2005 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
A Study on the Literature Describing "Ainu" from the Viewpoint of Historical Sociology
| Project/Area Number |
15530326
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
Sociology
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| Research Institution | Nagoya University |
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Principal Investigator |
HIGASHIMURA Takeshi Nagoya University, Graduate School of International Development, Associate Professor, 大学院・国際開発研究科, 助教授 (20273211)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2003 – 2005
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| Keywords | Ainu / Japanese / Literature / Reception |
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| Research Abstract |
The report consists of four chapters. Chapter 1 describes the problem setting, the research process, and the assignments and prospects in the future.
Chapters 2 and 3 critically review the reception of two works produced by Japanese in the late 1950s and are considered masterpieces in the literature describing the Ainu. Although the young adult's novel The Whistle of the Kotan, discussed in Chapter 2, was considered "the masterpiece" right after its publication, there was some sharp contemporary criticism that pointed out the defects of the novel. The criticism ; however, did not have any social influence nor attract the attention of readers until the 1970s. Even so, The Whistle of the Kotan continues to be published.
Chapter 3 traces the praise and the criticism of the popular novel The Festival of the Forest and the Lake. Being different from The Whistle of the Kotan, The Festival of the Forest and the Lake immediately attracted severe criticism doubting the value of the novel. This novel continues to be read ; however, because consumers who amusingly read it as a tourist novel can coexist with critics who seek for its deep theme.
Chapter 4 discusses the critical eye and the politics of Sasaki Masao's interpretation, which was contributed to the posthumous collection of the Ainu writer Hatozawa Samio. Sasaki analyzed the essential value of Hatozawa's works and warned Japanese who were inclined to read Hatozawa as a direct prosecutor. Considering the number of Japanese who still read Hatozawa as they like, Sasaki's criticism has not lost its value today.
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