Okinawa
Susumu Higa; edited by Andrew Woodrow-Butcher and Christopher Woodrow-Butcher; translated by Jocelyne Allen
(Fantagraphics Books)
(Fantagraphics Books)
- Fiction
- Set in Japan
Key words: Community, family, war, translation
A peaceful, independent kingdom until its annexation by the Japanese Empire in the 19th century, Okinawa was the site of the most destructive land battle of the Pacific War. Today, the archipelago is Japan’s poorest prefecture and unwilling host to 75% of all US military bases in Japan.
Okinawa brings together two collections of intertwined stories by the island’s pre-eminent mangaka, Susumu Higa, which reflect on this difficult history and pull together traditional Okinawan spirituality, the modern-day realities of the continuing US military occupation, and the senselessness of the War. The first collection, Sword of Sand, is a ground level, unflinching look at the horrors of the Battle of Okinawa. Higa then turns an observant eye to the present-day in Mabui (Okinawan for “spirit”), where he explores how the American occupation has irreversibly changed the island prefecture, through the lens of the archipelago’s indigenous spirituality and the central character of the yuta priestess.
Okinawa is a harrowing document of war, but it is also a work which addresses the dreams and the needs of a people as they go forward into an uncertain future, making it essential reading for anyone interested in World War II and its effects on our lives today, as well as anyone with an interest in the people and culture of this fascinating, complicated place. Though the work is thoroughly about one specific locale, the complex relations between Okinawan and Japanese identities and loyalties, between place and history, and between humanity and violence speak beyond borders and across shores.
As a series of short manga stories, Susumu Higa’s Okinawa may appear to be teachable across a wide range of reading levels; however, for readers to understand the stories, they need the following: 1) strong textual/visual inferencing skills; 2) historical knowledge of Okinawa during World War II; and 3) an understanding of contemporary Okinawan political concerns. The level of knowledge required recommends the book to high school readers. What follows briefly addresses the requisite knowledge of historical and contemporary Okinawa.
Historical Context
Okinawa is the largest of the Okinawa Islands, a small archipelago approximately 1,500 kilometers (963 miles) south of Tokyo. (It is closer to Taiwan than to Kyushu.) All of the stories in this book are set in Okinawa, from preparations for the Battle of Okinawa to the present day.
Historically, Okinawa had been part of the Ryūkyū Kingdom (1429–1879). The Ryūkyū Kingdom thrived as a tributary state of Ming China, which used it as a hub for maritime trade with East and Southeast Asia. In 1609, with an invasion authorized by the Tokugawa shogunate, the Ryūkyū Kingdom also became a vassal of the Satsuma domain. It remained independent in name until its annexation by the Meiji government. For mainland Japanese, Okinawa remained a distant cultural backwater, a place of little importance in the mind of the average citizen.
Okinawa was largely ignored during World War II. Nearly all the young men had been conscripted into the Imperial Army. The women, children, and elderly were required to train with bamboo sticks and farm implements to defend against possible invasion. They were also required to feed and support the troops stationed in Okinawa. Not until Japan was faced with an imminent invasion of the Japan mainland did Okinawa become strategically important.
Once Japanese military leaders recognized that a U.S. ground invasion was unavoidable, they adopted the strategy of feigning a “last stand” in Okinawa. The land and the people were to be used as a distraction in the hope of slowing the U.S. approach to the mainland.
Though this tactic ultimately proved to be a fruitless endeavor—Japan surrendered prior to a full-scale U.S. attack on the mainland—the U.S. did take the bait and attacked Okinawa with a constant artillery bombardment. The Okinawan civilians who remained on the island were caught in the crossfire of undermanned, underpowered, disorganized Japanese troops and the unrelenting U.S. air and sea arsenal. Hiding in caves and in tombs and running in circles were the only means of survival amid the cacophony of battle; if they were not dying by shrapnel and flame, they were likely dying by suicide or starvation.
Contemporary Political Context
After the confusion of war and the grief of widespread loss, a new foreign invader found a foothold in Okinawa: the United States. Part of the terms of surrender to the U.S. involved a requirement that Japan allow the U.S. to build and maintain military bases throughout the country as both a check on future Japanese imperial aspirations as well as (and more importantly) a means of maintaining a defensive foothold to sustain the U.S. sphere of influence in East Asia.
Once again, far from the mainland populace and commercial centers of the main islands of Japan, Okinawa was asked to function as the sacrificial space. Having had little to do with the war other than providing the final bulwark, Okinawans have since been required to disproportionately bear the terms of national surrender. To this day, the tiny archipelago of Okinawa hosts almost half of the total U.S. military bases maintained in Japan.
The many U.S. bases on Okinawa have taken large swaths of arable farmland. Military exercises and troop transports impact the physical environment, damaging the land and sea. Barbed-wire fences and military structures mar sightlines, and the noise levels from passing aircraft are intrusive and ever-present. Moreover, local economies and policies have had to be completely reengineered to allow the citizenry to coexist with the military complexes, which bring in thousands of American troops.
Traditional Okinawa farming, fishing, and trade practices cannot sustain the Okinawan economy alone, and local politicians have to balance relations with the U.S. government, the Japanese government, and the Okinawan residents. The resulting decisions consistently favor government entities over the local residents, creating geopolitical and legal challenges.
Okinawa, the Book, in Context
Susumu Higa sets his stories within the historical and contemporary contexts described above. They are written from the perspective of a contemporary resident, and convey the themes of discontent and protest effectively, as well as the tone of resignation and frustration running throughout his work.
Although each story could be used as a standalone text in a variety of units, they might all be better understood if the following book and film were used in conjunction with the units, better situating readers in the context from which the author is drawing his material:
- The Girl with the White Flag. Tomiko Higa’s memoir describes a young child’s experience when she is trapped in the middle of the Battle of Okinawa.
- Anpo: Art x War. Linda Hoaglund’s film, through the lens of Okinawan art, provides audiences with a better understanding of contemporary protests against U.S. military bases in Okinawa. https://anpomovie.com/
Note on Japanese Terms in the Text
The author uses about a dozen Japanese words in the text. He provides a glossary at the back of the book, which offers definitions, but the meaning of the words is clear from the context in which they are used.
Author: Josh Foster, Educator & Learner
2024
They don’t store anything here. They don’t produce anything either. The military land’s just waiting to be used up in war. —Okinawa (page 443)
Appropriate for Grades: 9–12
Best for Grades: 11–12
Introduction to the Book
Susumu Higa’s Okinawa is a graphic novel that is less a book “about” war than it is a book written “because of” war. Each of the fourteen chapters is a stand-alone story set In Okinawa before, during, or after the Battle of Okinawa. Although the stories follow a chronological arc, any of the stories could be pulled out and paired as supplementary material with other texts or study units.
The author purposely leaves gaps of information between panels, and he sometimes makes sudden leaps in time and/or space without clarification. As a result, he asks much of his readers in terms of their attention to detail as well as their capacity to make inferences.
Essential Questions
- What does the postwar Okinawa experience say about America?
- Is spiritual wellbeing possible in the context of postwar Okinawa?
- How can art be an act of protest?
Suggested Activities
Learn to Read Manga. Provide students with any two-page spread. Have them use context clues to determine which page should be read first, which panel on the page, and which text bubble within each panel. For example, they might note the reverse order of the page numbers or examine the flow of conversation and images.
Teacher Note: Manga are traditionally read from the right side of the page to the left and from the top of the page to the bottom.
Illustrate Noise. Explore the different ways by which Higa illustrates noise (especially in the opening three chapters). Choose a setting to illustrate and highlight the sounds using similar strategies to Higa.
Close Reading of Images and Text. Pick a page. What can you learn from just the images? Just the text? Are they conveying the same information or different information? How?
Vocabulary in Context. Several Japanese words are used in the book. Figure out the meanings of the words from the context of the stories and discuss. Why has the author left these particular words in the stories untranslated? By doing so, does he add special value or weight to these words?
Teacher Note: A glossary for these terms is provided in the back of the book.
Photographs. After each chapter in the book, the author includes a photograph of a person or place in Okinawa. Discuss: what connections can be drawn between the photograph and the preceding chapter? Ask students to select fourteen black-and-white photographs they believe capture the story of their own hometown.
Chapter Summaries with Suggested Discussion/Writing Prompts
Chapter 1: Sword of Sand
The Japanese military arrives on a remote island to prepare for the American attack.
Discussion Question: How does war lead to an imbalance between humankind and nature?
Chapter 2: Sands of the Setting Sun
A Japanese military squad stationed on a remote island refuses to accept the news that the war has ended.
Discussion Question: Why might soldiers in such a situation struggle to accept that the war truly had ended?
Chapter 3: About My Mother
A mother struggles to survive with her children while running from cave to cave in the midst of battle.
Discussion Question: What kind of control do civilians have over their lives in the midst of war? How about over their own actions?
Chapter 4: Call of Sand
A local translator tries to help civilians and soldiers safely surrender to the Americans at the end of the war.
Discussion Question: Is a local who translates for an invading force a traitor to his homeland?
Chapter 5: Soldiers of Sand
When his unit is disbanded, a conscripted man tries to find his way back to his family during the Battle of Okinawa.
Discussion Question: What is it about family that leads people to put their own life at great risk for even the smallest chance of reuniting with family?
Chapter 6: School
An academic seeks to preserve the written histories of the Okinawans from destruction.
Discussion Question: What do we gain from our recorded history as opposed to memory alone?
Chapter 7: Dirt Thieves
An artist uses clay contaminated by death to make pottery.
Discussion Question: This is the only story in the book given a genre subtitle: Comedy. How is it a comedy?
Chapter 8: Military Landlord
A landlord who receives government money to lease his land is constantly harangued by people looking to take his money.
Discussion Question: Who is really the landlord: Mr. Machida, the Japanese government, or the American military?
Chapter 9: Tolerated Cultivation
An old couple is farming on a military base when a plane crashes 20 meters from them.
Discussion Question: Does Mike represent a net positive or a net negative in the lives of the old couple?
Chapter 10: Island Duty
A pilot is lost after a crash, and the local townspeople help search for him.
Discussion Question: Is monetary payment enough to compensate for the helicopter damage near the end of the story?
Chapter 11: Homecoming
The islanders on an outlying island debate whether to allow the building of a military base in order to revitalize the island.
Discussion Question: Should they build the base and its accompanying bridge to the mainland, or should they leave things as they are? Discuss the pros and cons on both sides.
Chapter 12: Military Employee
An Okinawan woman works on a military base that faces local protests. She struggles to deal with the ensuing inner turmoil.
Discussion Question: What does it mean if a “military worker” enjoys a salary for employment at a military base and then partakes in protests against that same base?
Chapter 13: The Journey of Jim Thomas
Ten years after the Battle of Okinawa, Jim Thomas, an American soldier, served as the coach of the local boys’ baseball team. Forty years later, he returns to Okinawa to much fanfare.
Discussion Question: Does coaching the baseball team well seem like a fair trade for the act of chasing the people off their land in order to build the American military base?
Chapter 14: Mabui
An artist robs Okinawan tombs of their treasures.
Discussion Question: When an ancient tomb is robbed, who loses what?
Author: Josh Foster, Educator & Learner
2024