Shinkansen
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Shinkansen

From Bullet Train to Symbol of Modern Japan

Christopher Hood

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eBook - ePub

Shinkansen

From Bullet Train to Symbol of Modern Japan

Christopher Hood

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About This Book

The image of the shinkansen – or 'bullet train' – passing Mount Fuji is one of the most renowned images of modern Japan. Yet, despite its international reputation for speed and punctuality, little is understood about what makes it work so well and what its impact is.

This is a comprehensive account of the history of the shinkansen, from its planning during the Pacific War, to its launch in 1964 and subsequent development. It goes on to analyze the reasons behind the bullet train's success, and demonstrates how it went from being simply a high-speed rail network to attaining the status of iconic national symbol. It considers the shinkansen's relationship with national and regional politics and economic development, its financial viability, the environmental challenges it must cope with, and the ways in which it reflects and influences important aspects of Japanese society. It concludes by considering whether the bullet train can be successful in other countries developing high-speed railways. Overall, this book provides a thorough examination of the phenomenon of the shinkansen, and its relationship with Japanese society.

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Information

Publisher
Routledge
Year
2006
ISBN
9781134360888
Edition
1

1 Introduction

One that lights a corner of society is a treasure of the nation.1
Although the words above refer to Sogƍ Shinji rather than his greatest legacy, they are words that clearly reflect the significance of the shinkansen project that he helped to initiate. Since the shinkansen began commercial services in 1964, the main lines have carried over 7.6 billion passengers.2 The total distance travelled by Tƍkaidƍ shinkansen alone is about 1.5 billion kilometres, equivalent of a round trip between Earth and Jupiter or 37,500 laps of the Earth. During this time there have been no passenger fatalities on the main shinkansen lines due to collision, derailment or infrastructural failure. Average delays are less than one minute per train, with nearly all trains arriving on time. The shinkansen remains one of the fastest train services in the world. These facts are impressive and will be analysed in later chapters. However, these statistics, or at least an impression of them, tend to be the limit of the knowledge of the shinkansen outside of Japan and perhaps even within Japan. Although its image, particularly passing in front of Mt Fuji, is internationally renowned, how and why it works so well is not common knowledge. Even its name is not well known beyond the shores of Japan. For the majority it is ‘the bullet train’.
At one level the shinkansen is merely a means of transportation. However, this study will reveal that the shinkansen is much more significant than this. The shinkansen has become a symbol of Japan. The way it was established, the network has developed, how it is operated, and even the way it looks reflect many different aspects of Japanese society. While its importance as a symbol for some Japanese may have lessened, in this process it has faded into normalcy so that it has become an even better tool by which to study Japanese society. Furthermore, this study also demonstrates that more than merely reflecting aspects of Japanese society, the shinkansen has also been used as a harbinger of change in Japan.
It was no accident that the shinkansen services started when they did. The Japanese economy was expanding at an incredible rate. Prime Minister Ikeda had only two years previously announced the ‘Double Your Income Plan’, whereby all Japanese were to double their real income by the end of the decade. Not only was this target reached, it was achieved in just seven years (Horsley and Buckley 1990:62). However, more than just the development of the economy, and the start of the shinkansen services, 1964 is also remembered by the Japanese for the hosting of the Olympics. This event signalled Japan’s return from the ashes of defeat in the Pacific War to the international community. This was graphically demonstrated through the choice of person to light the Olympic Flame at the Opening Ceremony. Rather than a famous national icon, as has become the norm in recent years, the flame was lit by Sakai Yoshinori, a boy born in Hiroshima on 6 August 1945 (Horsley and Buckley 1990:72). To provide a further link between the shinkansen and the Olympics, some events were staged in ƌsaka, over 500km from Tƍkyƍ, so that competitors, and perhaps more significantly, the world’s media, could experience the marvel of Japan’s new technology. Clearly then, there is a potential for the shinkansen to be studied for more than its engineering or technological prowess.
Before discussing the particular focus of this study, I would like to clarify some assumptions that I have made in writing it. First, I have taken into account the interests of three main readership groups. One group are those who already have some knowledge of the shinkansen, but have less knowledge of Japan. Another group are those who have knowledge of Japan, but limited knowledge of the shinkansen. The final group are Japanese whom have an interest in a non-Japanese perspective of the subject, particularly given that I have managed to gain access to some sources that they may not normally be able to. Naturally there may be some overlap between the final group and the other two. Second, I have also worked on the basis that few who read this book have an in-depth knowledge of railway engineering. As much as possible I have tried to present information and ideas that take these assumptions in to account, whilst trying to avoid either over-simplification or too much detail when discussing areas that may be unfamiliar to one of the readership groups.
This introductory chapter sets out how the work is presented, the methodology for research, the problems that I have had to address while conducting the research and presenting the results and why I chose to conduct the research. Finally it presents some background information about the current shinkansen-operating companies and how they were formed. Chapter 2 covers the history and development of the shinkansen, from the initial plans during the Pacific War to the plans for a linear shinkansen in the future. This chapter provides a useful foundation for the later chapters and is intended to be largely descriptive rather than analytical. Chapter 3 considers the issue of the symbolism of the shinkansen, a theme that runs through most of the book. The chapter introduces issues relating to the general study of symbolism, covering issues such as how a symbolic object or concept can lead to the development of national and international images and stereotypes. It further looks at how the shinkansen became a symbol of Japan, the knowledge and use of the image of the shinkansen in Japan and abroad, and issues relating to the terminology of the word ‘shinkansen’. Chapter 4 covers perhaps the most infamous aspect of the shinkansen. For almost without fail, when Japanologists speak of Japanese politics, they raise the issue of ‘pork-barrel’ politics, with the most well-used example of this being the Jƍetsu Shinkansen that links Tƍkyƍ to former Prime Minister Tanaka Kakuei’s home constituency of Niigata. Chapter 5 looks at the financial viability of the shinkansen and its impact upon the national and regional economies of Japan. Chapter 6 deals with the issues relating to the employees and how the shinkansen works so well. Chapter 7 deals with various significant issues that have not been developed in other parts of the book, but with the focus reversed from the previous chapters, taking significant areas of Japanese society as a starting point and analysing the shinkansen’s relationship to them. Chapter 8 draws together all the key points that have been raised throughout the book addresses the issue of whether the shinkansen can be exported or not.

Methodology

This study is a study of the shinkansen and of Japan. This presents a problem. During the course of the research I have gathered far more information than is possible to contain in just one book. This in itself is not a bad thing as it has enabled me to develop a fuller understanding of the shinkansen and its relationship with Japanese society. Indeed only by gaining such a level of understanding can one reach a point where one’s instinct, what may be called haragei in Japanese, about what information is valid or is invalid be consistently correct. However, as a consequence, in presenting the results of the study compromise is inevitable, especially when considering the assumptions that need to be made about different readership groups. Such compromise is not unusual. However, in Japanese Studies and ‘Area Studies’ as a whole, it has been perceived as a weakness. Part of the reason for this appears to be that in order to simplify arguments and points, authors have tended to make general statements – particularly in relation to culture. As Morris-Suzuki (1998:3) points out, the result is that ‘key terms such as “culture,” “ethnicity,” and “identity” are often tossed around with such abandon that they themselves have become obstacles rather than aids to better understanding’. Similarly Knipprath (2003:1) criticizes many works for having ‘arbitrary definition[s] of culture, over-attribution to national or cultural effects . . . and the simplistic assumption of homogeneity within a society’. Goldthorpe also argues that
All too frequently, large issues have been addressed – and large conclusions reached – by reference to a miscellaneous collection of official statistics and reports, case studies, journalism and, where all else fails, personal impressions. Apart from the inevitably patchy nature of evidence of this kind, it imposes little scholarly or scientific discipline. The danger is ever-present that the selection from it that is made reflects as much the needs of an individual author’s case as the intrinsic value of particular items.
(Goldthorpe 1993:xv)
However, one cannot escape the fact that as conclusions have to be reached, generalizations are inevitable and that personal impressions can be highly significant if the research done and the understanding of the focus of the study, whether it be companies, people or a whole society, is of an appropriate level. However, to do this surely means that as well as the readers needing to have confidence that the author has this ability, the readers need to have some understanding of the author themselves. This is particularly the case now that there is an apparent desire for researchers to write in the first person, which has been unfamiliar territory for most British academics.
I have commented elsewhere (Hood 2001:2) that even when academics do not write in the first person, this does not mean that their opinions and views are not presented in the text. This may be done relatively openly or more covertly through not including information that detracts from or is not consistent with their main argument or personal point of view. In attempting to deal with this latter point, I believe that academics should give introduction of themselves and perhaps even some indication of what their position is on key issues. For without an understanding of the author, even if the reader does not agree with the author’s bias, it is not be possible for the reader to fully appreciate the thrust of the work. Although all academics strive to be objective and seek ‘the truth’, it is a position that is unlikely to ever be attained, especially while there is limited openness about the person presenting the information. What one believes to be ‘objective’ or ‘the truth’ is likely to be based upon previous experiences, whether direct or learnt from printed materials, for example, as well as on the current research being conducted. There will always be some degree of subjectivity and bias – from those providing the information, who are likely to have vested interests in presenting ‘facts’ in a particular way, as well as from those presenting the research results. It is impossible to remove the human element from research. We should not even be trying to do so. But we have to acknowledge the subjective element of research and present the results of our work in a way that allows those who read it to appreciate the way in which the research was done and how the results are presented.
With much of my previous research on education reform in Japan, I took a path that not many others have apparently dared take. That was to look at Nakasone Yasuhiro, in what I personally considered to be an objective manner. In other words my starting point was to try to understand Nakasone himself and whether his actions in education reform were consistent with trying to have his ideas implemented. Perhaps due to the political bias of many in academia and a degree mistrust that many people, both in and out of academia, have towards Nakasone, as my results revealed an appreciation of his approach taken in the education reforms and his position on issues such as nationalism, some have labelled me as ‘a Nakasone fan’ and suggested that I have been overly positive. It is regrettable that not presenting the results that the majority would like to read can lead to such a view. I believe that it is necessary that academics are prepared to challenge widely held ideas and preconceptions. Undoubtedly there will be many times when the result of this will be an affirmation of the status quo, but this does not mean that process is without merit. In this study, for example, rather than working on the assumption that Tanaka Kakuei was responsible for the building of the Jƍetsu Shinkansen, I looked at a range of facts as I did not wish to jump on bandwagons and rely on past assumptions, which may have been based on poorly thought out ideas, research or logic. Although my conclusion may be a disappointment to those who have used this as an example of ‘pork-barrel’ politics, I hope that the way that this conclusion has been reached, and even the reasons for making the investigation, will be treated appropriately and not be dismissed out of hand or be seen as an example of an apparent overly positive view of Japan and some its conservative elements.
This research is a broad study, covering areas as diverse as politics, economics, sociology, and anthropology. This presents a great challenge to me, as I have had to become acquainted with theories and approaches within each of these fields. I would argue it is only through such an approach that we can truly begin to understand a country. I do not believe that it is practical or desirable to treat each area in isolation. This is probably the single greatest strength of ‘area studies’. Although I have become familiar with many concepts within these research fields, it is becoming increasingly difficult to pin-point which works have influenced me most or even which ones I have the greatest regard for. Perhaps this is much as a musician, particularly ‘classical musicians’, although likely to have been influenced by certain composers and styles in their early years, begin to develop their own styles and methods to the point that they are no longer aware, and it may even be hard for others to identify, what those influences were. While it is common, if not normal, for academics to cover old ground by testing their research against established ideas, I would suggest that those doing original research should not necessarily be bound by these conventions, and that what is of greater importance is to focus on the research itself and present the results as they see appropriate. These results can be tested against established theories and ideas in further works, whether by the same author or by others, potentially in other fields.
This last suggestion is important since a study such as this presents information that is not easily accessible to other specialists. Thereby, it can enrich the debate and understanding of a subject by providing information to those without the means to do such research. For example, in understanding Japanese I have been able to access and use information that many would not be able to comprehend or which would be costly, potentially in terms of money and time, to translate. Furthermore, true comprehension requires a knowledge of the country and its people as well as the language. Translations rarely, if ever, can fully do justice to the ‘reality’ as it was presented in its original form. It is the skill of the Japanese Studies specialist to present information, taking into account the ‘cultural’ specifics of Japan, in a meaningful way that can be used by a non-specialist audience or those in different research fields. As well as access to materials, I have managed to gain access to people that even many Japanese would not find possible to do. In this way, I hope that others, including specialists in fields other than Japanese Studies, will be able to use the information that I present to further develop their own research or will be encouraged to study the shinkansen and some aspect of Japanese society for themselves.
Referring back to Knipprath, one of the key criticisms surrounds the use of the word ‘culture’ and how it is defined. In her analysis of studies of Japanese educational performance, Knipprath (2003:12) found only one study that defined culture, which was as follows;
Culture provides a general design for life, a covert rationale that guides human behaviour. Members of a culture are usually not conscious of its force, although it gives a direction to their actions and shapes their behavioural and attitudinal patterns. Culture can be compared to the grammar that members of a group follow consciously to communicate with each other. It exerts a powerful and ubiquitous influence on the ways in which individual members act to solve their problems.
(Shimahara 1986:19)
A similar definition can be found in the work of anthropologist Clyde Kluckhohn, who defined culture as ‘The set of habitual and traditional ways of thinking, feeling and reacting that are characteristic of the ways a particular society meets its problems at a particular point in time’ (Kluckhohn 1949:17). It is interesting that both of these definitions refer to solution of problems. I would suggest that culture is also often concerned with the preservation of the status quo. Conversely, the introduction of a new culture, or at least the attempt of doing so, can be used as a powerful means of changing the way a society or organization behaves. Shimahara (1986:25) goes on to say ‘Culture affects various aspects of human behaviour in a way that is covert, directional, and universal . . . But culture does not account for all human behaviour. Economic, historical, and ecological conditions constitute an equally powerful explanatory factor of human behaviour.’ Naturally this list is not exclusive. I would suggest that education and religion, for example, should be added. Yet, undoubtedly, each of these influence culture and are to some degree also influenced by c...

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