Chapter Cronache di una ricostruzione: Dai Tōkyō hanjōki (1927) e la Tokyo post-terremoto

Overview & Synopsis

In my contribution, I analyse Dai Tōkyō hanjōki (Chronicles of Great Tokyo Flourishing, 1927) in an attempt to identify the salient features of a composite narrative pertaining to the Great Kantō Earthquake (1923) and the subsequent urban reconstruction efforts, as crafted by influential figures within the intellectual and artistic milieu. I intend to show how certain authors within the collection juxtaposed or contrasted the elegiac tones with the intent of not only documenting the earthquake's impact on the urban landscape but also engaging in a critique of the ongoing social and cultural transformations. This tendency is observed, albeit sporadically and not always systematically, as a nod to the tradition to which the collection explicitly refers, that of hanjōki. This tradition is characterised by prioritising the subjective and critical perspective on urban and societal phenomena over the principles of pragmatic utility and objectivity.