JUN TAKAMI`S “SHOMINZOKU” AND AMBIGUOUS CRITICISM OF THE GREATER EAST-ASIA CO-PROSPERITY SPHERE
Journal Title: International Review of Humanities Studies - Year 2018, Vol 3, Issue 2
Abstract
Although Japanese writers who experienced living in Indonesia in 1940-1945 witnessed the issue of racial disparity as the reality of a European colony, they were unable to depict it sufficiently because they were expected to portray a peaceful coexistence between Japanese and Southeast Asian peoples as the ideal picture of the Greater East-Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. This paper explores the possibility of evaluating literary works written under the notion of the Greater East-Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere by analyzing Jun Takami`s short story “Shominzoku” (July 1941) using Marie Louise Pratt`s “contact zone” as analytical tool. “Shominzoku” poses the problem of Japanese positioning in European colony; of how the protagonist sees himself and others, and how he wants to be seen by other races. Examining the narrative technique of the story to view Japanese positioning in the Netherlands East Indies, this paper argues that although “Shominzoku” can be evaluated as a criticism towards the notion of Greater East-Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere, it is actually an ambiguous work due to a reflection of the persisting idea that Japanese is, indeed, a superior race.
Authors and Affiliations
Dewi Anggraeni
Keywords
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- EP ID EP502163
- DOI 10.7454/irhs.v3i2.74
- Views 137
- Downloads 0
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