著者

渡邊 洋之

出版者

日本科学史学会

雑誌

科学史研究. 第II期 (ISSN:00227692)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.42, no.227, pp.129-139, 2003-09-25

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This paper is to explain the process of the introduction of nutrias in Japan and the thoughts of various people who were related to it. Since nutrias was regarded as furred animals suitable for the wartime system and attracted the interest of the military, breeding of them was spread rapidly. However, the demand for nutrias furs was vanished by the defeat of WWII, then nutrias were ejected in the open air. At a later time, around 1950, breeding of nutrias became popular once again. But this boom was declined after several years and nutrias were ejected outdoors again because the boom did not expand beyond the stage of speculative business. This fact shows that in the historical context, the introduction and expansion of nutrias was not seen as a problem but even recommended, which is different from today's principle that any introduced species should be expelled. On the other hand, this paper can not confirm any fact showing the argument about the introduction of nutrias had some influence on the argument about what human society ought to be like. However, it shows that biologists have attempted to speak figuratively about nutrias by giving them various names, for example, shouri (this is a homonym of the word that means victory in Japanese) or rumin (this word means immigrants who are forced to wander in Japanese). This fact means that any discourse about the introduction of living things should become not only scientific but social.