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【子ども向け「雑誌メディア」への文化集約 戦後こども文化-5】



さて東京上野の「下町風俗資料館」展示から、こども文化の推移について掘り起こしてきた。個人的に肉体体験のある「紙芝居」や「パッチ(メンコ)」のことを辿ってみると、子ども文化としての「いつの世も変わらない」部分が浮き彫りになってくる気がしてならない。
とくにメンコについてはその出自が江戸時代まで確実に遡れる証拠があると見せられると、人間本然の部分での「感受性」で江戸期のこどもたちとも深い共感を強く持つようになる。ただ、その本然が時代によってさまざまな表情を見せるだけなのだというように気付かされるのだ。
そうした幼少期体験の基底的「文化性」は、わたしたち戦後世代としては子ども向け雑誌=マンガ雑誌へとメディア化していった。展示資料では写真のような少年・少女雑誌が提示されていた。これらの雑誌にはわたしは記憶がなく、わたし年代より以前の子どもたちに愛読されたものなのだろうと思う。
その選択が兄弟たちの共通的選択だったのかどうか不明だけれど、わたしは「少年画報」という雑誌にどっぷりとハマり込んでしまっていた(笑)。

基本的には紙芝居由来の「ストーリーマンガ」に圧倒的にのめり込んでいた。不思議なものでこういう特定メディアに惹き付けられると「その世界から世間を見る」みたいな感覚に襲われていたと思う。
この雑誌では他誌で華々しく一世を風靡していた手塚治虫作品がなかなか掲載されなかったのが、あるとき「マグマ大使」という作品が登場した。そのときすでに「眼光紙背に徹して」いた少年期のわたしは、出版社と大作家・手塚治虫さんとのビジネス的な交渉とか関係性までをおもんばかるようにまでなっていた。「あれ、どうも関係がうまくいってないんじゃないか・・・」みたいな(笑)。特定メディアから知らず知らずに影響される党派制・立場のようなものに縛られていたように思うのだ。
その後、自分自身が出版=メディアというビジネスの周辺領域で生きるようになった内面的な動機を占めているのかもしれない。

English version⬇

Cultural Consolidation into “Magazine Media” for Children: Postwar Children’s Culture-5
Children’s culture became a medium of manga magazines in postwar society. The dramatization and supplement culture sublimated the picture-story show and menko culture. The…

Now, I have been digging into the transition of children’s culture from the “Shitamachi Fuzoku Shiryokan” exhibition in Ueno, Tokyo. When I trace back to my personal physical experience of “picture story shows” and “patches (menko),” I cannot help but feel that the “unchanging” aspects of children’s culture come to the fore.
In particular, when we are shown evidence that the origin of menko can be traced back to the Edo period (1603-1868), we can strongly sympathize with the children of the Edo period in terms of their “sensitivity” to human nature. However, they realize that this naturalness only shows different expressions depending on the time period.
The fundamental “cultural nature” of such childhood experiences became media for us, the postwar generation, in the form of children’s magazines (manga magazines). In the exhibition materials, magazines for boys and girls like the one shown in the photo were displayed. I have no memory of these magazines, and I think they must have been read by children before my generation.
I am not sure if this was a common choice among my brothers and sisters, but I was completely absorbed in a magazine called “Shonen Gaho” (laugh).

Basically, I was overwhelmingly absorbed in “story manga” derived from picture story shows. It is a strange thing, but when I was attracted to this particular media, I felt as if I was “looking at the world from that world.
One day, however, “Magma Ambassador” appeared in the magazine. At that time, I was already “devoted to the light of the eye,” and I had come to care about the business negotiations and relationship between the publisher and the great author, Tezuka Osamu. I was even concerned about the business negotiations and relationship between the publishing company and the great author Osamu Tezuka. (laugh). I think I was bound by a kind of partisan system or position that was unknowingly influenced by certain media.
Perhaps this accounts for the internal motivation that led me to live on the periphery of the business of publishing=media.

【子ども遊び「メンコ」の歴史 戦後こども文化-4】




わたしが札幌で幼年期にはパッチと呼んでいた子ども遊びが、東京では、というか日本中央の文化圏では「メンコ」という呼称で呼ばれていたことが明らかになった。特定の平面を競技盤面としてメンコを並べて相互に相手のメンコを奪い合う仮想戦争ゲームということのようだ。
で、そのメンコの歴史について上野の「下町風俗資料館」展示では以下のように記載。〜メンコは江戸時代中期から遊び道具のひとつとして作られていた。はじめは型取りした粘土を焼いた「泥メンコ」で、明治初期頃まで使われていた(いちばん上の写真)。その後明治10年代に鉛の板に絵や模様を浮き出させて彩色された「鉛メンコ」が流行っていた(やや褪色しているが2番目の写真)。その後、木版刷りの技術を利用して、歴史上の武将の勇ましい姿や、軍人たちの絵を描いた「紙メンコ」が使われた。〜
う〜む、であります。自分自身の身体感覚が江戸時代の子どもたちとも具体的に繋がっている発見。一方、紙製で円い形状で、競技盤面に叩き付けてその「風圧」で相手のメンコをひっくり返したり、盤面から脱落させたりするゲームルールからはやや違和感のある素材が書かれている。泥メンコなど、どう考えても風圧でひっくり返せないだろうし、鉛メンコも重すぎる感じ。泥メンコなど後世のわたしたちがパッチと呼んだ使用法とはかけ離れ、どっちかといえば中にあんこが入った今川焼きではないか(笑)。
どうも子ども遊びとしてはそのルール、使用法が歴史的に変化してきたのかも知れない。時代考証のレベルの探究が必要とも思える。
しかし、江戸時代からの子ども遊びのツールが平成の世代のわが子まで連綿として繋がっているという発見はなんとも身体感覚で歴史が感じられて楽しい。変わらない物事への人の感じ方、その普遍性を感受するひとつのきっかけとして再認識させられる。・・・

English version⬇

The History of Children’s Game “Menko” Postwar Children’s Culture-4
The discovery that my own physical senses are concretely connected to those of children in the Edo period. The reality that I too will eventually become history (laughs). …

It has become clear that the children’s game I called patch in my childhood in Sapporo was called “menko” in Tokyo, or rather, in the cultural sphere of central Japan. It seems to be a virtual war game in which players line up their mencos on a specific flat surface to compete with each other for the other’s mencos.
The history of menko is described in the exhibition at the “Shitamachi Folk Museum” in Ueno as follows 〜Menko has been made as a plaything since the middle of the Edo period (1603-1867). The first type of menko was “mud menko,” which was made by baking clay molds, and was used until the early Meiji period (see the photo at the top). Later, “lead menco,” in which pictures and patterns were embossed and colored on lead plates, became popular in the 1880s (the second photo, although slightly faded). Later, “paper menko,” which utilized woodblock printing techniques to depict pictures of brave historical generals and soldiers, were used. 〜Hmmm.
Hmmm. A discovery that my own physical senses are also concretely connected to the children of the Edo period. On the other hand, the paper menko is made of paper and circular in shape, and the rules of the game, in which the menko is struck against the competition board and the “wind pressure” causes the opponent’s menko to flip over or fall off the board, describe a material that is somewhat strange to me. Mud menco, for example, would not be able to be overturned by wind pressure, and lead menco seems too heavy. Mud menkos are far removed from what we in later generations would have called patches, and are more like Imagawa-yaki with red bean paste inside (laughs).
(Laughs.) Perhaps the rules and usage of this children’s game have changed historically. It seems to me that we need to explore the level of chronological research.
However, the discovery that the tools of children’s games from the Edo period are still connected to my own children of the Heisei generation is a fun way to feel history with a physical sensation. It is an opportunity to recognize again that there is a way of feeling that does not change in the human world, and to appreciate the universality of this way of feeling. …

【メンコとパッチ:道産子の疑問 戦後こども文化-3】



わたしが幼年期だったいまから60数年前当時、子どもたちは紙芝居に目が釘付けになる一方、冬場でも室内でカラダいっぱい使ったゲームとして「パッチ」に精を出していた。写真のような丸い厚紙に強そうなイラストが描かれたり、有名なプロスポーツ選手の写真などが印刷されたもの。北海道札幌では、このゲームのことをパッチと言っていたけれど、子ども同士のウワサで「メンコ」というのが東京ではあるらしい、という不思議な会話があった。
メディアが情報独占していた時代なのでWEBのように情報を自分で探索はできなかった。ジモティーたち同士ではそれ以上、詮索する方法も考えつかず、この不思議な「メンコ」という名前が頭の片隅でガン細胞化した。「東京に行ってみたい」という同年代少年少女たちの意識下の刷り込み起点に、このメンコへの疑問がとぐろを巻いていた。実際に東京に行ったらそういう意識下世界のことはまったく忘却されていたけれど(笑)。


<写真と図は公益財団法人さっぽろ青少年女性活動協会PDF資料より>

この解決不能のまま放置されてきた疑問がようやく解明された。結論はこのふたつの名称は同じゲームについての表現ということ。メンコという言葉はより始原的で漢字を当てるとすると「面子」だそうで、上の写真の2枚目のようなちょっと「馬面」を想像させるような縦長形状。遊び方としてはすぐ上の説明の遊び方になる。縦型のものはわたしは見たことがない。
遊び方が進化してくるとより「円形」の方が最適となるので徐々に主流になってくる。北海道のような鄙ではその遊び方がすぐに想起できる「パッチ」という呼称が一般化したものでしょう。わたしの8才上くらいの兄たちもメンコという名前は使っていなかったと聞いた。
しかしこの遊び、保育園で育った平成生まれの息子に聞いたら、平成の世でも生き長らえていたそうで保育園でやっていたようです。で、名前はメンコだったとのこと。
縦に長い日本列島、文化の中心地と鄙との間で、共通語と方言が生まれるけれど、そのつい最近の実例なのかと思い至った。

English version⬇

Menco and Patch: Questions from Dosan-ko about Postwar Children’s Culture – 3
Today’s topic is a time-limited Jimotei dialect story. Is this an actual example of the creation of a common language and dialect between the first source region of culture, the capital city and the remote and rural areas? …

When I was a child, more than 60 years ago, children were glued to picture-story shows and played “patch” indoors in the wintertime, using their whole bodies. The game was played on a round piece of cardboard, like the one in the photo, with strong-looking illustrations or pictures of famous professional athletes printed on it. In Sapporo, Hokkaido, this game was called “patch,” but there was a curious conversation among the children about a rumor that it was called “menko” in Tokyo.
In those days when the media had a monopoly on information, it was not possible to search for information by oneself, as was the case with the Web. The boys could not think of any way to inquire further, and the mysterious name “Menko” became a cancerous cell in a corner of their minds. The question of this menko was curling around the imprint of the boys and girls of the same age who wanted to go to Tokyo. When I actually went to Tokyo, I was completely oblivious to this subconscious world (laughs).

This question that has been left unanswered has finally been clarified. The conclusion is that the two names refer to the same game. The word “menko” is more primitive and is said to be “menko” in Chinese characters, and its vertical shape reminds one of a “horse’s face,” as shown in the second photo above. The way to play with it is as explained above. I have never seen a vertical one.
As the playing style evolves, the “circular” shape becomes more optimal and gradually becomes the mainstream. In remote areas such as Hokkaido, the name “patch” is probably more commonly used, as it immediately reminds people of this way of playing. I was told that my older brothers, who were about eight years older than me, did not use the name “menko” either.
However, when I asked my Heisei-born son who grew up in a nursery school about this play, he told me that it had survived even in the Heisei era and was played at the nursery school. He told me that the name of the game was Menko.
I wondered if this was a recent example of the common language and dialects that emerge between the cultural centers and the outlying areas of Japan’s long, vertical archipelago.

【2月20日現在わが家周辺「降雪量」429cm】



雪まつりも終わってクルマで遠出したりすると、いわゆる「光の春」を感じる瞬間がときどきある。雪景色には変わりがないのだけれど少し「ぬるみ」のようなものが感じられるのです。春分を1ヶ月先に控え徐々に日の長さも感じられ、早朝のあかるさも時間が6時過ぎになると目に見えてくる。
微細な変化が訴えてくる独特の季節感。
なんですが、降雪は容赦なく続いていて雪かきに休息はなかなか訪れない。自宅兼用事務所なのでみんなが出社するまでの時間には事務所回りの除雪が欠かせません。なので降雪ぶりは日々のカラダの筋肉痛と完全に同期している(泣)。
ことしの冬はほぼ例年同様の降雪状況ですが、昨年の大雪とだんだん似てきていて、わが家周辺の堆雪ぶりはなかなかに過激な状況。周辺道路はほぼすべてが1車線化していて安全最優先の交通ぶり。
降雪量429cmは昨年の431cmとほぼ同じ。平年の399cmよりも多め。積雪深(積雪の垂直寸法)は99cmで昨年の104cmより5cm少なめですが、平年値80cmよりは20%以上深い。
グラフは札幌管区気象台が提供してくれている数値ですが、ほぼ毎日チェック。
ところで、昨日は久しぶりの業界的情報交換機会がありました。東大・前真之准教授とも久しぶりに対面。やはり対面しての情報交換は有益。意見の異なる問題についても、それぞれの考えを尊重し合う機会が必要でしょう。いまの日本にはそういう「寛容性」対話が欠けているように思いますね。
さて本日もわが家周辺の雪との黙々対話、頑張ります。

English version⬇

As of February 20, “snowfall” around my house is 429 cm.
Sapporo is now at the peak of its snowfall season. I want to spend my time relaxing and interacting with the snow. I am also having a gentle conversation with my muscle pain. I am still in a state of pain.

When I go out by car after the Snow Festival is over, I sometimes have a moment when I feel what is called “spring of light. The snowy landscape is still the same, but there is a slight “lukewarmness” in the air. The daylight of early morning becomes visible after 6:00 a.m. as the spring equinox approaches a month ahead.
Such minute changes give us a unique sense of the season.
However, the snowfall has been relentless and there is no rest for the snow shovelers. Since our office doubles as a home office, it is essential to remove snow from around the office before everyone arrives at work. The snowfall is perfectly synchronized with the daily muscle aches in my body (I cry).
The snowfall this winter has been almost the same as usual, but it is gradually becoming more and more similar to last year’s heavy snowfall, and the amount of composting around our house is quite extreme. Almost all of the roads in the area are now single lane, and safety is a top priority for traffic.
The 429 cm of snowfall is almost the same as last year’s 431 cm. The 429 cm of snowfall is almost the same as last year’s 431 cm, and more than the normal year’s 399 cm. The snow depth (the vertical dimension of the remaining snow cover at that point) was 99 cm, 5 cm less than last year’s 104 cm, but more than 20% deeper than the normal value of 80 cm.
This graph is provided by the Sapporo District Meteorological Observatory, and we are checking this figure almost every day.
Last night was the first opportunity in a long time to exchange information in the industry. I met with Associate Professor Masayuki Mae of the University of Tokyo for the first time in a while. As I said, exchanging information face to face is beneficial. It is necessary to have an opportunity to respect each other’s views on issues where we have different opinions. I think that such a “tolerant” dialogue is lacking in Japan today.
Well, I will do my best again today to remove snow from the surrounding area.

【日本の物語文化〜琵琶法師と紙芝居 戦後こども文化-2】




紙芝居というものは一種のメディアであり、都市環境を必須とする。田舎でも祭りなどのときには出張して上演する紙芝居師もいただろうけれど、ほんの数日間の興業ではその旅費はペイしなかっただろう。紙芝居の「まとめ記事」などを参照すると関東大震災や第2次世界大戦後など、経済社会が崩壊した時期に大量にあふれた失業者たちが、糊口をしのぐ生業として取り組んでいた様子がわかる。
上の写真類は「台東区立下町風俗資料館」展示での紙芝居のテーマ内容のごく一部。こうした形式でのいわば在野の文化活動に対して、行政の側からのさまざまな利用があったとされている。2枚目の写真などは「教育紙芝居」として文科省が関与した題材まであったのだという。また、戦前期にはこどもたちへの軍国教育の一環として政治利用もされていた。日本文化のひとつの波及形式として、このような絵と語りによるストーリー展開形式があって、それが大衆の娯楽文化を形成していた状況が見えてくる。
わたしの接触した時期には、いちばん上のようなSFチックなものや、その後マンガのヒーローの冒険活劇的なテーマが多かったと記憶している。やはり手に汗を握る活劇が、こどもたちの感受性には敏感に「刺さった」のだろう。いかにも教育的なものは自然に敬遠していたと思う(笑)。
こういう形式の初源的なものとしてわたしには「琵琶法師」による平家物語が一番近似的だと思える。琵琶法師という社会的存在は、宗教勢力寺社がその布教と経済活動の一体化された一種のビジネス活動として展開したものとされる。琵琶というめずらしき楽器を演奏しながら、当時の社会の動乱をニュース的に、あるいは演劇的にひとびとに伝承することで日本社会のメディアの嚆矢だったと思える。日々の暮らしに追われる都市居住庶民には政治の極限形態である内戦、源平合戦には大きな影響を受けていただろうけれど、その変動状況についての客観的情報はなかなか伝わらなかっただろう。そういう知識需要をとらえて、京の街の先端的な芸能文化が、メディアの役割を果たし始めたのだと思える。日本の有名寺院には創建説話・縁起などの「絵詞」が多く残っているけれど、それらも法話の伝達手法として機能していた。
もっと遡れば、鎌倉末期に戦災で失われた奈良の東大寺の復元再興にあたって総合プロデューサーだった重源が組織した「勧進」集団による活動が素地であったとも思える。
情報の拡散方法が確立されていない時代、こういった語り部が社会的な需要に対応する存在だったのだろう。そういう社会的需要がわたしの幼少年期にはこの「紙芝居」形式だった。

記憶がだんだんと薄れていくのだけれど、幼少年期にこういう人間くさい紙芝居に接したことで、メディアというものの具体的なイメージを体験したことは間違いがないと思っている。

English version⬇

Japanese Storytelling Culture: Biwa-houshi and Picture Storytelling Postwar Children’s Culture-2
The Heike Monogatari (The Tale of the Heike) and other forms of cultural transmission for the masses were established in Japanese society. It became a means of livelihood for the unemployed during the turmoil. The atmosphere of the postwar black market. ・・・・.

Paper theater is a kind of media that requires an urban environment. Even in the countryside, there were probably some kamishibai performers who traveled to perform at festivals and other events, but their travel expenses would not have paid for themselves if they performed for only a few days. The “summary articles” on kamishibai show business show how the unemployed, who were in great numbers after the Great Kanto Earthquake and the collapse of the economy and society after World War II, were engaged in this business as a means of making a living to survive.
The photos above are just a few of the themes of the picture-story shows on display at the Taito City Shitamachi Museum of Folklore. The second photo even shows an educational picture-story show that the Ministry of Education and Science was involved in. In the prewar period, they were also used for political purposes as part of military education for children. This type of storytelling with pictures and narration was one of the spillover forms of Japanese culture, and it was used to form a popular entertainment culture.
I remember that during the period I was in contact with these stories, many of them were science fiction stories, such as the one at the top of this page, and later on, adventure stories with heroes from manga. I think that the children’s sensitivities were more sensitive to “action” stories that made them sweat and sweat. I think they naturally shunned anything that was too educational (laughs).
The Heike Monogatari in “Biwa-houshi” is the closest I can think of to the origin of this form of drama. The social existence of the biwa priest is said to have developed as a kind of business activity in which the religious power of temples and shrines combined their proselytizing with economic activities. The biwa, a rare instrument, was a pioneer of the media in Japanese society, playing it and passing on the social upheavals of the time to the people in a news or theatrical manner. The common people living in the city, who were busy with their daily lives, would have been greatly affected by the civil wars and Genpei wars, which were the most extreme form of politics, but objective information on the state of change would not have been easily conveyed to them. It seems to me that the cutting-edge performing arts culture of the city of Kyoto began to play the role of media to capture this demand for knowledge. Many famous temples in Japan still have “pictorial scriptures” that contain stories about the founding of the temple and its history, and these also functioned as a method of conveying Buddhist stories.
Going back even further, it seems that the “Kanjin” group organized by Shigen, the general producer of the reconstruction of Todaiji Temple in Nara, which was lost in the war at the end of the Kamakura period, was the foundation of the temple’s activities.
In an age when information diffusion methods had not yet been established, these storytellers must have existed to meet social demand. In my childhood, this social demand was in the form of “picture-story shows.

Although my memory is gradually fading, I am certain that I experienced a concrete image of the media through my childhood contact with these humanistic picture-story shows.

【紙芝居は戦後メディア勃興の導火線? 戦後こども文化-1】


どうもわたしのブログは、コロナ禍以降、「生活文化探求」の方向が強まってきた。冷静な自己分析。現場的な住宅取材はスタッフが頑張っている中で自分自身はこれまで全般的な住宅業界動向を「掘り起こし型」で取材してきていた。それがユーザー動向と連動してナマの市場把握に繋がると考えていた。それが4年前に感染症警戒から社会的情報遮断が一般化した。
その間も住宅取材はいろいろな困難を超えて継続できてきていた。もちろんさまざまな困難要因はあったけれど、取材先のご協力をいただいて継続できたことはある意味、奇跡的だったかも知れません。感染症の最中でもユーザーの家づくりのリアルを取材できていたことは、一定期間経過したら、きわめて重要な「記録情報」にもなり得ると考えています。「感染症の中で日本の家はどう作られていたのか?」。
一方で、業界横断的な情報交流については、4年を経過してようやく徐々にリアルで復活しつつある。それでも自由度はきわめて低いレベルだと思います。
そんなことから、勢い「住文化」の掘り下げ型の活動が不可避になっていたのだと思います。住宅は人間の「暮らしのイレモノ」なので、そこに生きる人びとの生活実感を把握することが大前提。そういう意味で、生活文化の実相を深掘りしていくのは、多くの経験を積んできた者の責任でもあるのでしょう。


生活の歴史、日本人的な感じ方として現代人の直接的な経験であって、意識下で大きな要因になっているものに「戦後期の少年少女向け文化」というものがある。たぶんいまの社会をリードしている人びとの感受性の起点になっている。その後のテレビ文化など大衆文化の起点としての確認が必要でしょう。
以前にも紹介した「台東区立下町風俗資料館」展示で、案の定「紙芝居」についての展示があった。わたしは幼年期、具体的には3才から10才くらいまでの期間で接していた記憶がある。いちばん上の写真はモノクロの記録写真として同館に展示されていた。街角の一角で子どもたちが放課後、遊んでいるところを選んで、即興のメディアが出現していた。自転車の荷台が木工で工夫されて展示装置に変わっていった。画面にはストーリーマンガが展開して、娯楽に飢えていた戦後少年少女たちは食い入るようにクギ付けになっていた。
わたし自身の「メディア」体験の初源はやはりこの紙芝居だったと思う。このメディアはその後、力道山のプロレスの街頭動画テレビから各家庭に導入されたテレビに駆逐されていったけれど、その「体験」は鮮烈を極めていた。
上演終了後には、木箱の中からお菓子の類が販売されて、子どもたちから「放映料」として徴収していたのだけれど、娯楽の興奮感から易々とその大人の策略に引っかかっていた(笑)。この紙芝居文化をはじめとしてしばし、戦後期の少年少女風俗文化について考えて見たい。

English version⬇

The Postwar Children’s Culture: 1] Postwar Children’s Culture: 1 Postwar Children’s Culture-1
This is a historical heritage that gave boys and girls, who were starved for entertainment, a starting point for contact with “culture. Personally, I think it is worthy of registration as a World Cultural Heritage site. I think it deserves to be inscribed on the World Cultural Heritage List.

My blog has become more of an “exploration of lifestyle and culture” since the Corona disaster. A dispassionate self-analysis. While the staff has been doing their best to cover the housing industry in the field, I myself have been covering the housing industry in general in a “digging-up” type of way. I believed that this would lead to an understanding of the real market in conjunction with user trends. Then, four years ago, the general public began to block out information due to warnings of infectious diseases.
During that time, we were able to continue our coverage of housing, overcoming various difficulties. Of course, there were various factors that made it difficult, but the fact that we were able to continue our coverage with the cooperation of our clients was, in a sense, perhaps miraculous. The fact that we were able to cover the realities of users’ house construction even in the midst of the infectious disease could become an extremely important “record of information” after a certain period of time has passed. How were Japanese houses built during the infectious disease?” .
On the other hand, cross-industry information exchange is finally being gradually revived in the real world after four years. Still, the level of freedom is extremely low.
I believe that such a situation made it inevitable for us to dig deeper into the momentum “housing culture” type activities. Since houses are “living things” of people, it is a prerequisite to grasp the real sense of life of the people who live there. In this sense, it is the responsibility of those who have accumulated a great deal of experience to delve deeply into the realities of life and culture.

The history of life and the Japanese way of feeling are the direct experiences of modern people, and one of the major factors in their consciousness is the “postwar culture for boys and girls”. It is probably the starting point of the sensibility of those who are leading today’s society. It is probably necessary to confirm it as the starting point for subsequent popular culture, such as television culture.
In the “Taito City Shitamachi Folk Museum” exhibit, which I have mentioned before, there was an exhibit on “picture story shows,” as I had expected. I remember being exposed to them in my childhood, specifically from the age of 3 to 10. The photo above is a black-and-white record of my childhood, and is on display at the museum. The improvised media appeared on a street corner where children were playing after school. A bicycle cart was contrived with woodwork and turned into an exhibition device. Story cartoons unfolded on the screen, and the postwar boys and girls, starved for entertainment, were transfixed.
I believe that my own experience with “media” began with these picture-story shows. Although this media was later eclipsed by Rikidozan’s wrestling video on the streets and the introduction of television in every home, the “experience” was still very vivid.
After the performance, candy was sold from a wooden box and collected from the children as a “broadcasting fee,” but the excitement of the entertainment made it easy for them to fall for the adults’ tricks (laugh). I would like to consider the postwar culture of boys and girls, starting with this picture-story show culture.

【江戸期までの日本的心性を伝える家 大庄屋「片岡家」-5】



やや高台にある片岡家からは周囲の起伏に富んだ地形が見晴らせる。「家から見える範囲全部が領地だった」という言葉がそのままの実感でわかる。下の写真は明治維新時の「太政官」による土地支配のお墨付き。
日本人はとりわけ「土地」所有についての価値感が強いと言われる。縄文の世が終わって、国土利用がコメ生産を基本とする農業によって開発が進められたことがその大きな要因なのだろうか。いやそれとも、縄文の感受性においても狩猟採集の場として強い「土地信仰」が根強かったのだろうか。少なくとも「八百万」という土着の神々への信仰からこのことには淵源があるのだと強く思えてならない。
逆に言うとこの土地への執念が、明治以降の急速に受容された資本主義の概念としても同質だったのかも知れない。土地という資産がすべてを生み出していく、という価値認識は資本主義的な「投資」概念に近似して、多くの民にとっても非常にわかりやすかったのだろう。アジア世界の中でもっとも早く資本主義世界観を受け入れたのには、そういった基本構図があったのだと思える。そういえば明治で急速に増えていった資本家の成功者たちはこぞって「大土地所有」に邁進していった。明治政府は江戸期までの大名権力による土地所有独占を撤廃して、自由に土地所有を可能に「解禁」したことが大きな要因になっている。明治以降勃興した資本家たちの建築として太宰治の津軽の生家「斜陽館」を参観した経験があるけれど、明治の金融資本はひたすら「土地」を担保にして資本主義市場の成長を図っていったとされる。

写真はなんとも古格な計量器だけれど、大土地所有者として、地域でのさまざまな「交易活動」についても支配権を持っていた証のように感じられた。
江戸期に至るまで連綿と継続した大土地支配者による支配管理の具体的な社会の価値感が、建築の証言者として現代にも存続してきている。この片岡家にはそういう印象を強く持った。
大和国、奈良県のこの旧家では津軽の太宰家のような明治以降の様子に留まらず、さらに以前の武家支配社会の日本人の精神性痕跡を垣間見ることができる。

この写真は片岡家で大切にされていた「仏像画」。土地信仰と並行して、聖徳太子以来の日本社会では仏教信仰が永く存続してきた。とくに大和国は仏教勢力が根強い権力を持っていた。南となりの紀州では根来寺勢力などが強勢で武家支配も難しい地域とされてきている。豊臣政権期にはNO.2の秀長が「抑え」として支配し、徳川政権でも最武闘派の本多家が支配し、なお、紀州には御三家が権力安定の役割を担った。
まさに歴史の積層が重厚な奈良の風土性をつよく認識させられた。歴史に興味を持つ人間として、奥深い世界がたくさん眠っているのだと実感。

English version⬇

A house that conveys the Japanese spirit up to the Edo period, the Kataoka Family, the village headman.
Everything within sight is my domain. The easily understood belief in the land has continued to be at the core of Japanese society. The substance of the Japanese spirit is made visible. …

The Kataoka House, located on a slightly elevated hill, commands a view of the surrounding rugged terrain. The phrase, “The entire area visible from the house was the domain,” is a true statement of the reality of the situation. The photo below is an endorsement of land control by the “Dajokan” (Grand Council of State) at the time of the Meiji Restoration.
It is said that Japanese people have a particularly strong sense of value regarding “land” ownership. Is this largely due to the fact that after the Jomon period ended, land use was developed through agriculture based on rice production? Or was there a strong belief in the land as a place for hunting and gathering even in the Jomon period? At the very least, I strongly suspect that this has its origins in the belief in the indigenous gods of “eight million.
Conversely, this obsession with the land may have been homogeneous to the concept of capitalism that was rapidly embraced after the Meiji period. Was the recognition of the value of land as an asset that generates all things, similar to the capitalist concept of “investment,” very easy for many people to understand? It seems to me that such a basic structure was responsible for the earliest acceptance of the capitalist worldview in the Asian world. Speaking of which, successful capitalists who rapidly increased in number during the Meiji era (1868-1912) all pursued “large land ownership”. A major factor in this was that the Meiji government abolished the monopoly of land ownership by the feudal lords that had existed until the Edo period, and “lifted the ban” on land ownership to enable free ownership. I have visited Dazai Osamu’s birthplace “Shayokan” in Tsugaru as an example of the architecture of the capitalists who emerged after the Meiji period, and it is said that the financial capital of the Meiji period used “land” as collateral in order to grow the capitalist market.

The photo is a very old-fashioned measuring instrument, but it seems to prove that as a large landowner, he also had control over various “trading activities” in the region.
The concrete sense of social values of control and management by large landowners, which had continued uninterruptedly until the Edo period, has survived to the present day as a witness to the architecture of the house. I had a strong impression of this Kataoka House.
In this old house in Nara Prefecture, Yamato Province, one can glimpse not only the post-Meiji state of the Dazai family in Tsugaru, but also traces of the Japanese spirituality of an earlier samurai-ruled society.

This photograph shows a “Buddhist image painting” cherished by the Kataoka family. Along with the belief in the land, Buddhist beliefs have persisted in Japanese society since the reign of Prince Shotoku. Especially in Yamato Province, Buddhist power had deep-rooted authority. In Kishu, to the south, the Negoro-ji Temple and other Buddhist monasteries were powerful, making it difficult for the samurai to rule the region. During the Toyotomi administration, the No. 2 Hidenaga ruled as a “suppressor,” and even during the Tokugawa administration, the Honda family, the most militant of the three families, ruled Kishu, and the Gosanke played the role of stabilizing power.
The three families of the Gosanke clan in Kishu played a role in stabilizing power. As a person who is interested in history, I realized that a lot of deep worlds lie in Nara.

【建築文化継承と現代技術の対話 大庄屋「片岡家」-4】




この奈良県宇陀の片岡家住宅のことを書いてみて参考になったのは「JAPAN WEB MAGAZINE」さんの記事。「片岡家住宅」として記事構成されている。その記事(公開日:2010/05/06)中に当時の当主の方が「住みごこち」について印象を語られているインタビュー部分があった。以下、要旨抜粋引用。
〜訪問者は口を揃えて「古くて立派で素敵ですねぇ」と感想を述べるそうだが、実際に居住するには様々なご苦労がおありという。「まず、堪えるのが何といっても冬の寒さです。」そもそも宇陀市は夏は涼しくて過ごしやすいが、冬は寒いのだそうだ。が、その上、天井の高さが高く、隙間の多い昔の造りの家は風が抜けて寒いのだという。確かに、どっしりとした外見からは気付かないが、内部から見るとがらんと天井が高くて実に寒そうな造りではある。いくら火を焚いたところで中々追いつかないだろう。〜
という率直な感想を述べられている。長年住宅雑誌社をしてきた身としては『冬は寒いのだそうだ』という表現は雑駁としすぎるように感じて気になるところではある(笑)。まぁそれはさておき、国指定重要文化財に住み続けるという一種の使命感と家への深い愛着は強く感じられる。一方で古建築としての補修については以下のような件。
〜重要文化財である以上、勝手に修理や改築は出来ない。県に届出後、修理が必要な箇所のみを専門の大工が来て手を加えるのだという。先祖から伝えられてきた立派な家屋への愛着を穏やかな口調で語るご当主。言葉の端々に、古い建物を守り伝えていく事の責任の重さと大変さが滲む。〜
この部分、言ってみれば「居住性能と建築文化の伝承」というテーマはなかなか考えさせられる。来訪参観者の目線からすれば江戸初期のさまざまな「歴史の証人」的な探究対象として見る部分がある。
きのうまで3回にわたって触れたように武家権力の一地方でのありよう・痕跡を探る視点からは、このように保存されている状況は、その居住性環境も含めて強い興味を惹かされる。そして建築は使われ続けていることで長期的保存も可能なのだとも思う。住宅は住み続けている間は機能性を維持するけれどうち捨てられると、あっという間に崩壊するというのも事実なのだ。


このように古建築を守りながら多くの来訪者に重要文化財として参観の機会を提供していただけるのは深く感謝すると同時に、より現代的な居住環境性を確保する方策も不可欠だろうと思う。デザインの本質を見失うことなく可能な居住環境向上策もありえるだろう。ただし、まったく現状を改変することなく性能向上を実現することはあり得ない。やはりどこかでトレードオフは必然化する。
建築で言えば、伝統建築と高断熱高気密技術の対話ということになるだろうか。歴史文化と現代的技術発展の調和というのは、長い歴史文化を持ちしかも現代文明技術基盤も底堅い日本社会だからこそ、柔軟に解決する知恵を出せる。やはり「対話」の姿勢が大切ではないだろうか。

English version⬇

Dialogue between Architectural Culture Inheritance and Modern Technology: The Kataoka Family
The residents frankly felt that the cold of winter was the first thing they had to bear. What is the harmony between the sense of mission of inheriting an important cultural property and modern life? The Kataoka House

The article “JAPAN WEB MAGAZINE” was helpful in writing about the Kataoka Family Residence in Uda, Nara Prefecture. The article is titled “Kataoka Family Residence. In the article (published on 2010/05/06), there is an interview with the head of the family who talked about his impression of “Sumigokochi”. The following is an excerpt.
〜Visitors to the house always comment on how old and beautiful it is, but there are many hardships involved in actually living in the house. First of all, the cold winters are very hard to bear. Uda City is cool and comfortable in summer, but cold in winter. The city’s houses are built in the olden days, with high ceilings and many gaps between rooms, which makes it cold and draughty. Indeed, although you would not notice it from the outside, from the inside it looks very cold with its high ceilings. No matter how many fires we built, it would not be able to keep up with the cold. 〜I was very surprised to see the coldness of the house.
I personally think, “It is cold in winter. Personally, I doubt the irrefutable expression, “I hear it is cold in winter. I personally have some doubts about such a simple expression, “I hear it is cold in winter. However, I strongly felt a kind of sense of mission to continue to live in a nationally designated important cultural property and a deep attachment to the house. On the other hand, the following is a case of repairing the house as an old building.
〜As long as the house is an important cultural property, it cannot be repaired or reconstructed without permission. After notification to the prefectural government, a professional carpenter comes to the house and repairs only those parts that need to be repaired. The owner of the house speaks in a calm tone of voice about his attachment to the magnificent house that has been handed down from his ancestors. Every word he speaks reflects the weight of responsibility and the difficulty of preserving and passing on an old building. 〜The theme of this part of the exhibition, “passing on the performance of the house and its architectural culture,” is quite thought-provoking. From the viewpoint of visitors, there is a part of the building that is seen as an object of exploration, like a “witness to the history” of the early Edo period. As I have mentioned three times before yesterday, from the viewpoint of exploring traces of samurai power in a local area, the situation in which the buildings have been preserved in this way, including their habitable environment, is of great interest. I also believe that long-term preservation of architecture is possible through its continued use. It is a fact that a house maintains its functionality as long as it is lived in, but if it is abandoned, it will collapse in a matter of seconds.

While I am deeply grateful that many visitors are given the opportunity to view this important cultural asset while preserving the ancient architecture, I also believe that it is essential to take measures to ensure a more modern living environment. There may be measures that can be taken to improve the living environment without losing sight of the essence of the design. However, it is impossible to improve performance without completely altering the status quo. Trade-offs are inevitable at some point.
In the case of architecture, this would mean a dialogue between traditional architecture and high thermal insulation/airtightness. The harmony of historical culture and modern technological development is something that Japanese society, with its long history and culture, as well as the solid technological foundation of modern civilization, is able to flexibly resolve with wisdom. I believe that an attitude of “dialogue” is important. <End of this article. >End of this article

【権力誇示目的の建築デザイン 大庄屋「片岡家」-3】



江戸幕府の時代、支配階級・武家大名という存在が社会の基本秩序を構成していた。この奈良県宇陀市近郊に残る片岡家住宅は大名支配の経済の中核的存在。庄屋としてコメ生産の全過程を管理して収穫物を大名家に納税する責任者。そのなかでも片岡家は枢要な存在だったようで本宅に連結して大名自身が逗留するために座敷空間が建てられている。上の写真は、本宅との境界を土壁で仕切っている様子。手前側のニワ空間は農作業のために使われていたようだけれど、この壁から先は大名・本多家のための空間。
住宅建築のデザインというものにはその施主の社会的目的性が顕著に表れる。ここでは武家としての社会存在性を強調する装置化が目指されている。庄屋宅の側に開けられた円窓は、来訪者の素性をいち早く確認するための「偵察」目的だと思える。一種の様式的美化はあるにせよ、用途としては間違いなくそういうもの。基本は軍事に直結する用が形象化されたものだろう。重厚に土塗りされているのは、攻めてくる外敵からの防御性を考えたものか。玄関では当然のように「敷居が高い」。

こちらが主室で、殿様が端座する居室。正面床の間の横の壁は万が一の時の武者の出入り口機能も持っていた。主室で休んでいる大名を奥の「武者だまり」で守護し、万が一の場合には主室に飛び出して大名を守る目的。常在戦場の考え方で、常に外敵襲撃に備える工夫を欠かしていない。
装飾的インテリアとして床の間や掲額、また隣室との境の欄間の木工デザインなどがある。床の間が代表的な装置ということになるけれど、これを背景にして端座することで主人の権威性を装飾することがデザイン上の目的だった。よく殿様の褒め言葉で「床の間での座りがいい」みたいな表現を使う。武家の倫理習慣で家臣たちはこのような座りの良い殿様を中心にして「御恩と奉公」と関係が神聖様式化されていた。
床の間はいごこちがいい、という価値感ではなくいわば「見え」に特化した住宅デザインなのだろう。インテリア全体が「かしこまって敬うべきである」という武家秩序価値感の強制のために奉仕している。

こちらは「次の間」に置かれていた片岡家の庄屋としてのシルシ類。江戸の同心たちが武力的公務を果たすときに「御用」の提灯を見せるのは時代劇のお決まりだけれど、この片岡家のような鄙では公務としての徴米などのシルシとして機能したのだろう。
わたしの家系伝承ではこうした庄屋の立場で過ごしていた時期がある。こういう存在は農民と支配者の武家との中間的存在であり、その領主の支配方針、過酷な徴税・増税によって襲撃対象とされることが多かった。領主の非道な政策への怨嗟の標的にされることがしばしば。わが家系ではそうした理不尽の結果、打ち毀しの憂き目にあって、結果として商家へと転身していった経緯がわかっている。この片岡さんの家は比較的に平和だった「譜代」大名家に付属していたので運良く家系が永らえ、このように住宅も残ったのだろうか。

English version⬇

Architectural design for the purpose of showing off power: The Kataoka Family, the feudal lord’s house – 3
Spatial design for the purpose of “visualizing” military rule. The samurai family lived very hard to be seen. …

During the Edo shogunate, the ruling class, the samurai feudal lords, constituted the basic order of society. The Kataoka family residence, which remains here in the suburbs of Uda City, Nara Prefecture, is at the core of the economy of the daimyo ruling class. As headman, he was responsible for managing the entire rice production process and paying taxes on the harvest to the feudal lords. The Kataoka family seems to have been a key player in this process, and a room was built in connection with the main house for the Daimyo himself to stay in. The photo above shows the boundary between the house and the main residence separated by a mud wall. The space in the foreground was used for farming, while the space from this wall onward is reserved for the Daimyo Honda family.
The social purpose of the owner is clearly expressed in the design of a residential building. Here, the house was designed as a device to emphasize the social presence of the samurai family. The round window on the side of the headman’s house seems to be for the purpose of “reconnaissance” to quickly identify the identity of visitors. Although there is a kind of stylistic beautification, this is definitely the purpose of use. Basically, it is a figurative representation of a use directly related to military affairs. The heavily coated earthen walls may have been designed to provide protection against invading foreign enemies. At the entrance, the “threshold is high” as a matter of course.

This is the main room, the living room where the lord would sit on the edge of the room. The wall next to the front alcove also served as an entrance for the warriors in case of emergency. The purpose was to protect the lords resting in the main room by guarding them in the “warrior’s lair” in the back, and to protect them by jumping out into the main room in case of an emergency. With the concept of “Always on the battlefield,” the house was always prepared for attacks by foreign enemies.
Decorative interiors include tokonoma (alcove) and hotofuchi (plaque), as well as the woodwork design of the ranma that borders the adjacent room. The tokonoma is a typical example of such a device, and its purpose in design was to decorate the authority of the master by having him sit on the edge of the room with it as a backdrop. The expression “good sitting in the alcove” is often used as a compliment to the lord. In the samurai family’s ethical custom, the relationship of “gratitude and devotion” was sacredly stylized around such a lord with a good seat.
The tokonoma is not a value of comfort, but rather a house design that specializes in “visibility. The entire interior serves to enforce the samurai order’s sense of value that one should be polite and respectful.

This is the shirushi of the Kataoka family as village headman placed in the “next room. It is a common practice in period dramas to show “Goyo” lanterns when the Edo government officials were performing their official military duties, but in a remote area such as the Kataoka family’s, these lanterns probably functioned as official documents for official duties such as collecting rice.
In my family tradition, there was a time when I spent time in the position of village headman. They were often the target of raids due to the ruling policies of their lords, harsh tax collection, and higher taxes. They were often the target of vindictive attacks against the lord’s outrageous policies. In our family history, we know how the family was struck down as a result of such irrationality, and how the family turned into a merchant family as a result. I wonder if Kataoka-san’s family was lucky to have been attached to a relatively peaceful “Fudai” feudal lord’s family, and thus the family line was able to endure and the house remained as it was.

【ウワサの運転免許「高齢者講習」第1回、無事突破(ホッ)】


高齢化社会の「先進地域」ニッポン。世界に先駆け高齢者人口割合が増加しているなかで、さまざまな「変容」を余儀なくされている。なにげに本日のyahooトップページでは〜成田悠輔「高齢者は集団自決した方がいい」NYタイムズが発言報じて世界的大炎上「この上ないほど過激」〜という見出しの記事が目に飛び込んできていた。確かにちょっと過激ではと思いますが比喩表現だろうし、社会の中にさまざまな意見があるのは了解はできる。氏のご意見を読んでみるとポイントは「高齢者が社会の枢要な位置をほぼ独占している」現状への異議申し立てと思います。それは事実でもあるでしょう。高齢化社会での「活力」維持作戦として、より若い世代の活躍の場をというのは当然の意見。自分も客観的事実として高齢者になってきて冷静にその事実を受け止め、社会の中で自分の果たすべき役割を考えて行きたいと思っています。
少なくとも身体機能や認知機能について疑わしい事故例が見られる以上、交通ルールとして対応を考えて行くこと自体は自然な成り行き。かなり事前(たしか3ヶ月以上前と記憶)に「高齢者講習」の申込みハガキが送られてきて、そういうのはサッサと片付けたい方なので、すぐに申込みして昨日、受講して参りました。
きのう札幌は降雪の影響で道路は各所でほとんどが1車線のノロノロ状態。通常20分程度の道のりが倍以上かかって所定時間ギリギリの到着。

結果としては通常の免許更新手続きと違って、実際の運転実技時間もあってなかなか有意義なのではと思われました。通常の免許更新手続き費用が2,500円で高齢者講習費用が6,450円というのはやや疑問ではある(笑)。「高齢社会のおカネの流れの促進策」という声もありますが、言い得ているのかも知れないと思いました。が、実際に受けてみると「視野角度調査」「認知機能調査」「夜間認知機能調査」など自己認識に役立つチェックポイントの機械開発など、知恵と工夫の成果が見られました。従来の運転免許更新時講習と比較してかなり進化した内容。
また、運転実技の時間は隣に指導の方が同乗されてチェックしていただける。これは50年前の免許取得時以来の経験なので新鮮に感じました。運転技能では常識共有化ってなかなか難しい。ルール厳守は前提だけれど、長年自分だけの判断で知らず知らずに身についているクセの類は客観化する機会がない。一定の緊張感を持って確認できるのは意味があると思いました。
実技では雪に覆われた橋脚下をくぐる場所があってその場所を自分の判断で徐行運転しましたが、指導員からお褒めいただいた(エヘン)。その甲斐あってか「たいへ優良な運転マナーです」という評価でした。すっかりいい気分にさせていただけたので、6,450円もまぁ仕方ないかと思った次第。まことに現金で単純な性格だと自己認識(笑)。

English version⬇

The first driver’s license “training course for the elderly” has been successfully completed.
The fact that people are concerned about the decline of cognitive functions due to the aging of the population is unavoidable. I would like to take a positive view of the situation by solemnly checking myself. I am very happy to have passed the first session of the “elderly driver’s license” training course.

Japan is an “advanced region” with an aging society. As the percentage of the elderly population is increasing ahead of the rest of the world, Japan is being forced to undergo various “transformations. I was casually struck by an article on the top page of yahoo today headlined “Yusuke Narita: ‘The elderly should commit mass suicide,’ NY Times reports. It is true that this is a bit extreme, but it may be a figurative expression, and I understand that there are various opinions in society. I think the point of his opinion is an objection to the current situation in which “the elderly almost monopolize the pivotal position in society”. That may be true. It is a natural opinion that the younger generation should be given more opportunities to play an active role as a strategy to maintain “vitality” in an aging society. I, too, have become an elderly person as an objective fact, and I would like to calmly accept this fact and think about the role I should play in society.
As long as there have been cases of accidents that are at least questionable in terms of physical and cognitive functions, it is only natural that we should consider how to respond to them as traffic rules. I received a postcard long in advance (more than three months ago, as I recall) with an application for a “training course for the elderly,” and since I am the kind of person who likes to get that stuff out of the way quickly, I applied immediately and took the course yesterday.
Due to the snowfall in Sapporo yesterday, the roads were mostly one-lane slow in many places. The usual 20-minute journey took more than twice as long as usual, and I arrived just in time for the scheduled time.
As a result, unlike the usual license renewal procedure, we had time for practical driving skills, which we thought was quite worthwhile. The cost of the regular license renewal procedure was 2,500 yen and the cost of the senior citizen training course was 6,450 yen, which is somewhat questionable (laugh). Some say it is “a measure to promote the flow of money in an aging society,” and I thought they may be right in saying so. However, when I actually took the course, I saw the results of wisdom and ingenuity in the development of machines for checkpoints useful for self-recognition, such as the “visual field angle survey,” “cognitive function survey,” and “nighttime cognitive function survey. The content of the course has evolved considerably compared to the conventional driver’s license renewal course.
In addition, during the practical driving skills time, an instructor rides next to the student and checks him or her. This is an experience I have not had since I obtained my driver’s license 50 years ago, so it was a new experience for me. It is quite difficult to share common sense when it comes to driving skills. Although strict adherence to the rules is a prerequisite, there is no opportunity to objectify the kinds of habits that have been unintentionally acquired over the years through one’s own judgment. I thought it was meaningful to be able to check them with a certain sense of tension.
In the practical training, there was a snow-covered pier-like place where I drove slowly at my own discretion, and the instructor praised me for it (ahem). The instructor gave me a compliment (ahem). Since I was made to feel so good, I thought that the 6,450 yen was just as well. I am a very cash-conscious and simple person (laugh).