Post by Caden Hong on Sept 16, 2015 4:03:34 GMT
In “The Bears of Nametoko,” we see a big difference in how Kojuro interacts with the bears versus how he interacts with the shopkeeper in town. There is a contrasting power dynamic between the two groups. When Kojuro is interacting with the bears, it is often in a violent context. For a living, he shoots them to skin the bears and take their livers. Even if he does not truly enjoy what he’s doing, we can see that Kojuro has power over the animal. When it comes to the shopkeeper, it is completely opposite. He loses his hunter attitude and practically begs the shopkeeper to buy the fur so he can get the little money that he ears from him. In this case, the owner has more power over Kojuro since he’s doing him a service and since he’s also taking advantage of the situation by paying him a ridiculously low amount of money for the bearskin. But in the end, what ties the two relationships together is the fact that Kojuro has to depend on both the bears and the shopkeeper to survive and to support his family back home.
I think the ceremony highlights how he used to interact with the shopkeeper versus the bears. When he used to go to the shopkeeper, he was always “kneeling on the boards [and] bow[ed] low” (107). The fact that he was killed by the bear now changes the dynamic between Kojuro and the bears. The power structure is flipped over, so the ceremony depicts this change in hierarchy. It also may be to remember and respect the bears that Kojuro killed for his own benefits.
Cherry blossoms are mentioned in this text (p. 106 - mother bear) as well as the other reading — what does it symbolize in these contexts? Does it have anything to do with Kojuro’s death since cherry blossoms are linked to death in the other reading?
I think the ceremony highlights how he used to interact with the shopkeeper versus the bears. When he used to go to the shopkeeper, he was always “kneeling on the boards [and] bow[ed] low” (107). The fact that he was killed by the bear now changes the dynamic between Kojuro and the bears. The power structure is flipped over, so the ceremony depicts this change in hierarchy. It also may be to remember and respect the bears that Kojuro killed for his own benefits.
Cherry blossoms are mentioned in this text (p. 106 - mother bear) as well as the other reading — what does it symbolize in these contexts? Does it have anything to do with Kojuro’s death since cherry blossoms are linked to death in the other reading?