2021 Fiscal Year Annual Research Report
Research on the Memory of Repatriation in Postwar Japanese Literature: With Special Emphasis on New Developments in English-Language Studies
| Project/Area Number |
19K23041
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| Research Institution | Osaka University |
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Principal Investigator |
ランブレクト ニコラス 大阪大学, 文学研究科, 助教 (60845981)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2019-08-30 – 2022-03-31
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| Keywords | 引揚げ / 戦後文学 / 脱植民地化 / 移動文学 / ポストコロニアル |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
This project contributed to the development of an emerging academic field examining the repatriation literature (hikiage bungaku) produced by repatriates (hikiagesha) who returned to Japan after the Second World War. In-depth research on works produced by a wide range of repatriate authors served to elucidate how postwar interpretations of repatriation varied not only according to the specific experiences of each author, but also according to region, gender, age, class, and ethnicity. The scope of research on Japanese-language repatriation literature was expanded through incorporation of the study of works by non-Japanese writers and by examining the effects of repatriation narratives on audiences who did not undergo repatriation themselves, including readers born after the war and "second-generation" repatriates.
The project enjoyed particular success in resituating the study of Japanese-language repatriation literature in an international context. Employing a multilingual approach, the project made strides in integrating theoretical advances in the study of decolonization originating in English-language research with insights from Japanese-language studies concentrating on specific pieces of Japanese repatriation literature. In addition, research products released in English conveyed the complexities of the study of postwar repatriation to new international audiences. Finally, the project highlighted how repatriation literature continues to reveal new avenues for comparative study in a contemporary world where displacement, migration, and empire remain essential concerns.
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