Allen, Matt, and Sakamoto, Rumi (2014) Confusing the Okinawan memoryscape: the organic memorialisation of the battle of Okinawa. Writing the War in Asia: a documentary history. pp. 1-13.

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Abstract

[Extract] It has been said that in the second half of 1945, following the Battle of Okinawa, the decomposing bodies of those who were slaughtered there provided excellent 'blood and bones' fertiliser for the vegetables grown in the Mabuni region south of Okinawa. Given that tens of thousands of Okinawans, Japanese, and Americans died on the killing fields of Mabuni in the first six months of 1945, the visceral evidence of the violence – the anonymous and unidentifiable remains of the dead – remained in plain view to survivors well after hostilities had ceased. These organic remains, and the organic memories they engender retain considerable significance in assessing how war is remembered in Okinawa today. One of the aims of this paper is to highlight the distinctions between such organic memories and the formalised, 'inorganic' memories generated by the prefecture and the state.

Item ID:	34677
Item Type:	Article (Scholarly Work)
Additional Information:	Article is published on the 'War In Asia' website http://www.warinasia.com/ The website is edited by R. Frost and D. Schumacher.
Date Deposited:	31 Jan 2017 01:40
FoR Codes:	21 HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY > 2103 Historical Studies > 210302 Asian History @ 100%
SEO Codes:	95 CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING > 9505 Understanding Past Societies > 950502 Understanding Asias Past @ 100%
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