Rituals Within Walls: Thinking Post-War Japan’s History through Cinematic Allegories of Everyday Life
Between the mid-1960s and the early 1970s, the quotidian dimension took political centrality in Japan thanks to the leading role of the New Left movement and its ideology. This went hand in hand with an appreciation of the philosophical approaches of Marxist intellectuals such as Jun Tosaka and Gorō...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Edinburgh University Press
2023-10-01
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| Series: | Film-Philosophy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/10.3366/film.2023.0244 |
| _version_ | 1797649889414348800 |
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| author | Ferran de Vargas |
| author_facet | Ferran de Vargas |
| author_sort | Ferran de Vargas |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Between the mid-1960s and the early 1970s, the quotidian dimension took political centrality in Japan thanks to the leading role of the New Left movement and its ideology. This went hand in hand with an appreciation of the philosophical approaches of Marxist intellectuals such as Jun Tosaka and Gorō Hani, who saw the quotidian as a fundamental space for historical transformation. We know how Tosaka and Hani developed an everyday-centred philosophy of history through their writings, but we know little about how formats other than the written word – such as cinema – contributed to thinking historical reality from the same ideological approach. To address this gap in our understanding, this article analyses the intersection of two highly representative films with Tosaka and Hani’s historical thought: Secrets Within Walls (Kabe no naka no himegoto, Kōji Wakamatsu, 1965) and Ceremonies (Gishiki, Nagisa Ōshima, 1971). These films’ cinematic allegorisation of post-war Japan’s everyday relationships was a way to reflect on the political character of that period. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T15:53:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0af11267df664e1f9afbdde6c967a987 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1466-4615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T15:53:37Z |
| publishDate | 2023-10-01 |
| publisher | Edinburgh University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Film-Philosophy |
| spelling | doaj.art-0af11267df664e1f9afbdde6c967a9872023-10-25T13:29:54ZengEdinburgh University PressFilm-Philosophy1466-46152023-10-0127350753010.3366/film.2023.0244Rituals Within Walls: Thinking Post-War Japan’s History through Cinematic Allegories of Everyday LifeFerran de Vargas0Open University of CataloniaBetween the mid-1960s and the early 1970s, the quotidian dimension took political centrality in Japan thanks to the leading role of the New Left movement and its ideology. This went hand in hand with an appreciation of the philosophical approaches of Marxist intellectuals such as Jun Tosaka and Gorō Hani, who saw the quotidian as a fundamental space for historical transformation. We know how Tosaka and Hani developed an everyday-centred philosophy of history through their writings, but we know little about how formats other than the written word – such as cinema – contributed to thinking historical reality from the same ideological approach. To address this gap in our understanding, this article analyses the intersection of two highly representative films with Tosaka and Hani’s historical thought: Secrets Within Walls (Kabe no naka no himegoto, Kōji Wakamatsu, 1965) and Ceremonies (Gishiki, Nagisa Ōshima, 1971). These films’ cinematic allegorisation of post-war Japan’s everyday relationships was a way to reflect on the political character of that period.https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/10.3366/film.2023.0244Japanese cinemaJapanese MarxismJun TosakaKoji WakamatsuNagisa Oshimapost-war Japan |
| spellingShingle | Ferran de Vargas Rituals Within Walls: Thinking Post-War Japan’s History through Cinematic Allegories of Everyday Life Film-Philosophy Japanese cinema Japanese Marxism Jun Tosaka Koji Wakamatsu Nagisa Oshima post-war Japan |
| title | Rituals Within Walls: Thinking Post-War Japan’s History through Cinematic Allegories of Everyday Life |
| title_full | Rituals Within Walls: Thinking Post-War Japan’s History through Cinematic Allegories of Everyday Life |
| title_fullStr | Rituals Within Walls: Thinking Post-War Japan’s History through Cinematic Allegories of Everyday Life |
| title_full_unstemmed | Rituals Within Walls: Thinking Post-War Japan’s History through Cinematic Allegories of Everyday Life |
| title_short | Rituals Within Walls: Thinking Post-War Japan’s History through Cinematic Allegories of Everyday Life |
| title_sort | rituals within walls thinking post war japan s history through cinematic allegories of everyday life |
| topic | Japanese cinema Japanese Marxism Jun Tosaka Koji Wakamatsu Nagisa Oshima post-war Japan |
| url | https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/10.3366/film.2023.0244 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ferrandevargas ritualswithinwallsthinkingpostwarjapanshistorythroughcinematicallegoriesofeverydaylife |