패전 직후의 일본의 사회문화상―다자이 오사무(太宰治)의 후기작품을 중심으로―

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the sociocultural state of Japan and Japanese people’s consciousness after the lost war, using the literary works of Japanese representative writer Osamu Dazai. Dazai’s works of the time describe a chaotic society, in which the new paradigm of western democracy, liberalism, and individualism was dependently formed by General Headquarters (GHQ). Against the new power of GHQ, Dazai tried to express the identity of Japan by supporting the Emperor as the essence and symbol of Japanese history. In addition, the characters appearing in Dazai’s works tend to recognize their mistakes, have a moral sense of responsibility, and contribute to the whole of Japan without egoism, thereby obtaining “ethical freedom.” Dazai considered these characters to be cultured men who were appropriate for the new age, because he believed them to be capable of “realizing political freedom,” as pointed out by Masao Maruyama.