오키나와 ‘집단자결’을 둘러싼 일본 본토(인)의 교착된 시선

Abstract

This article chose a novel that deals with “mass suicide”, a subject that is bound to be uncomfortable for both mainland Japanese and native Okinawans. Among them, the mainland writers, like Ikuo Yamashita, Ryuzo Saki, and Ayako Sono, will be focused on with their works, to see how they differ from Okinawa writers’ expressions, and an in-depth look taken at the complex perceptions of mainlanders intertwined over the ‘mass suicide’ by referencing Reportage, as well as the progress of the ‘Okinawa Trial of mass suicide’ by Kenzaburo Oe, who represented conscientious intellectuals in mainland Japan, and by Ayako Sono, a far-rightist who came from the same mainland, but who showed stark differences in perception. It will point out the absence of the ‘Chosun Army’ and the ‘People of Chosun’, who were absent in the novel by Ayako Sono, but obviously were around at that time, along with the Japanese Army and Okinawans that appear in novels by Okinawan writer Ikuo Yamashita. It will then critically lay out the non-logic of the right wing, which has locked the post-war Okinawa issue, symbolized by “mass suicide”, within the framework of the military’s order, the framework of abuse and damage, and created a confrontation between mainland Japan and Okinawa.