Hibakusha Memories: Between the Generations

Abstract

The average age of survivors from Hiroshima and Nagasaki (hibakusha) is now over 80. There is an urgent need to hear the survivors' stories while they are still alive to tell. This article focuses on the narrative of Emiko Yamanaka, born in 1934, who was exposed to radiation 1.4km from ground zero. It explores not only Yamanaka's life story, but also that of her daughter and granddaughter. Further, it investigates the culture of silence surrounding the atomic bombings in Japan. Drawing on recent scholarship by Judith Chaitin and Henry Greenspan, the article advocates a trustful approach to cross-cultural interviews with sensitive subjects. It also reflects new thinking in narrative studies when candid talk is the exception rather than the rule.

Keywords:

• Hibakusha
• life story
• radiation exposure
• Hiroshima
• atomic bomb
• survivors

Notes

1 This figure includes both those who came into the city to help during the two-week period after the bombings as well as those already in the city. See City of Hiroshima, p.23. Statistical Survey of the Atomic Bomb Victims Project Report. Mar. 2013. Qtd. in City of Hiroshima. Learning from Hiroshima’s Reconstruction Experience: Reborn from the Ashes. Ed. Hiroshima for Global Peace Plan Project Executive Committee, 2014. 23.

2 This speech is also known as the ‘Jewel Voice’ broadcast and shūsen no shōsho in Japanese.