Spanning decades of research, this compelling social history tells the stories of ordinary people in modern Japan. Tatsuichi Horikiri spent a lifetime searching out old items of clothing-ranging from everyday kimono, work clothes, uniforms, and futons to actor's costumes, diapers, hats, aprons, and bags. Simultaneously he collected oral history accounts to shed light on those who used these items. Horikiri reveals not only the difficult and sometimes desperate lives of these people, most from the lower strata in early twentieth-century Japan, he illuminates their hopes, aspirations, and human values. He also explores such topics as textile techniques, the history of fashion, and the ethnography of clothing and related cultural phenomena. Having been wrongly accused and tortured by the Japanese military police in China during World War II, Horikiri takes a deeply empathetic view of all those who struggle-from peasants and coal miners to traveling salesmen and itinerant performers. This personal connection sets his account apart, giving his writing great power and immediacy. Students and scholars of Japanese history, as well those interested in material culture, labor history, and feminist history, will find this book deeply illuminating.
Introduction Notes to the Reader Era Designation and Timeline Map List of Illustrations Chapter 1 Kasuri Mattress Cover from Home Chapter 2 Koshimaki Petticoat of 83 Patches Chapter 3 Echigo-jishi Costume for Boy Dancer Chapter 4 How Many Diapers? Chapter 5 Two Hanten Field Jackets Chapter 6 Okiboda, the Pride of Women Chapter 7 My Teacher's Sunday Best Chapter 8 A Weighty Quilt Chapter 9 Life with a Mosquito Net Chapter 10 A Bed of Wood Shavings Chapter 11 The Meisen the Girl Could Not Wear Chapter 12 Dead Horse Chapter 13 Female Coal Miners Chapter 14 Aunties and Uncles Chapter 15 Rich and Poor Chapter 16 A Begging Girl Chapter 17 Noble-minded Ladies Chapter 18 A Gown of Leaves for the Dead Chapter 19 Katatsuke-gasuri Chapter 20 A Lady in a Dilapidated Mansion Chapter 21 Female Workers in Textile Mills Chapter 22 Forbidden Tears Chapter 23 The Thousand-stitch Waistband Chapter 24 The Rising Sun Kimono That She Wore Chapter 25 Gifts from My Mother Chapter 26 Akemi's Song Chapter 27 Military Uniforms and Shoes Chapter 28 What Mompe Trousers Symbolized Chapter 29 A White Chima Jeogori Chapter 30 Sarasa Print Bed Quilt Chapter 31 Hanten Story Afterword Acknowledgments Term Glossary Selected Bibliography Supplemental Bibliography Index
