Paper short abstract:

This paper examines the subtle yet humorous perspectives of Edo townspeople towards the evaluation of the hatamoto class. Through a comparison of kibyōshi with other Edo-period sources, I aim to deepen our understanding of Edo society, culture, and the thought processes of common people.

Paper long abstract:

In this paper, I utilize kibyōshi, a popular literary genre from the Edo period, as an authentic historical source to uncover how Edo’s society viewed the world around them. In Koikawa Harumachi’s Ōmu Gaeshi Bunbu no Futamichi (1789) there are a few previously overlooked scenes. One scene of particular interest, which has not been previously explored in depth, involves a group of samurais attending a lecture but arriving late due to their busy schedules. The humorous text portrays these upper-caste samurais as uneducated, which was the intention of the writer, a highly educated but lower-status samurai. Highly educated but lower-caste samurais were also the target readers. These educated samurais considered some part of the upper-status samurais to be uneducated and ridiculed them behind closed doors. However, due to the rigid social hierarchy, they were unable to mock them openly and thus, required a literary genre like kibyōshi. It’s worth noting that this type of humor was not intended to be satirical, but rather a lighthearted jest that could only be comprehended by those with sufficient education. Additionally, the illustration depicts a temple where the lecture takes place and individuals from various social classes. To summarize, this discovery offers a unique perspective on the samurais of Edo that was previously unknown. We can differentiate the thought patterns on education between the upper-class and lower-class samurais, and through analyzing the illustrations, we can also gain insight into the lifestyle of the townspeople. In addition to this, I will also explore scenes that highlight fashion trends, and compare them with other kibyōshi and historical sources.

The significance of these scenes is heightened by their occurrence during the first years of the Kansei Reforms. Contrary to previous research that suggested the people of Edo were critical of Matsudaira Sadanobu, the political leader behind the reforms, sources indicate that they were generally accepting and tried to adapt to the new lifestyle. However, they did criticize upper-class samurais who failed to adapt to the new system. These facts provide a broader understanding of the evolving worldview and life philosophy of Edo's people, which was marked by rapid change and a sense of humour.

Paper short abstract:

Hirata Atsutane’s (1776-1843) ‘Amazing Tales of the Hermit World’（1821）contributed to popular imagery of strange worlds of late Edo. This supposed interview with a boy taught by a Tengu master is examined: a survivor from unseen hidden worlds gaining special status as witnessed of the unseen.

Paper long abstract:

The Edo period in Japan witnessed a surge of records of overseas adventures or ‘strange stories (奇聞)’, including interviews with sailors who survived drifting overseas (漂流譚) or compilations of bizarre anecdotes such as the famous ‘Bag of ears’ (耳袋). These incredible stories often took the form of being related through direct interviews with people experiencing the abnormal. These fortunate survivors, returnees from strange worlds, were supposed to possess a special vital energy. This paper examines how Hirata Atsutane’s (1776-1843), ‘Amazing Tales of the Hermit World’ [仙境異聞]（1821）contributed to the popular imagery of such strange worlds as part of the epistemology of late Edo. In Hirata’s dichotomy, this world is defined as ‘the apparent world (顕事arawa goto)’ , while the other as ‘the hidden world’ (幽事 kakuri goto). Common belief presumed that the unseen world was regarded as a sanctuary from the seen world, however in Senkyo Ibun Hirata offers the unseen as containing more ‘empirical prestige’. Those who returned from the unseen hidden world gained a special prestige as witnesses of the unseen. The empirical attitude of Hirata’s intellectual salon was shared both in philosophical and scientific circles. The Tengu boy, under the apparent influence under them, declared frequently the priority of actual observation. Asked about the cartography of earth and stars, ‘with laughter he answers, you are wrong, because your knowledge comes from books you read. I have not read but actually seen them close up.’ Odd stories were enjoyed regardless of the types or genre of narrative, whether fiction or non-fiction. The consumption of such discourses was widespread among all social classes, encouraged by a popular imagination with intense curiosity towards the unusual.

Paper short abstract:

This paper will approach philosophically Japanese olfactory culture: non-visual forms of thought centered on the manifestation of scent in the lifeworld through affective involvement, embodiment, desire and cultural memory. I will discuss both ancient olfactory culture and the aesthetics of kōdō 香道.

Paper long abstract:

Giving how deep and consistent the bias in favor of vision has been in European thought, both ancient and modern, it is unsurprising that until very recent years the research on olfaction has been scarce and superficial. But if this suppression of olfaction is indeed one of the defining traits of Eurocentric modernity, then an inquiry into non-European and premodern olfactory cultures offers a fresh approach to these sensual-intellectual heritages, and unique opportunities to break free from the philosophical assumptions of ocularcentrism.

I will first introduce the specifically double paradigm of nioi 匂 and kō 香 in Japan, the first stressing the multimodal, immersive quality of olfactory ambiance and originally meaning both "color" and "scent", the second used to refer to scented substances (often imported, and thus carrying with them already a echo of otherness) and the temporal-spatial ecstasis that they produce after their disappearance. Both these elements were creatively employed in Heian court culture, as I will show through a phenomenological reading of poetry and prose. Beginning from Kamakura and later in Edo, it was in particular the appreciation of incense to be formalized into a unique olfactory form, kōdō 香道. A mixture of game and social gathering, spiritual and sensual experience, kōdō’s reliance on atmospheric attunement, impermanence and non-linear temporality prompt us to renew aesthetic language to make sense of it, producing categories that are highly relevant both within and outside the study of Japanese culture and thought. (If viable, the paper presentation will include a concrete use of incense).