The Contested Meanings of the Postwar Showa in Cinematic Reflections of Tokyo Tower
Main Article Content
Abstract
Through the examination of two popular Japanese films: Always the Sunset on the Third Street and Tokyo Tower: Mom and Me, and Sometimes Dad, this study illustrates the multifaceted nature of memory about the postwar period vis-à-vis Tokyo Tower. Faced with the great deal of uncertainty about the future, the Japanese enthusiastically responded to the films. While nostalgic film Always idealizes the postwar period, Tokyo Tower offers a counter- narrative against the simplification and idealization of the postwar period. By examining the narratives of these films, it becomes clear that an issue of identify is crucial to cultural memory of the postwar period.
Senjo Nakai (Ph.D. Macquarie University, Sydney) is the deputy director of The Japanese Studies Center, Faculty of Humanities, Chiang Mai University. His interest ranges from communication through informal channels to cultural memory and Japanese films.
Article Details
Section
Articles
References
1 The construction of Tokyo Tower was initiated by entrepreneur Hisakichi Maeda (the founder of the Sankei Shimbun), and Tachū Naito, a renowned architect and engineer, designed the tower.
2 "Tokyo Tower Have Had 160 Million Visitors [Tokyo tawā raikyakusha ichiman rokusenmannin tassei).” Sankei Shimbun Online. 16 October 2009. Web. http://sankei.jp.msn.com/region/kanto/tokyo/091016/ tky0910161811019-n1.htm. 20 September, 2010.
3 After the Mēji Restoration, the Ministry of Education was established in 1871, and the compulsory education system was imposed in 1879. In 1880, the Imperial Rescript on Education (kyõikuchokugo) was issued to ensure the supreme position of the emperors. Since then on, national history was taught to cultivate a sense of belonging or collective identity in the society. During the Meji period, the empirical study of history, first introduced by western scholars, such as Rudwig Riess (1861-1928) and Edward S. Morse (1838-1925) stressed the importance of documents and archaeological evidence. In response to the rapid modernization of the society under the Meji government, Marx's historical materialism was introduced to Japan. It had a profound impact onto the social movements, and academia. However, after a brief period of academic freedom between the Taisho period and the first two decades of the Showa period, the government's interference in historical studies intensified. Sokichi Tsuda's critical analysis of ancient historiographies, for example, was banned in 1940.
4 Millennial Monsters: Japanese Toys and the Global Imagination. Barkley and Los Angels, CA: University of California Press. 2006. 74-5.
5 The comic has been serialized in bi-weekly comic magazine Evening.
6 Dir. Hara, Kechi. Toho, 2001. Film. This story pokes fun at the Showa nostalgia by depicting the adults preoccupied by the past.
7 This expo, held under the motto "Progress and Harmony for Mankind", attracted more than 64.2 million visitors. “Expo'70”. Commemorative Organization for the Japan World Exposition ('70). Web. http://www.expo 70.or.jp/e/contents/cts_007.html. 20 September, 2010.
8 The world such a displeasing place: Trips to Modern East Asian History ["Sekai” towa iyanamonodearu: higashi ajia gendaishi no tabi). Tokyo: Shueisha. 2006. 50.
9 Funabiki, Takeo. Rethinking “Nipponologies” (“nihonjinron” saikā). Tokyo: Kodansha, 2010. 198.
10 Dir. Takashi Yamazaki. Toho, 2005. Film.
11 Dir. Matsuoka, Joji. Shōchiku, 2007. Film.
12 By July 2011, all television signals will become digital. Tokyo Tower is not tall enough to cover the Kanto area.
13 Erll, Astrid. “Cultural Memory Studies: An Introduction". Cultural Memory Studies: an International and Interdisciplinary Handbook. Astrid Erll and Ansgar Nünning, eds. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co, 2008. 6-7.
14 Assmann, Jan. “Communicative and Cultural Memory.” Cultural Memory Studies: an International and Interdisciplinary Handbook. Astrid Erll and Ansgar Nünning, eds. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co, 2008. 101.
15 Assmann, Aleida. “Canon and Archive”. Cultural Memory Studies: an International and Interdisciplinary Handbook. Astrid Erll and Ansgar Nünning, eds. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co, 2008. 101.
16 Ibid. 99.
17 Ibid. 102.
18 Erll. 7.
19 Dir. John Wayne. United Artists, 1960. Film.
20 Dir. John Lee Hancock. Touchstone Pictures. 2004. Film.
21 The Past within Us: Media, Memory, History. London: Verso. 2005. 175-6
22 Ibid. 203, 243. Although Morris-Suzuki discounts, the politically subversive elements in Japanese comics are well documented by scholars, such as Shunshuke Tsurumi and Inuhiko Yomota. The Japanese popular culture, particularly comics, is far from being politically homogenous, and has a great number of sub genres that are not under the corporate control and government regulations. Even commercial comic Gomanizumusengen, which she harshly criticizes, exhibits an unusual degree of political subversiveness. His freewheeling treatment of various issues cannot be reduced into a single national history.
23 Barthes, Roland. The Eiffel Tower and other mythologies, trans Richard Howard, Berkeley, CA: University of California Press 1997.12.
24 Assmann. 97.
25 Winter, Jay. “Sites of Memory and the Shadow of War in Communicative and Cultural Memory”. Cultural Memory Studies: an International and Interdisciplinary Handbook. Astrid Erll and Ansgar Nünning, eds. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co, 2008. 62.
26 This phrase was used in the 1956 Economic White Paper.
27 The Japanese government estimates that around 575,000 Japanese in Manchuria were taken by the Soviet Union to forced labor camps in Siberia after the end of the war (Shiberia yokuryüchū shibosha nikansuru shiryo no chosa nituite]. 1 November, 2009. Web. http://www.mhlw.go.jp/seisaku/2009/11/ 01.html. 5 October 2010
28 Mita, Munesuke. An Introduction to Sociology: the Future of Human Beings and Society (Shakaigaku nyūmon: ningen to shakai no mirai). Tokyo: Iwanami, 2006. 71.
29 With 700,000 migrants arriving in Tokyo in 1965. “Population change in 2009 (Jinko no ugoki: Heisei 21nenchū]”. Tokyo Metropolitan Government Bureau of General Affairs Statistic Division Management and Coordination Section. 10 September, 2010. http://www.toukei.metro.tokyo.jp/jugoki/2009/ ju092f0001.pdf.
30 Tsurumi, Shunsuke. History of Mass Culture in Postwar Japan [Sengo nihon no taishū bunkashi). Tokyo: Iwanami, 2001. 219; Yoshimi, Shunya. The Postwar Society: Japanese Modern History Series Volume 9 [Posuto sengo shakai: sirizu nihon kingendaishi 9). Tokyo: Iwanami, 2009. 19.
31 Ibid. 19-20.
32 Murakami, Ryū. “Judge's Comment on the 128th Akutagawa Prize Selection (Senpyo].” Bungeshunjū March 2003, 2003. 360-1.
33 Nissay Research Institute. Research Report: Impacts of Retirement of “the Postwar Baby Boomers” and the Progress of Aging Population Combined with Low Birthrates in Japan, 2005. http://www.mof.go.jp/jouhou/kokkin/tyousa/1708dankai_8.pdf. 210.
34 The comic has been serialized in comic magazine Big Comic Original since 1974. The comic version includes far more complexity of the postwar period than the cinematic version.
35 Always was ranked at 7th among films released in 2005. The box office sale amounts to 3.23 billion yen. “Year 2005 Top Box Office Films [kako kogyoshūnyūjoisakuhin (over one billion yen)]”. Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan. Web. 2 September, 2010. http://www.eiren.org/toukei/2005.html. 2 September, 2010.
36 The novel is estimated to be sold 2.1 million copies. Tokyo Tower: O.B.T.O. Production Committee 2007. http://www.vap.co.jp/tokyotower_obto/ 2 September, 2010.
37 Among films released in 2007, Tokyo Tower is at the 16th in the box office ranking. “Year 2007 Top Box Office Films [kako kogyoshūnyūjõisakuhin (over one billion yen)]”. Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan. Web. http://www.eiren.org/toukei/2007.html. 2 September, 2010.
38 Lily Franky. Tokyo Tower: Mom and Me, and Sometimes Dad [Tokyo tawa: okan to boku to tokidoki oton], Tokyo: Fusosha, 2005. 114.
39 Ibid. 146.
40 Ibid. 168. 41 Ibid. 3.
42 Ibid. 168.
43 Ibid. 445.
44 NHK. 50 years of Broadcasting.[hoso gojūnenshi). Tokyo: NHK Publishing. 1977.
45 Hadfield. James. The Sensei Speaks: A Press Conference with Hayao Miyazaki, November 20, 2008. Web. Twitch. November 23, 2008. http://twitchfilm.com/interviews/2008/11/hayao-miyazaki-pressconference.php
46 Towards a Beautiful Country: My Vision for Japan [Utsukushii Nihon e]. Tokyo: Bungeishunjū. 2006. 219-220.
2 "Tokyo Tower Have Had 160 Million Visitors [Tokyo tawā raikyakusha ichiman rokusenmannin tassei).” Sankei Shimbun Online. 16 October 2009. Web. http://sankei.jp.msn.com/region/kanto/tokyo/091016/ tky0910161811019-n1.htm. 20 September, 2010.
3 After the Mēji Restoration, the Ministry of Education was established in 1871, and the compulsory education system was imposed in 1879. In 1880, the Imperial Rescript on Education (kyõikuchokugo) was issued to ensure the supreme position of the emperors. Since then on, national history was taught to cultivate a sense of belonging or collective identity in the society. During the Meji period, the empirical study of history, first introduced by western scholars, such as Rudwig Riess (1861-1928) and Edward S. Morse (1838-1925) stressed the importance of documents and archaeological evidence. In response to the rapid modernization of the society under the Meji government, Marx's historical materialism was introduced to Japan. It had a profound impact onto the social movements, and academia. However, after a brief period of academic freedom between the Taisho period and the first two decades of the Showa period, the government's interference in historical studies intensified. Sokichi Tsuda's critical analysis of ancient historiographies, for example, was banned in 1940.
4 Millennial Monsters: Japanese Toys and the Global Imagination. Barkley and Los Angels, CA: University of California Press. 2006. 74-5.
5 The comic has been serialized in bi-weekly comic magazine Evening.
6 Dir. Hara, Kechi. Toho, 2001. Film. This story pokes fun at the Showa nostalgia by depicting the adults preoccupied by the past.
7 This expo, held under the motto "Progress and Harmony for Mankind", attracted more than 64.2 million visitors. “Expo'70”. Commemorative Organization for the Japan World Exposition ('70). Web. http://www.expo 70.or.jp/e/contents/cts_007.html. 20 September, 2010.
8 The world such a displeasing place: Trips to Modern East Asian History ["Sekai” towa iyanamonodearu: higashi ajia gendaishi no tabi). Tokyo: Shueisha. 2006. 50.
9 Funabiki, Takeo. Rethinking “Nipponologies” (“nihonjinron” saikā). Tokyo: Kodansha, 2010. 198.
10 Dir. Takashi Yamazaki. Toho, 2005. Film.
11 Dir. Matsuoka, Joji. Shōchiku, 2007. Film.
12 By July 2011, all television signals will become digital. Tokyo Tower is not tall enough to cover the Kanto area.
13 Erll, Astrid. “Cultural Memory Studies: An Introduction". Cultural Memory Studies: an International and Interdisciplinary Handbook. Astrid Erll and Ansgar Nünning, eds. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co, 2008. 6-7.
14 Assmann, Jan. “Communicative and Cultural Memory.” Cultural Memory Studies: an International and Interdisciplinary Handbook. Astrid Erll and Ansgar Nünning, eds. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co, 2008. 101.
15 Assmann, Aleida. “Canon and Archive”. Cultural Memory Studies: an International and Interdisciplinary Handbook. Astrid Erll and Ansgar Nünning, eds. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co, 2008. 101.
16 Ibid. 99.
17 Ibid. 102.
18 Erll. 7.
19 Dir. John Wayne. United Artists, 1960. Film.
20 Dir. John Lee Hancock. Touchstone Pictures. 2004. Film.
21 The Past within Us: Media, Memory, History. London: Verso. 2005. 175-6
22 Ibid. 203, 243. Although Morris-Suzuki discounts, the politically subversive elements in Japanese comics are well documented by scholars, such as Shunshuke Tsurumi and Inuhiko Yomota. The Japanese popular culture, particularly comics, is far from being politically homogenous, and has a great number of sub genres that are not under the corporate control and government regulations. Even commercial comic Gomanizumusengen, which she harshly criticizes, exhibits an unusual degree of political subversiveness. His freewheeling treatment of various issues cannot be reduced into a single national history.
23 Barthes, Roland. The Eiffel Tower and other mythologies, trans Richard Howard, Berkeley, CA: University of California Press 1997.12.
24 Assmann. 97.
25 Winter, Jay. “Sites of Memory and the Shadow of War in Communicative and Cultural Memory”. Cultural Memory Studies: an International and Interdisciplinary Handbook. Astrid Erll and Ansgar Nünning, eds. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co, 2008. 62.
26 This phrase was used in the 1956 Economic White Paper.
27 The Japanese government estimates that around 575,000 Japanese in Manchuria were taken by the Soviet Union to forced labor camps in Siberia after the end of the war (Shiberia yokuryüchū shibosha nikansuru shiryo no chosa nituite]. 1 November, 2009. Web. http://www.mhlw.go.jp/seisaku/2009/11/ 01.html. 5 October 2010
28 Mita, Munesuke. An Introduction to Sociology: the Future of Human Beings and Society (Shakaigaku nyūmon: ningen to shakai no mirai). Tokyo: Iwanami, 2006. 71.
29 With 700,000 migrants arriving in Tokyo in 1965. “Population change in 2009 (Jinko no ugoki: Heisei 21nenchū]”. Tokyo Metropolitan Government Bureau of General Affairs Statistic Division Management and Coordination Section. 10 September, 2010. http://www.toukei.metro.tokyo.jp/jugoki/2009/ ju092f0001.pdf.
30 Tsurumi, Shunsuke. History of Mass Culture in Postwar Japan [Sengo nihon no taishū bunkashi). Tokyo: Iwanami, 2001. 219; Yoshimi, Shunya. The Postwar Society: Japanese Modern History Series Volume 9 [Posuto sengo shakai: sirizu nihon kingendaishi 9). Tokyo: Iwanami, 2009. 19.
31 Ibid. 19-20.
32 Murakami, Ryū. “Judge's Comment on the 128th Akutagawa Prize Selection (Senpyo].” Bungeshunjū March 2003, 2003. 360-1.
33 Nissay Research Institute. Research Report: Impacts of Retirement of “the Postwar Baby Boomers” and the Progress of Aging Population Combined with Low Birthrates in Japan, 2005. http://www.mof.go.jp/jouhou/kokkin/tyousa/1708dankai_8.pdf. 210.
34 The comic has been serialized in comic magazine Big Comic Original since 1974. The comic version includes far more complexity of the postwar period than the cinematic version.
35 Always was ranked at 7th among films released in 2005. The box office sale amounts to 3.23 billion yen. “Year 2005 Top Box Office Films [kako kogyoshūnyūjoisakuhin (over one billion yen)]”. Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan. Web. 2 September, 2010. http://www.eiren.org/toukei/2005.html. 2 September, 2010.
36 The novel is estimated to be sold 2.1 million copies. Tokyo Tower: O.B.T.O. Production Committee 2007. http://www.vap.co.jp/tokyotower_obto/ 2 September, 2010.
37 Among films released in 2007, Tokyo Tower is at the 16th in the box office ranking. “Year 2007 Top Box Office Films [kako kogyoshūnyūjõisakuhin (over one billion yen)]”. Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan. Web. http://www.eiren.org/toukei/2007.html. 2 September, 2010.
38 Lily Franky. Tokyo Tower: Mom and Me, and Sometimes Dad [Tokyo tawa: okan to boku to tokidoki oton], Tokyo: Fusosha, 2005. 114.
39 Ibid. 146.
40 Ibid. 168. 41 Ibid. 3.
42 Ibid. 168.
43 Ibid. 445.
44 NHK. 50 years of Broadcasting.[hoso gojūnenshi). Tokyo: NHK Publishing. 1977.
45 Hadfield. James. The Sensei Speaks: A Press Conference with Hayao Miyazaki, November 20, 2008. Web. Twitch. November 23, 2008. http://twitchfilm.com/interviews/2008/11/hayao-miyazaki-pressconference.php
46 Towards a Beautiful Country: My Vision for Japan [Utsukushii Nihon e]. Tokyo: Bungeishunjū. 2006. 219-220.