原子力の「過去」・「現在」・「未来」 －占領期児童文化における原子力表象－

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine how the discourse and image of “atoms” were generated in Japan during occupation period, focusing on children’s magazine and comics. As is well known, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) censored mass media and various publications during occupied period, which CCD（Civil Censorship Detachment）was mainly in charge of. Especially, the information about atomic disaster in Hiroshima and Nagasaki was strictly censored. Therefore, the most Japanese didn’t know how atomic bombs gave serious damage to the people in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in occupied period. But, the discourse of “atoms”, especially “atoms for peace” was widely spread, not only in mass media and science magazine but even in children’s magazine from the beginning of occupied period, prior to Eisenhower's famous “atoms for peace” speech. This played an important role for children to consider “atoms” as the front-line scientific technology that would make civilized society more progress. On the other hand, we can see different images of “atoms” in popular culture for children. In most of them, “atom” connoted and symbolized an incredible power of protagonists who were named literally “atom the superman” and “atomic boy”. Thus the power of atom was completely justified in these works even though protagonist sometimes uses atomic bomb to defeat evil people. Considering many atomic bomb victims in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, these works seem a little bit ridiculous and not ethical. This paper will clarify how these representations of atoms, disconnected with atomic disaster, flourished in children’s culture during occupied period in the context of SCAP’s occupation and censorship, and the belief of science in the education of children.