JAPAN STUDIES LUNCHTIME SPEAKERS SERIES, 2024-2025
Graphic depictions of the painful injuries and deaths of soldiers are common in one of the most widely disseminated and widely viewed forms of Japanese mobilization propaganda in World War II: kamishibai (literally, paper plays). The realistic style and vivid colors of the illustrations of kamishibai plays make the sufferings of Japanese soldiers and munitions factory workers painfully clear, raising questions: how could such depictions be intended to encourage soldiers to enlist, or to encourage those on the home front to continue their backbreaking labor to support the war effort? How did these depictions in kamishibai compare with images of the male body in fine art of the same period? This presentation will explore the strategies of persuasion that relied on depictions of male bodies in pain for the purposes of mobilizing the Japanese people to support the war effort.
This talk is free and open to the public. No registration is required.
Date & Time:
Wednesday, January 22, 2025 | 12:30pm – 2:00pm (PST)
Location:
Asian Centre Auditorium, 1871 West Mall, Vancouver
Speaker
Sharalyn Orbaugh is Professor of Modern Japanese Literature and Popular Culture at UBC in the department of Asian Studies. Her current research engages WWII Japanese propaganda aimed at a working class audience.
