Atomic Metaphors, Victims, and the Contestations of Nuclear Discourse

Atomic metaphors permeated daily life as the world reacted to the atomic bombings of Japan and the nuclear threat of the Cold War. These metaphors reveal a widespread sense of ownership of atomic narratives and public conceptions of victimhood that are often divorced from actual nuclear victims. Jap...

Descripción completa

Guardado en:
Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor principal: Rachel DiNitto
Formato: article
Lenguaje:EN
Publicado: MDPI AG 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://doaj.org/article/476a48cd6bc54dfaab67ad0740ce69a5
Etiquetas: Agregar Etiqueta
Sin Etiquetas, Sea el primero en etiquetar este registro!
id oai:doaj.org-article:476a48cd6bc54dfaab67ad0740ce69a5
record_format dspace
spelling oai:doaj.org-article:476a48cd6bc54dfaab67ad0740ce69a52021-11-25T18:52:55ZAtomic Metaphors, Victims, and the Contestations of Nuclear Discourse10.3390/rel121109622077-1444https://doaj.org/article/476a48cd6bc54dfaab67ad0740ce69a52021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/12/11/962https://doaj.org/toc/2077-1444Atomic metaphors permeated daily life as the world reacted to the atomic bombings of Japan and the nuclear threat of the Cold War. These metaphors reveal a widespread sense of ownership of atomic narratives and public conceptions of victimhood that are often divorced from actual nuclear victims. Japan faced the reality of the nuclear again in 2011 when three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant exploded, spreading toxic radiation far and wide. Rather than turn to religion to make sense of the traumatic destruction and existential threat of this invisible force, the Japanese have processed the catastrophe through a secular discussion of victimhood. In the decade since the Fukushima accident, the discourse about victims in Japan has narrowed to emphasize the authority of the <i>tōjisha</i>—victims with direct experience of the disaster—to tell their story. The debate over narrative ownership has challenged the literary community, and post-disaster Japanese literature is an important site of imaginative exploration of this victimhood. Using the theories of Jean-Luc Nancy and Michael Rothberg, this article examines collective memory and the catastrophic equivalence of Hiroshima and Fukushima, as well as the Japanese terminology for victims, in order to provide insight into the struggles for ownership of atomic narratives. Rather than proposing solutions, the article interrogates the ongoing literary controversy over the victim/non-victim divide.Rachel DiNittoMDPI AGarticle<i>tōjisha</i>atomicnuclearHiroshimaatomic bombsFukushima disasterReligions. Mythology. RationalismBL1-2790ENReligions, Vol 12, Iss 962, p 962 (2021)
institution DOAJ
collection DOAJ
language EN
topic <i>tōjisha</i>
atomic
nuclear
Hiroshima
atomic bombs
Fukushima disaster
Religions. Mythology. Rationalism
BL1-2790
spellingShingle <i>tōjisha</i>
atomic
nuclear
Hiroshima
atomic bombs
Fukushima disaster
Religions. Mythology. Rationalism
BL1-2790
Rachel DiNitto
Atomic Metaphors, Victims, and the Contestations of Nuclear Discourse
description Atomic metaphors permeated daily life as the world reacted to the atomic bombings of Japan and the nuclear threat of the Cold War. These metaphors reveal a widespread sense of ownership of atomic narratives and public conceptions of victimhood that are often divorced from actual nuclear victims. Japan faced the reality of the nuclear again in 2011 when three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant exploded, spreading toxic radiation far and wide. Rather than turn to religion to make sense of the traumatic destruction and existential threat of this invisible force, the Japanese have processed the catastrophe through a secular discussion of victimhood. In the decade since the Fukushima accident, the discourse about victims in Japan has narrowed to emphasize the authority of the <i>tōjisha</i>—victims with direct experience of the disaster—to tell their story. The debate over narrative ownership has challenged the literary community, and post-disaster Japanese literature is an important site of imaginative exploration of this victimhood. Using the theories of Jean-Luc Nancy and Michael Rothberg, this article examines collective memory and the catastrophic equivalence of Hiroshima and Fukushima, as well as the Japanese terminology for victims, in order to provide insight into the struggles for ownership of atomic narratives. Rather than proposing solutions, the article interrogates the ongoing literary controversy over the victim/non-victim divide.
format article
author Rachel DiNitto
author_facet Rachel DiNitto
author_sort Rachel DiNitto
title Atomic Metaphors, Victims, and the Contestations of Nuclear Discourse
title_short Atomic Metaphors, Victims, and the Contestations of Nuclear Discourse
title_full Atomic Metaphors, Victims, and the Contestations of Nuclear Discourse
title_fullStr Atomic Metaphors, Victims, and the Contestations of Nuclear Discourse
title_full_unstemmed Atomic Metaphors, Victims, and the Contestations of Nuclear Discourse
title_sort atomic metaphors, victims, and the contestations of nuclear discourse
publisher MDPI AG
publishDate 2021
url https://doaj.org/article/476a48cd6bc54dfaab67ad0740ce69a5
work_keys_str_mv AT racheldinitto atomicmetaphorsvictimsandthecontestationsofnucleardiscourse
_version_ 1718410583810768896