly Mount Kagu to perform divination. Then he ordered a Sakaki with five hundred branches to be pulled out of the ground by its roots. A string of five hundred heavenly curved jewels was put on the upper branches of the sakaki, on its middle branches was fastened an eightfoot-long mirror, and on its lower branches were placed white and blue purificatory offerings. He then started reciting liturgies. Meanwhile, the strongest deity, Tajikarao, was standing hidden beside the door of the Rock-Dwelling while Ame no Uzume prepared herself for the dance. She hung clubmoss as a sash around her waist, fashioned spindle leaves into a head-dress and bamboo leaves into a bouquet. She laid a sounding board in front of the Rock-Dwelling and stamped on it until it rang out. She was dancing as if possessed, pulling at her

Fig. 3 Officiants waving a sakaki branch during the Hiko-mai dance in Takachiho’s Yokagura, Shimo-Tabaru village

nipples and pushing down her skirt, showing her genitalia. At this sight, the eight myriad deities laughed together. Amaterasu, amazed by the sound, opened the door of the Rock-Dwelling to look at the scene and was brought out by the hidden Tajikarao, thus returning the sun to the world’ 1. Through this myth it is clearly seen how plants had a prominent role in the rites and rituals of ancient Japan. It is through the products of the mountain that the deity, a metaphor for the Shinto officiant, can perform its divination. The sakaki tree is used to purify the land and protect it from evil spirits that might interfere with the ritual taking place (Fig. 3). More importantly, it is by wearing plants that Ame no Uzume can channel a supernatural force that leads her to fall into a trance and dance as if possessed. It is possible to argue that in the 8th century, it was commonly believed that gods dwelled in the plants, imbuing them with special powers. Thus, Japanese people began to use plants such as sakaki to mark the sacredness of a place and to keep the evil spirits away during important rites. Records of such practices in myths suggest that plants were already used to perform rituals in Japan during the classical period.

Aston, William 1841-1911. 2008. Chronicles of Japan Earliest Times to A.D. York, N.Y.: Cosimo. 1

George, Nihongi: from the 697. New

Historically, the use of sakaki for ritual purposes is widely reported in Heian documents (794-1185), particularly in relation to the mountain populations conquered early within the period. These clans used sakaki branches as vessels to carry their gods whenever they descended towards the capital, either for religious or political matters. As a consequence, sakaki came to be associated with rituals performed for the sake of the emperor. These later spawned sacred dances to please the gods like Miko Kagura, performed by shrine maidens, and Sato Kagura, usually led by men in rural villages. However, by the time these dances were integrated into the imperial court ritual apparatus, the function of sakaki had altered. It no longer had the status of a vessel containing the deity itself but was perceived as a medium through which to channel divine power, and as such was used

Fig. 4 ‘The grooves were God’s first temples’ - a venue of noble cryptomerias at Nikkō, 1904

for its supposed purifying properties. With their adoption into the rituals of the imperial court, sakaki branches came to be embellished with all sorts of amulets and decorations, transforming their wild character into one more refined and pleasant, more suited to an urban lifestyle. This process echoed the gradual discontinuation of shamanic and magic practices led by the central power, which had already converted to Buddhism, and the framing of animistic and shamanic practices into a more structured system of belief: Shinto (the way of the gods 神道 ). In other words, the incorporation of sakaki branches in Shinto reflects the unification of indigenous religious practices, in line with the capital-led religious standard, which posited the emperor and his family as the headpriests of this newly formed religion.

The Tree of the Gods, Cryptomeria Japonica Cryptomeria, known in Japan as sugi 杉 and in the west as Japanese cedar tree, is another element of the Shinto belief system that has its roots in prehistoric Japan. Cryptomerias form tight forests and are easily recognisable by their tall and straight branchless trunks. Noteworthy examples of cryptomeria forests include one in Nikko (Fig. 4) and another covering Mount Koya. Scholars assume that tree-based forms of worship began at the end of the Ice Age and developed into more complex systems. In many regions around the world, primitive cultures ascribed some sacred or mystical power to trees, and Japan is no exception. The first settlers on the archipelago may have been fascinated by cryptomeria trees for their capacity to reach immense heights and 49

Fig. 5 An altar from which deities are thought to descend from the heavenly plain to take part in the Yokagura festivities, from Takachiho’s Yokagura, Kami-Tabaru village

sizes (up to 70 meters high and 4 meters in diameter). This fascination for such huge beings led to the inclusion of cryptomerias in myth, as recorded in the Kojiki and the Nihongi. It is said that the tree was born from the hair of the god of tempests, Susa no wo, when he decided to settle on earth. One passage in the Nihongi, translated by William George Aston, relates to how all sorts of plants were born from this fabled god: ‘Susa no wo no Mikoto said: ‘In the region of the Land of Han there is gold and

silver. It will not be well if the country ruled by my son should not possess floating riches (ships)’. So, he plucked out his beard and scattered it. Thereupon Cryptomerias were produced. Moreover, he plucked out the hairs of his breast, which became Thuyas. The hairs of his buttocks became Podocarpi. The hairs of his eyebrows became Camphor-trees. Having done so, he determined their uses. These two trees, (Cryptomeria and Camphor-tree), were to be made into floating riches (ships); the Thuya was to be used as timber for building fair palaces (shrines) ; the Podocarpus was to form receptacles in which the visible race of man was to be laid in secluded burial-places’ 2. This passage suggests that in ancient times cryptomeria, among many other trees, was thought to have a connection to the divine realm, and thus had some kind of power. Moreover, due to the significance of their height and because they mainly grow in mountains, already considered to be a world in-between heaven and earth, cryptomerias came to be thought of as the bridge by which deities could cross over to the human world. However, there is also a more practical explanation for the importance of cryptomeria in the Shinto belief system. This tree has a pleasant fragrance as well as a high resistance to weather and insects; its wood is easy to carve, yet is sturdy, waterproof and resistant to decay, making it an excellent resource to build with. In ancient times, shrines were thought to attract all the impurities of the world, and as such, they needed to be cleansed through periodic demolition and reconstruction. Maintaining a shrine required a considerable amount of wood, therefore building one in a place surrounded by cryptomeria insured easy access to this vital resource. This pattern can be seen in old shrines like Ise Jingu, one of the most famous Japanese shrines, which is surrounded by forests. In the case of Ise Jingu, considerable quantities of wood are required since its inner shrine is still periodically dismantled and re-built following the an-

Chamberlain, Basil Hall. 1982. The Kojiki: Records of Ancient Matters. Rutland, Vt. Tokyo: C.E. Tuttle. 2

cient technique, as a ritual to both purify the structure and impart knowledge through generations of carpenters.

An Example of Archaeology through Semiotics With this article I wanted to explore how some nature-focused elements of animism developed into a more complex and structured system of belief that became modern Shinto. While many animistic elements have been lost or assimilated beyond recognition by its constant syncretism with Buddhism and Onmyodo, other elements have persisted and still maintain an aura of supernatural - or shamanic - power. Both sakaki and cryptomeria are living relics of religious practices that existed in Japan during ancient times, long before the introduction of a written language, and are symbols that endure to this day.

Suggested Readings Breen, John, and Mark Teeuwen. 2011. A New History of Shinto. John Wiley & Sons. Hardacre, Helen. 2016. Shinto: A History. Oxford University Press. Hosoi, Y. T. 1976. ‘The Sacred Tree in Japanese Prehistory’. History of Religions 16 (2): 95–119. Itaya, Tōru. 1987. ‘The Torimono Dance: The Reenactment of Possession and the Genesis of a Nō-Type Performance’. Current Anthropology 28 (4): S49–58. McCormick, Melissa. 2019. 10. A Branch of Sacred Evergreen. The Tale of Genji. Princeton University Press. 50

SOCIOLOGY ANTHROPOLOGY

Makoto Atoh et al. Second Study on International Cooperation for Population and Development. New Insights from the Japanese Experience ( Japan International Cooperation Agency ( JICA): Tokyo, 2003), 18-19. 2 Bruno Urmersbach, 'Japans: Fertilitätsrate von 2007-2018,' Statista, August 22, 2019 3 'Life expectancy at birth, OECD,' August 25, 2019, https://data. oecd.org/healthstat/life-expectancy-at-birth.htm. 1

‘CRISIS 2025’

BABY BOOMERS IN NEED OF CAREGIVERS s a m i ra h ü sl e r

Demographic Challenges of Japan Japan is facing a drastic demographic change due to a simultaneously shrinking and ageing population. The number of elderly people is gradually increasing and by 2016 had already reached over 25% of the Japanese population. This phenomenon does not only concern the health sector or the everyday life of elderly people, but also raises socioeconomic and gender issues. To provide a good overview of the current situation, this topic is divided in four subchapters. Each of the chapters will deal with a different social issue or change, starting with the need for caregivers, followed by fundamental changes within the elderly care, the influence on gender roles and finally the rise of alternative ideas in the care sector. Part 1 – ‘Crisis 2025’: Baby Boomers in need of Caregivers Part 2 – Between Family and State: the Change of Japan’s Aging and Elderly Care Part 3 – Changing Gender Roles in the Context of Demographic Transition Part 4 – Intergenerational Care in Local Care Facilities The envied longevity of the Japanese people has brought with it a growing demand for nursing staff and a simultaneously shrinking workforce. To solve this dilemma, Japan is seeking solutions in different areas, such as technology (see social robotics) and immigration policy. The demographic transition of Japan mentioned above is characterised by declining birth rates (shōshika) and

a growing number of elderly people (kōreika). According to a report by the Population Association of Japan, the mortality rate had already begun to drop during the 1870s, while the birth rate remained high up until the post-war period. Moreover, the birth rate increased sharply in the years after the Asia-Pacific War, leading to the country’s first baby boom (dankai sedai). Within this short period of time, 8 million babies were born. 1 Afterwards, the fertility rate began to decline, eventually reaching a rate of only 1.4 (children per woman) in 2012, 2 while life expectancy saw continuous growth over the same period. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, in 2017, men were expected to live up to 82 years of age, while women lived an average of 87 years. 3 As a result, Japan not only developed an aging society, but also became the nation with the oldest population in the world. This can be attributed to improvements in the health care system and the rapid economic growth of post-war Japan. These two factors led to a shift in the distribution of the Japanese population. Today, the proportion of over-65year-olds exceeds 27%. Members of this demographic are likely to be retired and in need of long-term care services, adding further costs to the welfare state.

The current data clearly shows that growth in life expectancy and that of people in need go hand in hand. The concept of care dependency comprises a number of physical and mental disorders. The latter, which include neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia, affects about 2.3% of the population of Japan, with data showing an upward trend. The diagnostic procedures for such health issues in Japan, as in other countries (e.g. China, Singapore, Switzerland, etc.), involve various medical and psychological tests (see Clock Drawing Test, Hierarchic Dementia Scale-Revised or Mini Mental State Examination). If a person is diagnosed as ‘in need of care’, they can apply for long-term care insurance (kaigo hoken), which covers almost all costs of health care. As the number of elderly dependents gradually increases, the demand for caregivers is also on the rise. However due to the general labour shortage and

other issues in the sphere of caregiving, such as overtime hours and low wages, recruitment in Japan has been stagnating 4 and cannot keep up with this growth in demand. Consequently, Japan has had to find other solutions to close these gaps in the labour market. As this specific labour shortage was anticipated, different task forces have already been set up over the last twenty years, with various solutions found to prevent a shortage of skilled labour in health care. Initially, they focused on technological development (e.g. robotics) and the recruitment of women who were not yet working in productive jobs. However, those policies alone could not make up for the missing workforce, and further measures need to be taken. Another possibility would be to increase non-Japanese care workers but Japan remains wary and critical of immigration and implementation is slow. Despite the necessity on the part of the Japanese government to explore

Fig. 1 Jon McDonald, ‘Japan Population by Age 1920-2010 with Projection to 2060’

this approach, there are still some parties with an aversion to such an immigration policy, who still favour technological innovation as a solution. Although the use of robots in various areas is nothing new to Japan, they are not yet found nationwide due to high production costs and problems in handling the automata. As this approach has failed to deliver satisfactory results, the government has come to focus more on foreign caregivers. In order to recruit the necessary workforce, the system for employing foreign care workers has expanded. According to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare there are four categories of residence for employing foreign care workers: 5 1. Technical Intern Training Program (TITP) 2. ‘Nursing Care’ status of residence 3. Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) 4.‘Specified Skilled Worker (i)’ status of residence Despite these efforts, only a few thousand foreign caregivers are currently working in Japan. This is linked to a number of persistent failings in the health care system and in the recruitment strategy. First of all, wages are mostly below average and the excessively long working hours prevent a healthy work-life balance. Moreover, qualified foreign caregivers still require a Japanese certificate in order to perform medical treatment by themselves. The certificate is also required to extend their residence permits and to eventually receive the right of family reunification. As only about 11% of the applicants pass the exam, which has to be taken in Japanese, their chances of settling are low. Additionally, these care workers face various prejudices within their work environment. As a result, the majority of foreign caregivers are transferring to different areas of work,

Japans caregivers increased from 550’000 employees in 2000 to over 1,7 million in 2013, but the growth is since then becoming slower (see Mizuho Aoki, 'Nursing care workers hard to find but in demand in aging Japan', The Japan Times, June 27, 2016, https://www. japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/06/27/ re f e re n c e / n u r s i n g - c a re - w o r k e r s hard-to-find-but-in-demand-in-aging-japan/. 5 MHLW. Gaikoku hito kai mamoru shokuin no koyō ni kansuru kaigo jigyōshamuke gaidobukku (Tokyo: Mitsubishi UFJ Research and Consulting Co., Ltd, 2019), 2-3. 6 Gabrielle Vogt. Population Aging and International Health-Caregiver Migration to Japan. Cham: Springer, 2018, 37-66. 4

moving back to their home countries, or applying to other nations in need of health workers. According to Gabriele Vogt, a professor in Japanese Studies at the University of Munich, the current system seems to be ‘designed to fail’. Given that the aforementioned 8 million baby boomers will become increasingly dependent on structural help by 2025, it can be assumed that Japan will be lacking over 337’000 caregivers. 6 In light of this situation, the land of the rising sun has to adapt its institutions and demonstrate a more open-minded approach.

Suggested Readings Campbell, Creighton and Naoki Ikegami. 'Long-term care insurance comes to Japan.' Health Affairs 19, no. 3 (2000): 26-39. Chiavacci, David. Japans neue Immigrationspolitik: Ostasiatisches Umfeld, ideelle Diversität und institutionelle Fragmentierung. Wiesbaden: Springer VS, 2012. Kolland, Franz. 'Gesellschaftliche 54

Dimension von Frailty (Gebrechlichkeit).' SWS-Rundschau 51, no. 4 (2011): 426-437. Lewerich, Luderga. 'Demenzpflege zwischen Familie, Pflegeeinrichtung und lokaler Gemeinschaft: das Spezialaltenpflegeheim Takurōsho Yoriai.' In Japan in der Krise, edited by Annette Schad-Seifert and Nora Kottmann, 267293. Wiesbaden: Springer, 2018. Thang, Leng Leng. 'Aging and Social Welfare in Japan.' In Routledge Handbook of Japanese Culture and Society, edited. by Bester Lyon Victoria, C. Bestor und Akiko Yamagata, S. 172-185. Abingdon: Routledge, 2011. Vilog, Ron Bridget T., Kerren Happuch D. Arroyo and Tezla Gaeul G. Raquino. 'Empowerment issues in Japan’s care industry: Narratives of Filipino nurses and care workers under the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) labour scheme.' International Journal of Asia Paci c Studies 16 no. 1 (2020): 39–69. Vogt, Gabrielle. Population Aging and International Health Caregiver Migration to Japan. Cham: Springer, 2018 Wrigth, James. 'Robots vs. Migrants? Reconfiguring the Future of Japanese Institutional Eldercare'. Critical Asian Studies, 51 no. 3 (2019): 331-354.

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FILM

REVIEW: DRUNKEN ANGEL ma n u e l j o se f lores ag u i lar The end of the Second World War and the subsequent American occupation represented a tragic upheaval for the Japanese nation. In those years, although the occupying forces appeared to promote freedom and democracy, the Americans had an additional focus. With the aim of avoiding the spread of anti-democratic and anti-American ideologies in Japan, they sought to take control of the media and impose strict censorship. These new restrictions would profoundly impact the Japanese film industry. Drunken Angel (Yoidore Tenshi, 1948) takes place in a peripheral neighbourhood in Tokyo during the post-war period, centring on the troubled friendship between its two main protagonists: the young yakuza, Matsunaga, played by Toshiro Mifune, who suffers from tuberculosis; and the alcoholic doctor, Sanada, played by Takashi Shimura, who hopes to save him from both the disease and his criminal lifestyle. This relationship is brought into conflict by the return of Matsunaga’s former boss, who intends to reclaim his position as leader of the gang.

Director

Akira Kurosawa

Main actors

Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura

Drunken Angel is not simply a story about Japanese gangsters, but a Genre Drama, Romance critique of Japan’s westernisation. Kurosawa’s Drunken Angel, proProduction Toho Studios duced during this time, is not only company a prime example of how censorship can influence the making of a film, Release date April 27 1948 but also of how Kurosawa used his work to criticise such censorship, along with the occupation itself and its related ideologies. We are confronted with the problems of black marketeering, the destruction of a nation, prostitution, precarious living conditions, and poverty.

I fully recommended this film for anyone interested in Japanese post-war history or yakuza movies. One of the most fascinating topics of the movie is the subtle and continuous portrayal of the opposition between Japan and the West. The costume design, the music, and the dialogue all have an underlying message, inviting the viewer to choose between tradition and modernity; in other words, what should be kept and what should be left behind.

Fig. 1 Dr. Sanada looks for Matsunaga at the NÂş 1

Fig. 2 As promised Matsunaga, drunk, visits the doctor and tells him: â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;A yakuza never breaks his wordâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

MUSIC

REVIEW: YAMAZAKI AOI HIDDEN GEM OF HOKKAIDŌ by j u l es l a u r enti Yamazaki Aoi is a 27-year-old singer-songwriter from Sapporo in Northern Japan. She won both the Grand Prix award and the Special Jury Award at the Yamaha-sponsored contest, The 3rd Music Revolution, while still in high school. As a result, she made her major debut in August 2012, with her music being used in corporate commercials and TV theme songs, predominantly in Sapporo. Her clear and pure singing voice, in addition to the sentimental lyrics that focused more on reality than the usual pop clichés, won her the support of a generation of men and women from all walks of life. I first discovered her through the song Sabasaba 鯖鯖 , which is quite a surprise in itself, and which will be the topic of this review. Starting with the title, Sabasaba is in fact a play on words. To explain briefly, saba 鯖 means mackerel in Japanese, whilst sabasaba サバサバ is a word used to describe someone’s personality. More specifically, in this context it means someone who is easy-going and unconcerned with everyday matters. From the title alone you might wonder what the song is all about, but everything makes sense once you have listened to it. In a classic pop song, the singer usually talks about their distress, and how their relationship affects them, but here you will hear about it in a totally different way. Within the first two lines you get a sense of something refreshingly different, as Yamazaki avoids romantic clichés like ‘I miss you’ in favor of a line that literally translates as ‘I don’t mind us meeting less than once per week, it was just a lie’. The refrain, which follows, is where you come to understand the pun in the title. She says ‘A boyfriend who works in deep-sea fisheries is alright, taking it easy would be just right for me . . . when we meet at the harbor, I’d like to eat fresh mackerel’. Lyrics aside, the music video adds a pleasant, yet almost surreal feeling when you first watch it. You can see Yamazaki in an aquarium, walking beside the sea, on rocks, and fishing. She is carrying a mackerel plush throughout most of the video as a frequent reminder of the title, and the double entendre contained within.

In the end, it is quite a nice song; one that provides a sense of refreshment whilst also being quite funny. However, it is far from meaningless, and the more you listen to it, the more you come to understand that it is not just about the pun. It is rather a song about the difficulties of being an easy-going, sabasaba person in a relationship, in an era of fast communication and immediately accessible information.

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Netsuke

根付 : A Lost Tradition – An Accessory Out of Fashion Fig. 4 © The Metropolitan Fig. 5 © Walters Art Fig. 6 © The Metropolitan Fig. 7 © The Metropolitan

Kitsune

Museum of Art Museum Museum of Art Museum of Art

狐 : The Japanese Fox – Its Ambivalent Presence in Japanese Religion, Mythology and Culture

Fig. 2 © The Metropolitan Museum of Art Fig. 3 © The Metropolitan Museum of Art ‘Crisis 2025’: Baby Boomers in Need of Caregivers Fig. 1 © JonMcDonald, ‘Japan Population by Age 1920-2010 with Projection to 2060’ – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Japan_Population_by_Age_1920-2010_with_Projection_to_2060.png Locating Jazz in Interwar Japan: Dance Halls, Jazz Coffeehouses and Cafés

Fig. 3 © Shochiku Company Fig. 4 © Steve Sundberg – https://oldtokyo.com/ On Shinto’s Sacred Botany: When Myths Speak About Long Forgotten Pasts

Fig. 2 © Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA Fig. 4 © Underwood e Underwood, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 Review: Drunken Angel Fig. 1 © 1948, Scanned movie poster released by Toho Company and distributed by Toei. Fig. 2 © 1948, Movie produced and distributed by Toho Company. Review: Yamazaki Aoi – Hidden Gem of Hokkaidō © Yamazaki Aoi Official website – https://yamazakiaoi.jp/

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