著者

大澤 聡

出版者

日本マス・コミュニケーション学会

雑誌

マス・コミュニケーション研究 (ISSN:13411306)

巻号頁・発行日

no.78, pp.109-127, 2011-01-31

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This article analyzes the genre of jinbutsu hyoron [articles written about notable figures], specifically during the surge of its popularity in Japanese journalism during the early 1930s. By this time, the democratization of the publication industry that began in the late 20s had reached its peak and the journalism had fully matured. These developments, however, spurred editors toward an unprecedented reliance upon the celebrity of those who wrote for their publications, a policy that was also in line with efforts to make commentary more appealing and accessible to the general reader who lacked basic knowledge. As a result, it could be said that the reader in turn consumed not the content of the text but the very name of the author who wrote the text. At the center of this article is an analysis of this form of consumption, which I refer to as "name consumption." Jinbutsu hyoron became popular as a genre that manifested this motive for publication. This analysis gathers samples of jinbutsu hyoron that have hitherto been ignored, as well as samples of related discourse, from literary magazines, mass magazines, and newspapers of the time and, while comparing them against each other, demonstrates the reality and the perceptions surrounding the representations of notable figures. First, I delineate the basic format and stances of works of jinbutsu hyoron. Next, taking into account the linguistic context of the reader, I analyze the conditions of reception of these works by relating them to the publication environment at the time. Lastly, by also taking a look at cartoon articles, which were equally popular during this period, I attempt to establish a more multi-faceted understanding of "name consumption." Overall, this article seeks to shed light on the way celebrity was a driving force in the structure of journalistic discourse in the 1930s.