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Discourses of the Vanishing: Modernity, Phantasm, Japan,Used
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Japan today is haunted by the ghosts its spectacular modernity has generated. Deep anxieties about the potential loss of national identity and continuity disturb many in Japan, despite widespread insistence that it has remained culturally intact. In this provocative conjoining of ethnography, history, and cultural criticism, Marilyn Ivy discloses these anxietiesand the attempts to contain themas she tracks what she calls the vanishing: marginalized events, sites, and cultural practices suspended at moments of impending disappearance.Ivy shows how a fascination with cultural margins accompanied the emergence of Japan as a modern nationstate. This fascination culminated in the early twentiethcentury establishment of Japanese folklore studies and its attempts to record the spectral, sometimes violent, narratives of those margins. She then traces the obsession with the vanishing through a range of contemporary reconfigurations: efforts by remote communities to promote themselves as nostalgic sites of authenticity, storytelling practices as signs of premodern presence, mass travel campaigns, recallings of the dead by blind mediums, and itinerant, kabukiinspired populist theater.
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- Q: What is the title of the book? A: The title of the book is 'Discourses of the Vanishing: Modernity, Phantasm, Japan'.
- Q: Who is the author of this book? A: The author is Marilyn Ivy, known for her work in cultural criticism and ethnography.
- Q: How many pages does this book have? A: The book has two hundred seventy-seven pages.
- Q: What are the dimensions of the book? A: The book measures nine point zero two inches in length, five point nine eight inches in width, and zero point five nine inches in height.
- Q: What type of binding does this book have? A: The book is published in paperback binding.
- Q: What themes are explored in this book? A: The book explores themes of cultural identity, modernity, and the anxieties surrounding Japan's historical narratives.
- Q: Is this book suitable for academic research? A: Yes, the book is suitable for academic research, particularly in cultural studies and ethnography.
- Q: What audience is this book intended for? A: The book is intended for readers interested in modern Japanese culture, ethnography, and cultural criticism.
- Q: How does this book address Japan's cultural identity? A: The book addresses Japan's cultural identity by discussing anxieties about national identity and continuity amidst modernity.
- Q: What kind of cultural practices does the author examine? A: The author examines marginalized cultural practices and events that are at risk of disappearing.
- Q: How does the author illustrate the concept of 'vanishing'? A: The author illustrates 'vanishing' through various contemporary reconfigurations of cultural narratives and practices.
- Q: What is the significance of folklore studies in this book? A: Folklore studies are significant as they represent early efforts to document Japan's spectral narratives and cultural margins.
- Q: What is the main argument presented by Marilyn Ivy? A: The main argument is that Japan's modernity is intertwined with a persistent anxiety about cultural loss.
- Q: How does this book contribute to understanding Japanese modernity? A: The book contributes by linking historical narratives to contemporary cultural anxieties and identity issues in Japan.
- Q: What is the publisher of this book? A: The book is published by the University of Chicago Press.
- Q: Are there any illustrations or images in this book? A: No, the book does not specifically mention any illustrations or images.