Gas Mask Nation: Visualizing Civil Air Defense in Wartime Japan

During World War II, Japanese visual culture was characterized by anxiety and pleasure, with airplanes, gas masks, and bombs being common images. Gas Mask Nation explores the multilayered construction of this culture through a diverse range of artworks, photographs, films, and newsreels, revealing the immersive aspects of this culture, in which Japans imperial subjects were mobilized to regularly perform highly orchestrated civil air defense drills.

Format: Hardback
Length: 408 pages
Publication date: 28 March 2023
Publisher: The University of Chicago Press

During World War II, a captivating exploration of Japanese visual culture reveals the intricate tapestry of anxious pleasures that permeated wartime Japan. Amidst the pervasive symbols of fear, such as airplanes, gas masks, and bombs, a peculiar contrast emerges: children were offered delectable caramels accompanied by paper gas masks as promotional giveaways, while magazines showcased a range of captivating content, from fashionable models adorning the latest civil defense fashion to futuristic weapons.

Gas Mask Nation delves into the multifaceted essence of an anxious yet paradoxically pleasurable visual culture known as bōkū, which emerged during Japanese civil air defense. Through a diverse array of artworks, photographs, films, newsreels, magazine illustrations, postcards, cartoons, advertisements, fashion, everyday goods, government posters, and state propaganda, Gennifer Weisenfeld unveils the immersive dimensions of this culture. It highlights how Japanese imperial subjects were routinely mobilized to participate in meticulously orchestrated civil air defense drills across the nation, shaping their experiences and perceptions during this period.

While the war years in Japan are often depicted as a desolate landscape characterized by privation and suppression under the strict censorship of the war machine, it is important to recognize that alongside the horrors, pleasure, desire, wonder, creativity, and humor continued to thrive. Before air raids transitioned from mere specters of fear to deadly realities, a preoccupation with these themes permeated the societal fabric.

Gas Mask Nation offers a profound insight into the complex interplay between anxiety, pleasure, and the human condition during a period of profound change and upheaval. It sheds light on the ways in which individuals and communities navigated the challenges and uncertainties of wartime, employing visual culture as a means to express, cope, and find solace amidst the chaos. Through its rich and diverse content, the book invites readers to explore the nuanced dimensions of this fascinating chapter in Japanese history, offering a fresh perspective on the complexities of human experience during times of conflict.

Dimension: 254 x 178 x 25 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780226816449