VISION OF HISTORY IN THE JAPANESE TV DRAMA

• Authors: Melanowicz Mikolaj
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

The present article is the first attempt done in Poland to present the Japanese television dramas called 'taiga dorama' (river-drama), their origins, themes, main protagonists and their literary sources. 'Taiga dorama' are the historical series of the NHK television (Nihon Hoso Kyokai = Japan Broadcasting Corporation), playing an important role in national education. They are based on novels by popular writers, they tell about the heroes and historical events, and have been broadcast since 1963. They resemble novel series of the type of roman-fleuve, although they prefer to exhibit connections between the protagonists and the history of Japan against a wide social and historical backdrop rather than to present their spiritual growth. Most of these dramas depict historical figures known from the front pages of history books, not infrequently surrounded by legends. An inexhaustible source of the stories are the days of Japan's modernization in the 19th century and the heroes of those times. The author proves his thesis about the change of the history's vision in the dramas. He points out that since the 1980s a vision which has dominated is the positive depiction of the regime and rulers overturned in 1868. Viewers become aware of the fact that the customs of their country were probably shaped around the 17th or 18th centuries, and not only at the close of the 19th century under the influence of the West. Criticism and slandering of the Tokugawa rulers is driven out by identifying with the customs and ideas originated in the days prior to the 19th century. There is yet another trend of modern history exhibited in the dramas, namely glorification of the common samurai from the 18th century. Naturally in all the 47 serials there are other visions of history as well.

Keywords

EN

'TAIGA DORAMA' -JAPAN TV DRAMAS; HISTORY VISION (JAPAN TV)

Discipline

• MEDIA_&_COMMUNICATION: MEDIA & COMMUNICATION

• Publisher: Polska Akademia Nauk
• Journal: Rocznik Orientalistyczny
• Year: 2009
• Volume: 62
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 107-116
• Document type: ARTICLE

Contributors

author

Melanowicz Mikolaj

• Mikolaj Melanowicz, Uniwersytet Warszawski, Wydzial Orientalistyczny, ul. Krakowskie Przedmiescie 26/28, 00-927 Warszawa, Poland

Identifiers

CEJSH db identifier

10PLAAAA077911