How do Japanese People Feel about the Nation : Analysis of the Articles about the Olympic Games

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Other Title
  • オリンピック関連記事にみられる国家意識の変容
  • オリンピック　カンレン　キジ　ニ　ミラレル　コッカ　イシキ　ノ　ヘンヨウ

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Abstract

This paper aims at analyzing what Japanese people identify themselves with, focusing on the Nation. Many researchers argued that people identify themselves not with their nations but with their ethnicities or their races in these days. In fact, it must be true in the post-colonial nations or in the multi-cultural nations. However, it should be considered more carefully if you analyze the case in Japan, for many Japanese still believe that Japan is the “ homo-ethnic nation". I analyze articles about the Olympic Games with the computer-coding. As a result, I found the following things. In 1988, Japanese people thought that the Nation restrained them, so the concept of the “nation-states" had a negative image. In 1992, Japanese athletes who easily won the game were regarded as symbols of “New Japan". The number of the articles includin the concepts of the "nation-states" were decreasing while the number of the articles about the athletes who try hard with the supports of their family members or their team-mates is increasing. In conclusion, the nation-based identity is now disappearing even in Japan. However, the concepts of “ethnic" or “race" is still not practical for most of Japanese people. Therefore, Japanese people regain small and close communities like families or teams as objects they identify themselves with.

Journal

  • 年報人間科学

    年報人間科学 27 87-105, 2006-03-31

    Sociology, Anthropology and Philosophy, Graduate School of Human Sciences, Osaka University

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