Session 5 - Ritual and Materiality in the Construction of Traditional Culture in Modern Japan

[stubing]

Join us for the discussion session on Tuesday, 5/24 at 4pm PT on Zoom.

https://usc.zoom.us/j/93665449622?pwd=QXBNd1VMS2MvTXUvbDJvWGFVUStvZz09

Meeting ID: 936 6544 9622
Passcode: 597010

Lecture 1

 

 

Lecture 2

 

Discussion Questions
Week 5

Takahashi Fujitani, chapter one of Splendid Monarchy

-in what ways was national consciousness limited during the Tokugawa period?

-how does nostalgia (or memory) act to produce the imagined community of the nation?

Sean McPherson, “National Agendas and Local Realities: Festive Material and Ritual Culture, Nationalism, and Modernity in the Chita Region of Japan”

-what does it mean to say that festivals (matsuri) were “reimagined” and “reinvented” in the early 20^th century in Japan?

-how and why were Shinto and Buddhism separated as part of Japan’s modernization process?

Ofra Goldstein-Gidoni, “Kimono and the Construction of Gendered and Cultural Identities”

-what is the relationship between gender, the nation, and clothing that this article explores?

-how and why have imaged of women been “cultural constructed” to maintain certain ideas about Japanese identity?

 

Required Assignments and Readings

• Shino tea bowl by Suzuki Osamu, "Living National Treasure" (Ningen kokuh)
• Geisha Kimono
• Portable Shrines
• Imperial Portraits
• Ofra Goldstein-Gidoni, "Kimono and the Construction of Gendered and Cultural Identities," Ethnology 38:4 (1999): 351-370.
• Takahashi Fujitani, Splendid Monarchy: Power and Pageantry in Modern Japan (UC Press, 1996), "Introduction," 1-28.

 

 

Attachments:

You must be logged in to view attached files.

[Jennifer Lee]

How does nostalgia (or memory) act to produce the imagined community of the nation?

I found the lectures and Splendid Monarchy exerpt really eye opening. I was pretty shocked to learn that so many traditions were not as ancient as I assumed them to be. The concept of people believing in their own myths when they align with their values was also an idea that I really see happening in contemproray America. 

[clay dube]

Marina brought up kamikaze in our discussion.
Documentary: Wings of Defeat features a kamikaze pilot who survived and a US sailor from a ship that was sunk by a kamikaze attack. They are interviewed and meet. Our NCTA partner at SPICE created lessons to accompany the film.
NPR: https://www.npr.org/2008/04/22/89622063/wings-of-defeat-kamikaze-stories-told-in-person
SPICE:
https://spicestore.stanford.edu/products/wings-of-defeat-a-teachers-guide

[clay dube]

Great NY Times history of Kit Kat in Japan, includes a wonderful opening the article"
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/10/24/magazine/candy-kit-kat-japan.html

 

[Kayla Kolean]

I had not seen the images of the Emporer and Empress in Western dress and traditional Japanese clothing. I am excited to share these with my students next year to show the shift during this time.

I think that pop culture is a way that Japan is currently sharing and preserving its own country. Media that overseas audiences see depictions of the tori (orange gates), summer matsuri (festivals), and kabuki. Even during the 2021 Olympic performance, a modernized kabuki performance was featured. These are ways where Japan can not only celebrate its own traditions (or modern inventions of Japanese traditions) but as a way to export their national identity and ideas.

Many of the students come to my class with knowledge of these events and customs, which is awesome! So instead of teaching them from scratch, we start with discussions about students sharing what they know about a custom and working from their own prior exposure and experiences.

Do many of your students come to your class with prior knowledge of some Japanese cultures? If so, what customs or culture understanding (or even misunderstanding) do they bring?

 

[Kayla Kolean]

I am aware of "hafu" for mixed-race individuals. Many mixed-race individuals have recently spoken out about the terrible racism and prejudice that they experience from a young age. Here is a documentary called Hafu about these individuals: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/hafufilm 

As the world becomes more globalized, and Japan deals with its current population decline issues, I hope that more diversity will happen in Japan in order to overcome this racism and prejudice that people of less than 100% "Japanese" ancestory experience.

[Kayla Kolean]

I did not know about this phenomenon in Japan. Very interesting, and it speaks to Japan's emphasis and priority of tradional Japanese arts and traditions. I would love to see a list and images of past and current winners and their work(s).

[Author]

Posts