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APRIL 2010 N E W S R E V I E W |
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N E W S
Regulations on Forms of Expression: A Crisis for the Manga World At a March 15 press conference, manga artists Tetsuya Chiba, Machiko Satonaka, and Go Nagai appealed against a bill aimed at revising the ordinance for the Sound Upbringing of Minors. The bill targets manga, anime and games which depict males and females under the age of 18 engaged in sexual acts. The proposal has faltered in the wake of strong expressions of concern. The press conference received media coverage from numerous groups the following day, with a nationwide daily newspaper Asahi Shimbun running a two-page spread. While the final outcome remains undecided, on March 19 the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly Committee voted to shelve the decision. Deliberation on the bill will be carried over to June, when the committee reconvenes. Tension remains high among manga artists, publishers, and other concerned individuals, for whom the future remains uncertain. "When new expressions and forms of culture develop, then new flowers bloom. There may be pitiful or ugly flowers among those, but even if a flower might be dirty, should it be chopped off at the roots, its vitality completely extinguished? Regulations on forms of expression will mean the extinction of culture. With people expressing both support and opposition, the situation has become extremely confusing. I feel the future of the world of Japanese manga is in crisis." These are the words of manga artist Tetsuya Chiba, at the press conference on March 15. He opposes revising the bill for the Sound Upbringing of Youth, arguing it would inhibit freedom of expression. Other manga artists, including Machiko Satonaka, Keiko Takemiya, and Go Nagai, also spoke out, citing one example after another about the problems related to the present bill, and expressing their concerns over regulations on forms of expression. What precisely are their concerns about the bill aimed at revising the ordinance for the Sound Upbringing of Youth? The issue first surfaced last year, on November 26, at the 28th regular convening of the Tokyo Youth Issues Convention, when the results of the committee's survey reported that "in the midst of the growth of media society, the sound education of youth is being adversely affected." According to the youth committee, "Surveys, debates, and various affiliated organizations who responded to the inquiries of the mayor all point to the necessity of establishing a comprehensive policy regarding our youth." They appeal for a strengthening of policies aimed at sexual depictions of youth in manga and other media (graphic books designated as unhealthy). On December 10 last year, written opinions with joint signatures from book and magazine organizations were sent in expressing opposition to the bill, stating that it would be "injurious to freedom of expression." However, around January 14, the committee issued a statement to the mayor of Tokyo, reporting that the proposal would remain unchanged. On February 14, a bill based on this statement was submitted to the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly Committee. According to the bill, manga, anime and games depicting fictional characters whom one might guess to be under 18 (designated as "virtual minors") engaged in sexual acts would need to have clear written specifications on voluntary restraints of sales. In an interview, manga artist Keiko Takemiya referred to her work, "Kaze to Ki no Uta (The Poem of the Wind and the Trees)," and explained her thoughts on the bill. "I have thought about how the bill will affect me, if it passes. With everyone around insisting that negative influences be regulated, I am aware that this will also apply to me. But the question what this really means in practice. It's the same as saying 'Don't publish this.' At the time I wrote [Kaze to Ki no Uta], I thought that not providing girls with information about sex would be dangerous. That's why I wrote it." ♦ Some of the book titles are tentative translations. Copyright © 2010 Shinbunka all rights reserved. |
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R E V I E W "Thinking With Your Own Head" and "Studies on the Schema of Forgetting" by Shigehiko Toyama  
For some time now, there has been talk of the sale of books becoming obsolete, and changes in the way people read. It certainly
seems as if lightweight best-sellers are on the increase, but this does not mean that the difficulties of daily existence, the
depth of human life, or the breadth of human anxiety have changed.
Trends change with the times, but questions such as what constitutes reality, and the conditions which create reality, do not change with the times. If a time period wanders too far into frivolity, then a reversion back to the fundamental principles of life will definitely occur. In his books, Shigehiko Toyama notes that a well-balanced age which seeks true intelligence may have become irrelevant. I regard the term "intellectual honesty," which Toyama focuses on in his book, "Thinking with Your Own Head," as both the charm and the key concept of this work. I see Toyama's notion of intellectual honesty as encompassing both sympathy and numerous other fields of study. Many books give readers a temporary sense of ease with superficial "know-how" expressions such as, "If done in this way, life will progress smoothly," "Expand your abilities," or "Become capable at work." However, this does not promote the true meaning of the power of the intellect. Living as we do in a world where one never knows what may happen next, even those who feel powerful may be unable to draw upon reserve strength. Unlike works which offer this simple kind of know-how, Toyama's works leave one with the positive sensation, like seeking out a vein of ore, burrowing through, and finally hitting the mark with a pickaxe. Unlike the often-experienced feeling of reading a book and immediately grasping the meaning, Toyama's book will not leave the reader with the sense of having grasped "intellectual honesty." On the contrary, the true appeal of this book is that it shows just how difficult the road to true power really is. "Thinking With Your Own Head" has numerous discussions which are rich with suggestions. One which particularly impressed me was on the varying qualities of literacy. Toyama defines "primary literacy" as the ability to "read a text whose content is already understood to some extent," whereas "secondary literacy" is "the ability to read a text whose content is not yet known, or is unfamiliar." What is missing from the publishing world today is books with the backbone to question the world, and appeal to what Toyama calls "secondary literacy." Instead, most best-sellers stay within the realm of primary literacy. This simple level of construction plays to the reader's laziness and helps to sell books, but it has become standard practice in the publishing world today, and has led to a "deflation of intelligence," a phenomenon which continues to spread in Japan. The "twenty years of loss" in the Japanese economy have been paralleled by "twenty years of loss" in the Japanese publishing world. Toyama aims to show how to grasp "intellectual honesty" and perceive the real thing in this kind of time period. In "Studies on the Schema of Forgetting," Toyama explains the function of forgetting in today's world, where so much value is placed on memorization. Computers never forget, but human minds do, and in very selective ways: two people reading the same text will remember and forget difference things. In other words, forgetting reflects individuality, not intelligence. Toyama's argument is even more fascinating when considered in the light of current scientific research on the brain. According to scientific studies of the brain, the brain's memory system, which is focused in the temporal association cortex, is a "compilation" of personal experiences. However, remembering personal experiences is not a mechanical process but an active one, with new meanings and new connections constantly being created. Memory is thus an ongoing process of revision, with various "meanings" regularly coming into existence. "Forgetting" also plays an important role in this process of creating meanings. The result is a composition of various personal experiences in an assembled body of "tacit knowledge" which has no need to remember explicitly, and takes on various "meanings." Thus, the current scientifically-based model of memory formation has a clear connection to what Toyama calls the "function of forgetting." In Japan today, there is anxiety over the possibility of an "overnight revolution," a general feeling that the way things have been done up until now is simply not working. Much like the general public sentiment about the Japanese way of life around the time of the Meiji Restoration in the latter part of the nineteenth century, there is a realization that the expiration date for the Japanese system has already passed. Shigehiko Toyama's books are a necessity in a turbulent time period such as this, in which there is a need for true intelligence which cannot be acquired by reading easy, know-how-books. "Thinking With Your Own Head" and "Studies on the Schema of Forgetting" will certainly give readers a sense of what real intelligence is. As the proverb goes, "honesty is the best policy." The necessity of discipline in order to polish the "intellectual honesty" does not change with the times. A no-nonsense approach should embrace "intellectual honesty" and actively seek to bring oneself up to this standard. If the number of people who read Toyama's books seriously and reflect on the frivolous trends our times increases, Japan may be able to gradually take back its lost years. Kenichiro Mogi
"Thinking With Your Own Head" by Shigehiko Toyama, published by Chuokoron-Shinsha "Studies on the Schema of Forgetting" by Shigehiko Toyama, published by Chikuma Shobo ♦Some of the book titles are tentative translations. Copyright © 2010 Dokushojin all rights reserved. |
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