2005 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
Sociological inquiry into money consciousness and the economic ethics of Japanese at turning points in time
| Project/Area Number |
15530327
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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 Institute of Technology |
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Principal Investigator |
NAGATANI Ken Nagoya Institute of Technology, Graduate School of Engineering, Associate Professor, 工学研究科, 助教授 (50273305)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2003 – 2005
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| Keywords | entrepreneur / culture / modern Japan / elite / historical sociology / industrialization / success / capitalist |
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| Research Abstract |
During this period of study, inquiry was made primarily into the following three matters :
1.Materials such as the rankings of the wealthy appearing in the newspaper Jiji Shimpo are examined, and the characteristics of the surveys conducted by the Jiji Shimpo Company, the methods by which the company created the rankings, and the social effect and impact engendered by publication of rankings are individually discussed.
2.The social and cultural identities of Zenjiro Yasuda and Kihachiro Okura as a typical entrepreneurs in early modern Japan are considered. Accordingly, the point is elucidated that these two men, mere social climbers during the first half of the Meiji era, gradually became compelled to redefine themselves as model entrepreneurs as befitted the social elite. Additionally, the point that they needed to form identities laden with contradictions as financially successful men amid this process is also elucidated.
3.Prominent financiers active in the period of transition extending from the latter half of the Meiji era to the first half of the Showa era are examined, and the process by which their thinking changed is traced. The historical and social context that served as the backdrop for this process of change in thinking is also examined. In particular, discussion is conducted with a focus on the words and deeds of Ichizo Kobayashi and Yasuzaemon Matsunaga, two central figures in the entrepreneurial culture of the time. Further, the postwar process of dismantling of the high-society culture of entrepreneurs and their responses to this process are also investigated.
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