The Ambivalence in the Text between Empire and Colonies in Abe Kōbō:"Karasu numa"

DOI IR HANDLE Open Access

Bibliographic Information

Other Title
  • 安部公房『鴉沼』論―帝国と植民地の間で揺らぐテクストの意味合い―
  • アベ コウボウ『カラスヌマ』ロン―テイコク ト ショクミンチ ノ アイダ デ ユラグ テクスト ノ イミアイ―

Search this article

Description

This study focuses on Abe Kōbō's short story "Karasu numa"(1948) and shows that the characters' acts of adultery suggest a complex relationship between the colony and the empire. The representation of the colony and empire is inseparable from the author's own experience of Manchuria and memories of repatriation. The symbolism of the characters in "Karasu numa" is diverse. The man in the character symbolizes the Japanese soldier and also suggests imperialism. The woman symbolizes the repatriates and at the same time signifies colonialism itself. Therefore, the process by which the man was forced to attack by the Chinese and the destruction of the woman's dwelling reflect the historical events in which Japanese soldiers and civilians were counterattacked by the colonial natives in the immediate aftermath of the war. Furthermore, the fact that the man has been counterattacked by the woman points to another historical fact: the excessive development of colonialism will ultimately lead to the dismantling of imperialism. Among the diverse experiences of Abe Kōbō, the experience of repatriation is related to the sociological theory of crowds in his novels. "Karasu numa" depicts two crowds, one a group of settlers represented by the woman and the man, and the other a group of Chinese in Manchuria. However, although the two crowds conflict, it is not aimed to extinguish one of the crowds, but rather to work for the survival of the crowd. Abe Kōbō's mode of thinking is that the repatriates are excluded yet survive without fear of their exclusion. Furthermore, the setting in which female repatriates seduce male repatriates in the text faithfully illustrates the internal breakdown of the repatriate crowd. This paper finds a situation in which the legitimacy of repatriates, who are incompatible with the Japanese on the mainland, is severely questioned.

Journal

  • 日本語・日本学研究

    日本語・日本学研究 14 17-35, 2024-03-31

    Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, International Center for Japanese Studies

Details 詳細情報について

Report a problem

Back to top