Volume 1, Spring 2014
Michal Daliot-Bul
Dear readers of Innovative Research in Japanese Studies,
On behalf of all those who have participated over the past year in the production of the first volume of Innovative Research in Japanese Studies, it is with great pleasure and a sense of accomplishment that we launch it online. By establishing this journal we wanted to create a platform that would allow graduate students (enrolled in Ph.D. and Master programs) a means to practice their writing skills and to experience what it means to get published in the academic world. No less importantly, we hope to deliver to readers around the world a taste of some of the academic interests of young and promising researchers in the field of Japanese Studies. More>>
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Divine Scripts and Lost Histories in Japanese Esoterica
Avery Morrow
pages 2-26
ABSTRACT
Contemporary occult literature in Japan has been influenced by a number of texts claiming to date from ancient times called koshi-koden. These texts, some of which have been circulating since the early modern period, speak of forgotten histories, venerable traditions, lost technologies, and sacred science. A number of them were written in unknown alphabets which are believed to have been handed down secretly from the primeval era, the so-called jindaimoji or “scripts of the divine age.” Koshi-koden fall outside the traditional Kokugaku and Shintō narratives of the history of Japanese nativist thought. By examining the more unique aspects of koshi-koden, we can discover an early break between the nationalist historiography of pre-1945 Japan and an esoteric, metaphysical nativism which shines a radically different light on Japan's ancient age.
KEYWORDS: Shintō, Eastern esotericism, constructed scripts,nativism, forgery
Gyakuten Saiban: A Case Study in Japanese Film and
Videogame Convergence
Steven John Hutchins
pages 27-48
ABSTRACT
This article provides a summary of the key events in the history of convergence between the Japanese film and videogame industries. It demonstrates how a shift in the balance of power has taken place between the industries as videogame-licensed films have gradually taken precedence over film-licensed videogames. It then proceeds to a case study of the 2012 Takeshi Miike film Gyakuten Saiban (Ace Attorney), outlining some key issues in the promotion and marketing of the film and discussing how transnational issues might affect its reception overseas. It analyses the economic and creative implications for the commercialization of Japanese film and looks towards the future of film and videogame convergence arguing that both industries will continue to merge into one conglomerate of ideas, technology, and intellectual properties.
KEYWORDS: videogame, film, convergence, Takashi Miike,gamer, transnationalism
Fighting Food Loss and Food Waste in Japan
Federica Marra
pages 50-88
ABSTRACT
Japan discards approximately eighteen million tons of food annually, an amount that accounts for 40% of national food production. In recent years, a number of measures have been adopted at the institutional level to tackle this issue, showing increasing commitment of the government and other organizations. The greatest achievements have been observed in the treatment of food waste as a renewable resource, mainly through its conversion into animal feed. A number of new initiatives have also been launched to promote a systematic approach in the distribution and consumption sectors in order to fight consumer behavior and commercial practices that are still generating an elevated amount of food loss and waste. Along with the aim of environmental sustainability, these initiatives are also attempting to tackle food waste recycling and food loss prevention... more>>
KEYWORDS: food waste, food loss, food security, food self-sufficiency
A Yiddishe Manga: The Creative Jewish Roots of Japan's
"God of Comics"
Raz Greenberg
pages 89-111
ABSTRACT
The article examines the stylistic and narrative influence of the work of cartoonist Milt Gross (1895-1953) and animation producers Max (1883-1972) and David (1894-1979) Fleischer on Japanese manga artist Osamu Tezuka (1928-1989). Tezuka is considered to be Japan's "God of Comics" who introduced many of the stylistic and narrative conventions that have accompanied manga and made it a leading form of entertainment in post-war Japan. Tezuka himself acknowledged the influences of Gross and the Fleischer brothers, and this has been examined in previous studies. This article, however, focuses on a previously unexplored aspect of this influence: the Jewish heritage which is strongly echoed in both Gross' cartoons and the Fleischer brothers' animated films. The article argues that this heritage, which reflects Gross' and the Fleischer brothers'.... more>>
KEYWORDS: Manga, Anime, Osamu Tezuka, Max Fleischer, Milt Gross
History or His Story? Ōe Kenzaburō; a Personal
Narrative to Rewrite Japan
Rotem Ayalon
pages 112-136
ABSTRACT
On August 15, 1945, the people of Japan were summoned to hear the Emperor's speech. Anticipating a decree to attack the invading American enemy, they were astonished to hear a declaration of the end of the war. While thanking his subjects for their efforts, the Emperor announced that the war had regrettably resulted in the Potsdam Declaration. Emperor Hirohito called on his people to “endure the unendurable and bear the unbearable.” Even today historians continue to appraise the changes occurring in Japan after the war; while the changes are discernible, their causes require further evaluation. The commonly accepted premise is that these changes were brought about by the reforms of the American occupation. However, there are other voices claiming the continuation of historical processes that had started in Japan at the end of the nineteenth century.... more>>
KEYWORDS: Postwar Japan, Ōe Kenzaburō, Japanese History, Japanese Literature
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