fatima saavedra class discussion 4_07

8/10/2019 Fatima Saavedra Class Discussion 4_07

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Fatima Saavedra

We began class by discussing a 14-minute video time lapse of atomic bombs across the

world. The time lapse shows where the atomic bombs have gone off across the world (from

1945-2011). About 1200 atomic bombs have gone off across the world and about 600 of them

have gone off in the United States. The early atomic tests were done out in the open, but now

most of the tests are done underground or in the oceans; however, some tests are conducted in

the desert.

We moved on to discuss Tanimoto fromHiroshima.At the end of the book the author

comments on how Tanimotos memory was getting a little slip-shot and how the worlds

memory of Hiroshima was also getting muddy. He interrupts his narrative by having news

flashes-which tell us about other countries that are developing atomic weapons (this all

contradictory to Tanimotos peace efforts). InHiroshima, Tanimoto tries to help as many people

as he can, but his efforts are being frustrated because most of the people that he heals end up

dying the next morning (irony of his life). After Hiroshima, when Tanimoto starts talking about

the atomic bombs, he becomes a suspect. The United States fears communism (The Red Scare),

and they believe that Tanimoto is using the atomic bombs against them. Tanimoto becomes a

suspect and he is watched, even though all he really wants is peace. Later on Tanimoto appears

on a television show (in the 1950s). Tanimoto is not prepared for his appearance, and the

television show twists what Hiroshima really represented. The show twists a serious event

(deadly situation) and molds it to fit mass entertainment.

We went on to discuss more of the show. The show in which Tanimoto appeared was

called This Is Your Life, and the host of the show was Ralph Edwards. The class was then shown

a video clip of the show where Hanna Blochkohner was the person being interviewed (this video

is about 8 years after the war). The host, Ralph Edwards, seems happy and involved. The


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audience is happy and well dressed (seemingly waiting in anticipation for what is to come).

There is also an ad in the background. The ad is or Hazel Beauty Miracles-who is the main

sponsor of the show. This lead us to believe that the main target where women because the show

involved drama and sentimentality. The class agreed that the show was turning a useful event

into a commodity (turned into sentimental entertainment). The ads during the show were also a

little odd because one would go from a serious concept of life and death to the ad which

discussed nail polish. Professor Brady mentioned that when Tanimoto was on the show he was

made to meet a crew member that dropped the atomic bomb. Professor Brady pulled up pictures

from the internet where we can see Tanimoto on the show, and Tanimoto looked bewildered and

uncomfortable in some of the pictures. The shows main purpose was to entertain, and clearly it

didnt really care if the interviewers became uncomfortable.

Professor Brady then showed us artworkbased on Hiroshimas attack. The first paintng

we were shown was full of color. There was a parachute floating which gave the impression of a

peaceful setting. There were mountain ranges and valleys, but what stood out was the red sun.

The red sun seemed to have fumes coming off of it. The atomic bomb was often compared to the

energy of the sun put into a little case. The sun can also be compared to the way the Japanese

sun-the one on the Japanese flag. The painting could be the peaceful setting that is yet to be

destroyed. The next painting we were shown was said to be succulent, like pulsing energy,

colorful, and powerful. There were windblown pine trees that were beautifully shaped. Professor

Brady mentioned the pine trees are a staple in Japane-many people venture to Japan to see them

specifically in Matsushima (sp?). There was also a little house in the corner of the painting that

seemed to be disintegrating. It was red-this could represent blood or fire. The painting seemed to

be a collage of various things blowing up simultaneously. We were shown another painting that


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showed people escaping from the fire. The people sought refuge in the river bank. We were then

shown a painting of the smoke cloud of the bomb. The smoke cloud of the bomb was seen to be

bigger than the nature around it. The next painting we were shown was one that had a smudgy

sky-kind of like the color of sand. The painting was mostly monochromatic, and there were

charred trees as well. There was also a gate to the Shinto Shrine. The Shinto Shrine Gate is seen

to be an entryway to a spiritual space. Its a traditionalistic/religious symbol in Japanese culture.

This painting seemed to capsulate Japanese History in both the traditional and in the modernist

(industrialized) way. The next painting was one of a traditional building that could be seen as a

temple. There were many silhouettes of dead bodies. These bodies were orange and someone

mentioned that they looked like paper cutouts. They may have been seeking refuge in the

temple/building. The next painting shows the world on fire. The horizon is filled with flames,

and the people in the paintings have been stripped of their humanity (theyre naked in the

flames). They have been dehumanized. The next painting is a swirl of flames. There are people

burning. They are being vaporized (the people appear to be transparent). The next two painting

showed people escaping the fire by seeking refuge on the river. One of the paintings showed

many people trying to swim to safety. Professor Brady mentioned that they looked like a school

of fish migrating. We were shown a painting of cisterns. These were used to try to cool down,

but instead the people in the painting are depicted as being boiled. Professor Brady showed us

more paintings of people leaving with their skin coming off. They were walking away like

zombies.

We then moved on to discuss Crazy Iris. The woman that was found in the pond was both

in Hiroshima and Fukuyama. In the story they explain that she must have gone crazy and

drowned herself. The iris blooming was seen as an aberration in nature. The story of the suicide


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comes to the narrators mind. The other woman in the story seemed to have died more peacefully.

Her arms were folded (paying respects) and the kimono she was wearing reminded him of

goldfish fins. The scene was described as sympathetic and sorrowful. The imagery described was

beautiful. The story is like a cosmic vision (traditional story of the cabinet makers daughter).

The narrator also mentions the Imbe-wa jar that he is trying to buy. The jar may represent

home/hope. Every time he goes back the jar is more demolished. The jar is a traditional Japanese

craft-a simple primitive piece. Iris from the Japanese language translates into either victory or

death. The iris is also seen as a symbol of manhood, a symbol of masculinity power. Hiroshima

destroyed the city, but it also destroyed the culture. The atomic bomb had a transformative effect.

fatima saavedra class discussion 4_07

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