Investigating the Revival of the Boy Detective in Japan's Lost Decade
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Manga, Murder and Mystery: Investigating the Revival of the Boy Detective in Japan’s Lost Decade by Tsugumi Okabe A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Comparative Literature University of Alberta © Tsugumi Okabe, 2019 Abstract The past two decades have seen a sustained growth in the number of Japanese mystery and detective comics (manga) publications that feature boys (and girls) as crime fighting agents. While the earliest incarnation of the boy detective character type can be traced to the works of Edogawa Rampo (1894-1965), little critical attention has been paid to the impact of his works on contemporary manga narratives. This thesis takes up the genre of Japanese mystery/detective manga and explores the construction of the boy detective (shōnen tantei) to address the crisis of young adult culture during the so-called Lost Decade in Japan. It conducts a comparative textual analysis of three commercially successful manga: Kanari Yōzaburō and Seimaru Amagi’s Kindaichi Shōnen no Jikenbo (1992-1997), Aoyama Gōshō’s Meitantei Konan (1994- ), and Ohba Tsugumi’s Death Note (2003-06), and reveals that the boy detective is defined by his role as the other, but that each series deals with this otherness in thematically different ways in response to the discursive formation of youth delinquents in 1990s Japan. Additionally, because the boy detective tradition in manga emerged from more traditional literature, this thesis takes an interdisciplinary approach to contextualizing the deeply complex literary history of Japanese detective fiction as it contributes to an understanding of how (youth) identity can be analyzed in detective manga. The objective of this thesis is thus twofold: to trace the literary development of the boy detective to identify how the genre evolved into the medium of manga, and to identify the social and cultural factors that led to the resurrection of the boy detective in the 1990s. In taking an interdisciplinary approach, this thesis foregrounds themes and critical discourses of identity, nation and youth culture. And, in doing so through the case study of children’s literature and manga, I re-center discourses of the nation towards youth itself to explore how the boy detective emerged as a site of national trauma. ii Preface Some of the research conducted for this thesis builds on forthcoming and on previously published works. Sections from the introduction and parts of Chapters One and Three of this thesis appear in, and also build on a forthcoming publication in, Mechademia Second Arc, vol. 11, edited by Sandra Annett and Frenchy Lunning, and published by the University of Minnesota Press: “Combatting Youth Violence: The Emergence of Boy Sleuths in Japan’s Lost Decade.” A condensed version of the historical context on Sherlock Holmes in Japan from Chapter One appears in the article, “Global Partners against Crime: Rewriting Sherlock Holmes and Watson in Japanese Video Games.” Replaying Japan Journal, vol. 1, no. 1, 2019, pp.40-51. The textual analysis of Volumes One and Four of Aoyama’s Meitantei Konan series in Chapter Four of this thesis, has been slightly modified from the article “From Sherlock Holmes to “Heisei” Holmes: Counter Orientalism and Post Modern Parody in Aoyama Gōshō’s Detective Conan Manga Series,” International Journal of Comic Art, vol. 15, no 1, 2013, pp. 230-50. iii Acknowledgements “There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact.” ― Arthur Conan Doyle, “The Boscombe Valley Mystery” This thesis has my name on it, no doubt, but the truth of the matter is that I couldn’t have completed it without the support of my committee and friends. First and foremost, I’m grateful for Dr. Geoffrey Rockwell, who, as my supervisor, has shown incredible support in all aspects of my doctoral career. Throughout the writing process, he was patient and encouraging. I’m particularly thankful for all of the letters he wrote, his availability for meetings (on short notice), and his quick turnaround time on drafts of my chapters. I would also like to extend my gratitude to Dr. Irene Sywenky, who was my first contact at the University of Alberta. She encouraged me to apply to the doctoral program in Comparative Literature, a lifechanging decision that I’m glad I made. She shared her knowledge of detective fiction and enthusiasm for my research, which were an invaluable source of inspiration and motivation. To complete the trinity, Dr. Kaori Kabata has also been a source of inspiration and wisdom, and was a vital member of my supervisory committee, as her comments on earlier drafts of my prospectus saved me from making errors in Japanese. Words really can’t describe my appreciation for all three members of my committee who have shown unwavering support for the past five years. I am also indebted to Dr. Rachael Hutchinson for her suggestions and thoughtful feedback as an external reader. My warmest regards and gratitude go to the faculty and administrative staff in the department of Modern Languages and Cultural Studies. To Dr. Chris Reyns-Chikuma and Dr. Elena Siemens, thank you for providing me with the opportunity to give guest lectures and for taking the time to meet me outside of your office hours to talk about my passion of comics and iv fashion in general. To Jo Bradley, Eva Glancy, and Andrea Hayes, thank you for always responding to my questions and emails. To my friends, beginning with Jérémie Pelletier-Gagnon and Axel Perez Trujillo, thank you for the many dinner and game nights that sustained my soul. To Mansoureh Modarres, Amir Khadem, and Jay Friesen, thank you for always taking the time to listen and for giving me advice. I’ve been blessed to have such a supportive cohort. To Hannah Madsen and Daniel Tiam, thank you for being so generous by means of letting me borrow your spare laptops when mine broke twice! To all the members of the Wisteria Lodgers: The Sherlock Holmes Society of Edmonton, your fascinating discussions and encyclopedic knowledge of Sherlock Holmes were an invaluable source for this dissertation. And to Cindy Chopoidalo for your superb editing service throughout these past few years. Finally, in the spirit of Sherlock Holmes, who once said: “It has long been an axiom of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important” (“A Case of Identity”), I value all the small connections I made with the people at the U of A and beyond. Until our paths cross again, thank you: Belinda Yan Wang, Pengfei Wang, Mary Catherine Lawler, Stephen Cruikshank, Adriana Onita, Domini Gee, Shanna Mumm, Silvia Sgaramella, Aiden In, Sonja Sapach, Sarah Brandvold, Richard Federssen, Wangtaolue Guo, Anton Iorga, Marine Gheno, Lars Ritcher, Dr. Deanna Davis, Dr. Claudia Kost, Dr. Xavier Gutierrez, Dr. Mathieu Martin-LeBlanc, Nick Beauchesne, Shintaro Kono, Junko Davies, and all the Japanese language instructors. This project was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council from 2014-18. v Table of Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... ii Preface............................................................................................................................................ iii Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ iv List of Figures ............................................................................................................................. viii Glossary of Terms .......................................................................................................................... ix Author’s Note.................................................................................................................................. x Introduction ............................................................................................................................... - 1 - A Note on Critical Approaches to the Study of (Children’s) Detective Fiction ..................... - 3 - The Boy Detective Tradition in North America and Britain ................................................. - 10 - Chapter 1 ................................................................................................................................. - 23 - The Boy Detective in Japanese Children’s Detective Stories: Forms, Themes, and Context .. - 23 - Detective Fiction in Japan: A Note on Periodization ............................................................ - 25 - Detective Fiction in Japan: A Brief Overview ...................................................................... - 28 - An Overview of Edogawa Rampo’s Boy Detective Stories ................................................. - 44 - From Conan Doyle’s Irregulars to Rampo’s Chinpira Betsudōtai ....................................... - 47 - From the “Wild Child” to the Child Detective: The Crisis of Youth Identity ...................... - 55 - Chapter 2 ................................................................................................................................. - 61 - The Boy Detective in the Manga Tradition: Forms, Themes, and Context .............................. - 61 - Approaching Manga .............................................................................................................. - 64 - Manga Criticism in Japan .....................................................................................................