先日の握り寿司パーティの前に、北海道積丹半島・余市の名物鮮魚店・新岡鮮魚店に買い出しに行ったのですが、そこで驚かされたのが、この「タコまんま」。Wikiで調べたら以下のよう。
　〜タコまんまとは北方系のタコ・ヤナギダコの卵巣を呼ぶときの北海道太平洋沿岸地域における呼称。マダコの卵である海藤花に相当するが小卵型のタコで幼生が長期間プランクトン生活を送るマダコと違い、ヤナギダコはイイダコと同様の底生生活の幼体が直達発生する大卵型のタコであるために、ずっと大粒の卵である。ヤナギダコの卵は長径5mm、短径3mm程度と、マダコの卵の2倍以上の大きさの回転楕円体型で、色は白色がかっている。生のままだと透き通っているが、茹でると炊いた米状（まんま、まま）になるためこう呼ばれる。 〜
　ということだったのですが、これはあとでわかった知識。店頭では、下の写真のような状態で販売されていまして、皮に包まれて見るからにぽよよーんとした風体。で、これを茹でて表皮を突いてやると内側からムクムクと卵が出現するのだ、という説明をされた。話を聞いていてもまったくわからない。よしわかった、と購入したのですが、写真のヤツはちょっと大型過ぎるので、もう少し小さめの300円で売られていたモノを購入。
　で、実際に茹でて突いてみたのが上の写真。薄めの塩水で茹でてみた。突いた瞬間に「おお」と驚かされるムクムク開きっぷり。食べる興味よりも、この変身ぶりに視覚的快感を感じてしまった。
　実際に中身が展開したあとの状態はまことに「まんま〜ご飯」そのまま。道東産ということなので、その風体と食味を日本民族が感じ始めてからそう永くはないように思いますが、形状はまことに米粒状。おにぎりの特殊形状とでも言える。
　で、恐る恐る口に運んで食してみると、濃厚な風合いの卵感。ひとりあたり、この写真の1/100程度の少量をぽん酢などで「付け合わせ」として食べるのが常道と思われました。300円でしたがわが家では１日１食の頻度で食すとしても、たぶん１ヶ月以上の量はある。当然、これを少量ごとに切り分けて冷凍保存させることにいたしました。500円のヤツだと、優に２−３ヶ月相当か。メッチャなコスパ食品であります（笑）。
　あんまり一般には流通していないのではないかと思いますが、花開く瞬間の驚きはオススメ。

English version⬇

First experience of the delicacy ‘octopus manma’ from the East Sea of Hokkaido.
Aside from the taste, the moment of transformation during the boiling process is astonishing. It transforms from an ovary into a rice-grain-like aggregate. Moreover, you can enjoy about 100 servings for 300 yen at a super-cosy price. Oh, my… …

　The other day, before a nigirizushi party, I went to buy some fish at Shinoka Fresh Fish Store in Yoichi, Shakotan Peninsula, Hokkaido, and was surprised to see this octopus mamma.
　〜The name ‘octopus manma’ is used to refer to the ovaries of the northern octopus, the willow octopus, in the Pacific coastal region of Hokkaido, Japan. Unlike the Madako, which is a small-egg octopus whose larvae live on plankton for a long period of time, the Willow Octopus is a large-egg octopus whose larvae develop directly from the benthic larvae, similar to the Iidako, and therefore its eggs are much larger in size. The eggs of the willow octopus are 5 mm long and 3 mm short, more than twice the size of those of the Japanese sea cucumber, and are oval in shape and white in colour. They are transparent when raw, but become cooked rice-like when boiled, hence the name. 〜The name is derived from the fact that it is a kind of rice.
　This was knowledge that I found out later. In shops, they are sold in the state shown in the photograph below, wrapped in the skin and looking very poyoyo-like. I was told that if I boiled them and poked the skin, eggs would appear from the inside. I had no idea what he was talking about. I thought I understood and bought one, but the one in the picture was a bit too large, so I bought a smaller one that was sold for 300 yen.
　I actually boiled them and poked them in the photo above. I boiled them in lightly salted water. The moment I poked it, I was surprised to see it open up. I felt more visual pleasure from this transformation than from the interest of eating it.
　After the contents had actually developed, it was just like ‘mamma – rice’. Since it is from the east of Hokkaido, it seems not so long since the Japanese people started to feel its style and taste, but the shape is truly rice-grain-like. It can be called the special shape of an onigiri.
　And when you take it to your mouth and eat it, you will find that it has a rich texture and egginess. It was 300 yen, but even if my family eats one meal a day, there is probably more than a month’s worth. Naturally, we decided to cut it into small portions and store them frozen. 500 yen ones would be equivalent to 2-3 months at most. It’s a very cosy food (laughs).
　I don’t think they are generally available, but I recommend it for the surprise at the moment when they bloom.

Posted on 3月 21st, 2025 by 三木 奎吾
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　先週末、やや疲れが溜まっていたので、寿司を握っておりました。家族が集まって食してくれた。
　わたしは料理が趣味でふつうの家庭料理が主なのですが、その延長線上で感じる好みとしてはこの寿司握りに向かいます。人によっては蕎麦打ちに向かう方も多いと思うのですが、これは「好み」なのではないでしょうか。人から勧められて蕎麦打ちのための準備はしてあるのですが、どうも「食わず嫌い」なのか、やる気はまったく出てこないのです。あ、食べるのは大好きなんです、単に食べるだけで、その清涼感にも似た食感、味わいは堪えられません。ただ、自分ではやる気が起きない。とくに「蘊蓄〜うんちく」系のテーマにはついて行けないし。
　一方、寿司の方はとくにネタの捌き、そのプロセスなどのさまざまに対して強く興味を持っている。魚へのこだわりが大きいのでしょうね。海彦・山彦の縄文社会以来の日本列島民族仕分けでは、圧倒的に「海彦」系なのだと自分で思っています。これはたぶん家系の「流れ」みたいな部分かも知れない。江戸期まで基本は商家として瀬戸内海世界で過ごしてきていたらしいのですね。それが北海道移住したときには「土地を耕す」という基本生業になったけれど、やはり一定時間が経過すると、父の代には商家としての生き様が完全に蘇った。
　どうもそういう決断の背景に血筋を感じざるを得ないのですね。だいたい瀬戸内海に面した地域を移動してきたようなので、海への愛着が血に結晶している。いま、さまざまな魚購入の機会で出会う魚たちの豊かな表情に目が釘付けになって堪らないのです。
　最近で言うとことしはニシンの群来が北海道日本海側で見られているということで、鮮魚コーナーが充実している近隣の食品スーパーでは大型のニシン３匹の山盛りが299円とかで売り出されたりしている。まぁ大部分がオスですが、たまに間違えて数の子入りのメスがこういう山盛りに入っていたりするのですね。すごい。
　まぁニシンは刺身にするのではなく焼き魚一択。小骨感もまたいい。その淡白で奥行きのある味わいには人生のいろいろが込められる、忘我する食感に誘ってくれる（笑）。もちろん錯覚ですが、非常にオモシロい。魚それぞれで、楽しい食感を感じさせてもらえる。その「一期一会」感が大好きなのですね。たぶんこの列島社会で人間が生きてきたなかで、こういう食感は連綿と受け継がれてきたことなのでしょう。
　そういう感覚の継承が意識できて、その心理も数寄につながっていると思っています。また今度、どんな魚と出会えるだろうかなぁ・・・。

English version⬇

Sushi nigiri after a long time, forgetfulness and samadhi for fish.
I meet fish without thinking, with my mind empty. The ‘response’ builds up with each encounter. The dialogue transmitted from the knife is the most interesting thing of all. …

　Last weekend, somewhat tired, I was making sushi. My family got together and ate it.
　I enjoy cooking, mostly ordinary home cooking, but my preference, which I feel is an extension of that, is towards this sushi nigiri. I think some people go for buckwheat noodle making, but I think this is a ‘preference’. I’ve been recommended to try buckwheat noodle making by others and I’m prepared for it, but I don’t know if it’s because I don’t like to eat, I don’t have the motivation to do it at all. Oh, I love eating it, I simply love eating it, and its cool, almost refreshing texture and taste is unbearable. But I just can’t bring myself to do it. In particular, I can’t keep up with ‘蘊蓄〜うんちく’ type themes.
　On the other hand, I have a strong interest in sushi, especially in the processing of the ingredients and the various processes involved. I guess they are very particular about fish. I think I am overwhelmingly of the ‘Umi-hiko’ type in the Japanese archipelago since the Jomon society of the Umi-hiko and Yamahiko. This may perhaps be a kind of ‘flow’ in the family lineage. It seems that until the Edo period, they basically spent their time in the Seto Inland Sea world as merchants. When they moved to Hokkaido, their basic occupation became ‘cultivating the land’, but after a certain amount of time, the way of life as a merchant family was completely revived in my father’s generation.
　I can’t help but feel the bloodline behind such decisions. It seems that we have generally moved around the area facing the Seto Inland Sea, so our attachment to the sea is crystallised in our blood. Nowadays, I can’t help but be drawn to the rich expressions of the fish I encounter on various fish-buying occasions.
　Recently, it has been reported that a shoal of herring has been seen on the Sea of Japan side of Hokkaido this year, and at a nearby food supermarket with a well-stocked fresh fish section, three large piles of herring are on sale for 299 yen or something like that. Well, most of them are males, but sometimes, by mistake, there are females with a few herring in these piles. It’s amazing.
　Well, herring are not made as sashimi, but only grilled. Its small-boned feel is also good. Its light and deep taste contains a lot of things in life, and it invites you to a texture that makes you forget (laughs). It is an illusion, of course, but very interesting. Each fish gives you a delightful texture. You love that ‘once in a lifetime’ feeling. Perhaps this sense of texture has been passed down from generation to generation throughout human life in this archipelagic society.
　I am aware of the inheritance of such sensations, and I believe that this psychology is also linked to sukiyori. I wonder what kind of fish I will encounter again next time…

Posted on 3月 19th, 2025 by 三木 奎吾
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　1945年（昭和20年）の太平洋戦争の終結以降、日本社会は大きな転換期を迎えていく。敗戦後間もない1947年1月に手塚治虫は日本マンガ文化の記念碑的作品「新宝島」を出版し、ベストセラーとなった。
　1938（昭和13）年生まれの石ノ森章太郎がこの生家の自分の部屋で空想の羽を膨らませていたのは、1955（昭和30）年前後の時期。やがて仲人も務めてくれることになる手塚治虫の作品に出会った少年は、その豊かな才能を見出した手塚治虫から直接コンタクトを受ける存在になっていた。この生家の展示にはそういう時期の資料類も展示されていた。いちばん上は、手塚治虫が後輩たちを育成する目的で1952-1954年に掛けて「漫画少年」誌で掲載した「漫画教室」のひとこま。
　いかにも手塚的な挿絵と自筆で漫画制作の「手ほどき」が語られていて、まことに戦後のマンガ文化草創期の雰囲気をまざまざと見せている。全国のマンガ大好き少年たちに文化的アジテーションを贈り続けた手塚という存在が、多くの後継人材を育成したことがわかる。そういう意味で戦後マンガ文化の「主流」位置付けが定着したのだろう。
　わたし自身は中学生頃にマンガに強く興味を持って自分でも作品を描いたりしたことがある。これはまったく初めての取り組みだったけれど、なんとか16Pの完成作品とした。マンガ愛好の友人たちから「よく最後まで描けたな」と感心された記憶がある。この作品は完成後すぐに父親からボイラー焼却処分された。そのときは悲しみに落ち込んで家出のまねごとをしたりもしたけれど、父の「愛」も感じられた部分もあって、そのマンガ家志向はほどなく自ら封印した。・・・1965（昭和40)年頃のことだから、こうしたマンガ文化初源期からは12-3年のズレがある。
　そういう体験を持っているので石ノ森や手塚には特殊な感情もあるのだけれど、自ら封印したという思いがあって未練を持つようなことはなかった。なので今回「作家と住空間」電子本の派生取材でこの石ノ森章太郎生家を探訪し、周辺事実を掘り起こすまで上に書いたような消息・事情には深入りしてこなかった。あらためてこういう歴史発掘をして見ると、非常に刺激的で、自分のもうひとつ違った人生風景をなぞっているような気がしてくる。ひょっとして。
　高齢期にまで至ってこういう人生の見返りの機会を得られるのは、内心でいろいろにさざめく波濤があって、まるで偶然久しぶりに初恋のひとと再会する心境に似ている（笑）。人生100年時代、このような人生追体験ということも興味深い文化テーマ領域かも知れない。

English version⬇

[Osamu Tezuka’s guidance to the manga boy genius].
The potential for the development of various new cultural areas in the age of ageing. The theme of ‘re-experiencing and reliving’ post-war manga culture is fascinating. …

　After the end of the Pacific War in 1945, Japanese society underwent a major turning point. In January 1947, soon after the defeat, Tezuka Osamu published his monumental work on Japanese manga culture, New Treasure Island, which became a bestseller.
　It was around 1955 that Shotaro Ishinomori, who was born in 1938 (Showa 13), was puffing out the wings of his imagination in his own room in this birthplace. The boy encountered the works of Osamu Tezuka, who would eventually also serve as his matchmaker, and he became a direct contact from Tezuka Osamu, who had discovered his abundant talent. The exhibition at his birthplace also displayed materials from this period. The top photo is a shot from the Manga Class, which Tezuka Osamu published in Manga Shonen magazine from 1952 to 1954, with the aim of training his younger students.
　The illustrations and handwritten instructions on how to create manga, in Tezuka’s very own handwriting, show the atmosphere of the early days of manga culture in the post-war period. It is clear that Tezuka, who continued to give cultural agitation to manga-loving boys all over the country, nurtured many successors. In this sense, Tezuka’s position as the ‘mainstream’ of post-war manga culture has become firmly established.
　I myself became very interested in manga when I was in junior high school, and even drew some of my own works. This was my very first attempt, but I managed to complete a 16-page work. I remember that my friends who were manga enthusiasts were impressed by how I managed to draw it all the way through. Soon after completing this work, my father had it boiler-burned. At the time, I was so depressed with sadness that I even imitated running away from home, but I felt my father’s ‘love’ in part, and soon after that my manga artist ambition was sealed off by myself. This was around 1965, so there is a 12-3 year gap from the early days of manga culture.
　Because of this experience, I have special feelings towards Ishinomori and Tezuka, but I never had any regrets because I felt that I had sealed them off myself. Therefore, I did not go deep into the above-mentioned facts and circumstances until I visited the birthplace of Shotaro Ishinomori as part of the research for the ‘Writers and Living Space’ e-book and unearthed some of the surrounding facts. When I look at this kind of historical excavation again, it is very stimulating and I feel as if I am tracing a different landscape of my own life. Perhaps.
　To have this kind of opportunity to look back on life in one’s old age is like being reunited with one’s first love after a long time by chance, with waves rippling inwardly (laughs). In the age of 100 years of life, this kind of reliving life may be an interesting cultural theme area.
　

Posted on 3月 17th, 2025 by 三木 奎吾
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　さてマンガ作家としての石ノ森章太郎のロケット的なデビューへの助走期、高校卒業までの「こころの痕跡」を探る機縁。と思ったのがロケットランチャー・発射機ともいえる部屋の様子とデスク環境。「作家と住空間」というテーマにとっては、いかにもコアな領域と言える。
　もちろん作品などの創造過程自体はかれ石ノ森の脳味噌の中から発酵し表出してくる部分なので、きわめて「個人的」な部分であり余人からうかがい知れることは限られてくる。しかしその部分にもっとも「肉薄」できるのは、その作家の遭遇していた周辺環境、住のありようであることは紛れもない。それがわたしたちに体感可能な状態で残され、公開されていることは稀有なことだろう。同じ日本人としてほぼ同時代を体験し事跡を知っている人間としては、深く刺激的。
　で、この石ノ森少年が囲まれていたデスク環境を丹念に記憶に刻印し分析的に直視していた。ルポルタージュというコトバの実感そのままに視認チェックしていた。
　まず興味深かったのが、このデスクはどうも「既製品」を購入したものではないという感覚。デスク面の特異な寸法感覚、足回り側面の木による面構成などからどうも造作特注品、大工仕事なのではという感想を持った。デスク表面にも無垢材が張られているようだ。塗装の剥げ具合には、作家の「手ざわり」痕跡のような雰囲気まで感じられてならなかった。また、このデスクには一般的に付属する引き出しなどの収納装置が付設されていなかった。シンプルに「作業平面」だけを骨太に造作構成した様子がうかがい知れたのです。
　さらに興味深かったのが、築100年を越すという和風住宅なのに、この部屋にだけ「出窓」が造作されていること。そしてさらにその出窓には写真のように水道蛇口とボウルまでもが装置されていた。・・・デジタル化以前の創生期のマンガ制作では作画表現に墨を使うけれど、それを洗い流すために、この個室に特別に造作された環境のように受け取れた。そう考えると、デスク表面にうっすらと墨の残滓が木表面に展着した部分もその痕跡と認められる。
　オイオイ、であります（笑）。家長である父親はこの「跡継ぎ」長男に対して、かなりその才能開花のための環境を増築造作して「与えていた」ことが浮かび上がってきてしまう。あらら、謹厳な公務員としてマンガ家を志望した息子に反対した話はどこに行ったのか、とオモシロく感じてしまった。なんも、かわいい息子の純粋な志望に対して建築的な特別環境を構築して大いにその志望を深く支えていたのではないか、というように思われてしまった。
　最終的には息子の志望を認めて送り出した父の、そしてそれを夫婦で意思決定していった母の心情が、なんとも言えずしみじみと「伝わって」くるように思えた。親の盲目の深い愛。

English version⬇

[Carpentry construction? The boyhood desk environment that nurtured his dreaming]
The revelation of the talents of my beloved ‘heir’ son. And endless worry about my child’s future destiny. The architectural environment of a peculiar manga boy. …

　This is an opportunity to explore the ‘traces of the heart’ of Shotaro Ishinomori as a manga artist in the run-up to his rocket-like debut and up to his graduation from high school. The room and desk environment of his room can be seen as a rocket launcher. This is a core area for the theme of ‘artists and living space’.
　Of course, the creative process itself, including the works themselves, is a very ‘personal’ part of Ishinomori’s brain, and what can be learned from him is limited. However, it is undeniably the surrounding environment that the artist encountered and the way he or she lived that can be most closely related to this part of his or her work. It is a rare thing that these are preserved and shown to the public in a way that allows us to experience them. As a Japanese person who experienced the same period and knows the traces of it, it is deeply stimulating.
　In the book, the Ishinomori boy’s desk environment is painstakingly etched in his memory and viewed directly from an analytical point of view. I was checking the visualisation of the term ‘reportage’ as it really is.
　The first thing that was interesting was the sense that this desk had not been purchased ‘off-the-shelf’. The unusual dimensions of the desk surface and the wooden surface structure of the side of the undercarriage gave me the impression that it was a custom-built, carpentry work. The surface of the desk also seems to be covered with solid wood. The peeling paintwork even gave the impression of traces of the artist’s ‘handiwork’. The desk was not fitted with storage devices such as drawers, which are generally attached to desks. It was evident that only a simple ‘work plane’ had been constructed in a robust manner.
　What was even more interesting was the fact that this room was the only one with a bay window, even though it is a Japanese-style house that is over 100 years old. And on the bay window, there was even a water tap and a bowl, as shown in the photo. … In the early days of manga production, before digitalisation, ink was used for drawing expression, and it seemed to me that this private room had been specially built as an environment for washing it away. Considering this, the part of the desk surface where ink residues were spread on the wood surface can also be recognised as a trace of this.
　Oui, it is (laughing). It emerges that the father, who is pretty much the patriarch of the family, had ‘given’ this ‘heir’ eldest son an environment for his talent to flourish by building an extension. Oops, I wondered wryly where was the story of his opposition to his son who, as a respectful civil servant, aspired to be a cartoonist. It seemed to me that he had been deeply supporting his cute son’s aspirations by building a special architectural environment for his son’s genuine aspirations.
　The feelings of the father who finally acknowledged his son’s aspirations and sent him off, and of the mother who made this decision as a couple, seemed to be indescribably and deeply ‘felt’. The blind and deep love of a parent.

Posted on 3月 15th, 2025 by 三木 奎吾
Filed under: 住宅取材＆ウラ話 | No Comments »

　さて石ノ森章太郎生家の探訪取材。この家は建築後100年前後と伝えられているとの説明。大正の末期から昭和の初め頃の建築と言うことになる。1926年前後。
　世界情勢としては日露戦争のあとロシア革命が勃発しソ連が成立したての時期。日本は日露戦争に勝利したあと、複雑な国際政治外交の権謀術数の世界にアジアの有力国、対露戦勝国として参入する。そういった時代に生きていた日本人のひとつの間取り、家という社会の基本構成要素のありようが表現されている。
　登米市の中田町が現在名だけれど、当時は「石森町」という地域名。石森と書いて「いしのもり」と呼称するのが地域の習慣だったので、石ノ森章太郎はごく自然に最初は「石森」とペンネームを表記していた（本姓は小野寺）けれど、全国的にはふつうに「いしもり」としか発音されないことに違和感を持っていたのだそう。画業30年を経過した段階でそのことを変えたいと祈念し、正式に「石ノ森〜いしのもり」と「ノ」を入れてネーム更新したのだという。地域伝統社会へのリスペクト。
　作家としてのかれは、地名を誇らしくペンネームとするほどに郷土へのこだわりが強かったということ。少年期の様子などを探索すると手塚作品に衝撃を受けてマンガ家一本道のように思えるのだけれど、別な側面から見ると地域文化や長男として「家長」的な立場認識に、色濃く影響されていたように思われる。
　上の図は説明懸垂幕にあったので一部に「ゆがみ」が反映している「間取り図」。間取りとしては１階に店舗が通りに面して広く取られ、それぞれ床の間付きの大きな和室３室が展開している。いちばん奥に店守りの祖母と叔母の居室兼用の最上位和室があり、真ん中には姉と章太郎の弟・妹、子どもたちが寝起きする和室。そしていちばん手前側が「茶の間」家族のだんらん・食事空間が座卓としてある。席順も記されているように「格」重視の日本人的な家族認識習慣が垣間見える。「世継ぎ」である石ノ森章太郎だけには２階に出窓付きの洋室個室が与えられて、横に家長である両親の隣室があてがわれている。
　石ノ森章太郎が高校卒業時にマンガ家を志望すると言ったとき、謹直な公務員であった父は許さないと言った。そのとき、姉である由恵さんが援護して親を説得し、マンガ家志望の弟の素志を遂げさせた。姉弟の共同戦線に折れざるを得なかった父親の心事に思いをいたすと面白い。父親としてはたぶん章太郎だけの主張であれば、強硬に否認する可能性も高かったのではないだろうか。ところが父親は娘には弱い（笑）。病弱でもある最愛の娘が弟に味方して叛旗を翻す事態に、オロオロさせられただろうことは想像できる。日本の「家」の実像。

English version⬇

[Floor plan of Shotaro Ishinomori’s birthplace
After the victory in the Russo-Japanese War, the period was a whirlwind of change in the complicated international politics. The space layout expresses a sense of ‘home’ that was typical of the period. A sense of patriarchal responsibility for the continuation of the family. …

　Now, an exploratory interview at Shotaro Ishinomori’s birthplace. The house is reported to be around 100 years old. It was built between the end of the Taisho era (1912-1926) and the beginning of the Showa era (1926-1989).
　The world situation was that the Russian Revolution broke out after the Russo-Japanese War and the Soviet Union had just been established. After winning the Russo-Japanese War, Japan entered the complex world of international political and diplomatic intrigue as a powerful Asian country and victor against Russia. The work expresses one of the layouts of the Japanese people who lived in those times, and the way in which the basic components of society, the house, were constructed.
　Nakada-cho in Tome City is the current name of the area, but at the time the name of the area was Ishimomori-cho. It was local custom to write Ishimori and call it Ishinomori, so Shotaro Ishinomori naturally used the pen name Ishimori at first (his real name was Onodera), but he was uncomfortable with the fact that it was usually pronounced only as Ishimori throughout the country. After 30 years of painting, he prayed to change that and officially updated his name to ‘Ishinomori – Ishinomori’ with a ‘no’. Respect for local traditional society.
　As a writer, Kare was so strongly attached to his hometown that he proudly used the name of the place as his pen name. When we explore his boyhood, it seems as if he was impacted by Tezuka’s works and became a manga artist in one way or another, but from a different perspective, it seems that he was strongly influenced by the local culture and his perception of his position as the ‘patriarch’ as the eldest son.
　The diagram above is a ‘floor plan’ reflecting some ‘distortion’ as it was on the explanatory banner. The layout consists of a shop on the ground floor facing the street, with three large Japanese-style rooms, each with an alcove. At the far end is a top-level Japanese-style room that doubles as a living room for the shop keeper’s grandmother and aunt, and in the middle is a Japanese-style room where the elder sister, Shotaro’s younger brother and sister and their children sleep and wake up. At the very front is the ‘chanoma’ (tea room), where the family gathers and eats together at a table. The order of seating is also marked, which gives a glimpse of the Japanese custom of recognising family members with an emphasis on ‘rank’. Shotaro Ishinomori, the ‘heir’ of the family, is given a private Western-style room with a bay window on the second floor, with the room next to his parents, who are the patriarchs, allocated to him.
　When Shotaro Ishinomori said he wanted to become a manga artist upon graduating from high school, his father, an honest civil servant, said he would not allow it. At that time, his older sister, Yue, backed him up and persuaded his parents to let him fulfil his ambition to become a manga artist. It is interesting to reflect on the father’s feelings about having to break down in the face of the sister and brother’s joint front. The father probably would have been more likely to strongly deny the claim if only Shotaro had insisted on it. However, fathers are weak against their daughters (laughs). It is imaginable that he would have been horrified by the situation in which his beloved daughter, who was also sickly and weak, sided with her brother and rebelled against him. The reality of the Japanese ‘family’.

Posted on 3月 13th, 2025 by 三木 奎吾
Filed under: 住宅取材＆ウラ話 | No Comments »