2016 Fiscal Year Annual Research Report
The Literature of the Japanese Diaspora: Identity beyond Japan
| Project/Area Number |
16F16751
|
|---|
| Research Institution | Kyoto University |
|---|
Principal Investigator |
竹沢 泰子 京都大学, 人文科学研究所, 教授 (70227015)
|
|---|
| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
DE SOUZA LYLE 京都大学, 人文科学研究所, 外国人特別研究員
|
|---|
| Project Period (FY) |
2016-10-07 – 2019-03-31
|
| Keywords | literature / Nikkei / diaspora |
|---|
| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
From my arrival in September 2016 until the end of October 2016 I completed the planning and preparation for the monograph. This involved creating research questions for the monograph, creating a provisional chapter list plan & word count, and researching suitable academic publishers.
I tested a number of research questions before deciding on the following to use to guide the monograph: “Are there common characteristics in the Nikkei cultural identities depicted in the literature of the Japanese diaspora in English-speaking countries, and do these suggest that global Nikkei identities are supplanting nation-state based ones?”
I also tested a number of ways in which to thematically arrange my research in chapters before deciding on the following: Introduction; Ch1 History; Ch2 Power, Culture, Economy; Ch3 Race & Ethnicity; Ch4 Post-nation Identity; Ch5 Nikkei Spaces; Ch6 Gender Issues; Conclusion.
I researched several academic publishers but have not chosen to commit to one until the shape of the research is more developed and I have written a draft of at least the Introduction and Ch1.
From November 2016 until April 2017 I have completed the literature search & review and data collection for the project. The literature search & review, in collaboration with hired research assistants, found relevant Nikkei literature across the English-speaking world.
|
| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
2: Research has progressed on the whole more than it was originally planned.
Reason
At the moment I am currently preparing to write a first draft of the monograph by first finishing some textual analysis on the novels and reading around the subject. I am conducting textual analysis using CAQDAS software to help find patterns in the research themes across the novels which span multiple writers in different countries using different literary styles and conventions. In addition to primary sources of Nikkei novels, I also collected and read a range of secondary literature related to the project. This includes theoretical material, direct commentary on my primary sources, and other related material.
|
| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
The upcoming kakenhi year will be devoted to the production of the first draft of the monograph. The monograph is structured with front matter, an introduction, five main chapters, conclusion, and end matter. The five main chapters will each take 1-2 months for a first draft.
In addition to writing the monograph I also plan to submit another 1 or 2 articles to peer-reviewed international journals. Currently I am midway through writing an article due this summer. I plan to finish another article by the end of this calendar year.
I will present a paper with some of the findings to date of the research at the Inter-Asia Cultural Studies Conference in Seoul on 30 July.
|
