Organizer: Takashi Lep Ariga, Kanagawa University, Japan
Chair: Akie Kawagoe, Kanagawa University, Japan
Discussant: Alan S. Christy, University of California, Santa Cruz
Historically, folklore studies in Japan have tended to see an item of folklore-be it a physical object, an oral narrative, or an event-as a key to the past. The focus has been on finding the source of the item and attempting to understand its original form. Recently, however, folklore scholarship has been changing: rather than focusing on the text, and attempting to trace its historical origins, folklorists have been seeking to understand the role played by an item of folklore for the living folk group in which the item exists.
By looking at three disparate fields within folklore studies, we will attempt to outline what we see as the basis of this new approach as it relates to folklore research in Japan. Kawagoe's research, for example, shows how folk toys must be viewed not simply as texts, but rather as creations which can only be understood within the context of the society in which they are produced. Ariga's research uses a similar approach to view folk-events, specifically the phenomenon of ijime and how the meaning of a specific form of behavior can change sharply in a modern cultural context. And finally, Foster's research focuses on the kappa water spirit and how the creature's meaning has shifted to correspond to the changes within the folk group which created it.
From these brief presentations, we hope we can point at least vaguely to the new directions a younger generation of Japanese folklorists are taking.
Beyond Textual Approaches in Japanese Folk Art Studies
Akie Kawagoe, Kanagawa University, Japan
Most studies of Japanese folk art and material culture have taken a text-centered approach. They have focused, for example, on the history and production techniques of the objects themselves, attempting to seek out their origins. This tendency has caused scholars to become trapped by the text, unable or unwilling to see beyond the material object.
The restrictions of this limited, text-centered approach have often caused researchers to overlook the society in which the object's creators live; this tendency is apparent in many academic fields, but is particularly striking among researchers dealing with material objects. I believe, therefore, it is necessary to step away from the text momentary, explore the context in which it is created, and only then return once more to the text. In other words, it is critical to focus not on the object itself, but on the living context from which the object emerges.
Based on this sort of context-centered perspective, I will examine Japan of the early 1900s through an exploration of kyôdo gangu (folk toys). The concept of kyôdo gangu emerged in 1923 when old-fashioned children's toys were revitalized as kyôdo gangu for adults. This phenomenon was brought about by a new awareness of kyôdo or local identity instigated by the broad changes sweeping Japan, including the urbanization of the traditional rural environment. Focusing on this pre-war period, I will explore the vital relationship between the material objects produced by a society, and the changes within the society itself.
The Metamorphosis of the Kappa: Folklore to Folklorism
Michael Dylan Foster, Stanford University
The kappa is a mischievous water goblin of Japanese folklore; versions of the kappa belief and the legends and folktales associated with it are found throughout Japan. The academic research on the kappa begun by Yanagita Kunio and developed by Origuchi Shinobu, Ishida Eiichiro, and later by Dutch anthropologist Cornelis Ouwehand has focused primarily on the common motif of the kappa pulling a horse into the river. In recent years, scholars such as Komatsu Kazuhiko have interpreted the kappa (and other yôkai) in a slightly broader perspective, dealing with it in terms of ijinron and the concept of the outsider. By touching on the ways in which the kappa has been studied in Japan, we can gain insight into how folklorists have interpreted the existence of such yôkai, and also understand some of what has been lacking in their researches. In particular it might be valuable to probe the borders between folklore and folklorism (essentially the appropriation of folklore for commercial and other purposes). Although the kappa belief in a "purer" form still exists in some areas, artists, writers, cartoonists, commercial interests, and the mass media have transformed the creature from a malicious unpleasant water deity into a harmless lovable mascot. The mechanism of this metamorphosis poses important challenges to modern folklorists; as both the means and the objectives of transmission change, the definition of folklore itself must change.
Ijime and the Japanese Society
Takashi Lep Ariga, Kanagawa University, Japan
Japanese society has changed rapidly in the twentieth century, particularly after World War II. These changes often manifest themselves in new types of social problems and conflicts within the adult world. But changes also affect the world of children. In the past three years, for instance, the suicide death of several school children has brought the problem of ijime into the public spotlight. According to older people, however, ijime (often translated as bullying or intimidation by classmates) is not a new form of behavior in Japan. Indeed, the only difference is that now, for some reason, this behavior has come to be regarded as a momentous problem. Assuming that ijime among youth is indeed not a new phenomenon, there must be a reason why only in recent years its reception has changed. Clearly a significant change has occurred in the way ijime takes place, or the way it is seen by the public, or both.
By taking a folkloristic look at various Japanese folk-events relating to ijime, such as muko (bridegroom)-ijime, kaju (fruit tree)-ijime, and some of the rites de passage which include ijime behavior, this small study will show some aspects of the cultural changes Japan has experienced. Although ijime has been studied from a number of perspectives, it has yet to be looked at from the standpoint of folklore; yet if ijime-events themselves are indeed a form of folklore, then a folkloristic investigation is not only effective, but necessary.