Reading Response: William M. Tsutsui

In the reading Oh No, There Gose Tokyo, the author elaborates on the popular culture of Japan. The author proposes many ideas about the rise of Japanese pop culture, which he described as “apocalypse”. Generally, the boom of movies which depict the destruction in the postwar Japan can be attributed to a kind of faith or emotion of Japanese nation. Japan has fallen victim to many natural disasters. Japanses people has been exposed to a feeling of vulnerability. Meanwhile, since Word WarⅡ， Japanese people hasn’t overcame the pain mentally not only as a victim but also as an aggressor. Therefore they try to express their fear and vulnerability in the movies. That is why they create so many monster movies in which their country experiences severe destruction. And when they recovered in economics, they begin to express their confidence. It can be seen from their monsters movies. In these movies, their city is destroyed again and again but can be rebuilt within a week. They show their confidence in their ability in protecting their cities by these movies.

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