From: "Frank Conlon" <conlon@U.WASHINGTON.EDU>
To: <H-ASIA@H-NET.MSU.EDU>
Sent: Tuesday, September 06, 2011 10:38 PM
Subject: H-ASIA: REVIEW Whales & Whaling & Whaling in Japan
> H-ASIA
> September 6, 2011
>
> Book Review (orig pub. H-Environment) by Vicky Szabo on Arne Kalland.
> _Unveiling the Whale: Discourses on Whales and Whaling_, and Jun
> Morikawa. _Whaling in Japan: Power, Politics, and Diplomacy_
>
> (x-post H-Reviews)
> **********************************************************************
> From H-Net Reviews
>
> Arne Kalland. Unveiling the Whale: Discourses on Whales and Whaling.
> Studies in Environmental Anthropology and Ethnobiology Series. New
> York: Berghahn Books, 2009. xiv + 253 pp. $95.00 (cloth), ISBN
> 978-1-84545-581-1.
>
> Jun Morikawa. Whaling in Japan: Power, Politics, and Diplomacy. New
> York: Columbia University Press, 2009. xii + 170 pp. $45.00 (cloth),
> ISBN 978-0-231-70118-1.
>
> Reviewed by Vicki Szabo (Western Carolina University)
> Published on H-Environment (August, 2011)
> Commissioned by Dolly Jrgensen
>
>
> Save the Whales or Save the Humans? Whaling Politics and Culture Wars
>
> In Western popular culture, whales serve as evocations of the majesty
> and tragedy of nature. Even the most environmentally disinclined
> individual recognizes that whales are the preeminent symbol of marine
> life and often the embodiment of capricious human abuses of nature.
> But how did this romantic portrait come to be, and how were whales
> transformed from resource to icon? When and how did whaling become an
> unnecessary evil? Whaling remains a critical political issue on the
> world stage, alienating or allying unlikely global partners, and the
> two books reviewed here, Arne Kallands Unveiling the Whale and Jun
> Morikawas Whaling in Japan, provide fascinating insight into the
> environmental, political, and cultural complexities of this industry.
> Commercial whaling has received attention in recent historical and
> popular works, but few authors have dealt so transparently with the
> current politics of whaling as Kalland and Morikawa in these
> complementary studies.[1] Kalland and Morikawa offer diametrically
> opposed perspectives that are largely unseen in current secondary
> literature in English. Kallands work, which studies representation and
> perception of whales, whalers and whaling, and transformations of
> whaling economics, will appeal to social and cultural historians,
> social scientists, and those with an affinity for whaling. Morikawas
> analysis of whaling in modern Japan offers a thorough case study for
> students of international politics, environmental studies, and
> history.
>
> Kallands Unveiling the Whale is broad in scope and anthropological,
> focused more on discourse, perception, and concepts and less on
> historical context. Kalland seeks to expose the rival ecological,
> economic, and political discourses that have led to irreparable
> political and cultural fissures between whaling and anti-whaling
> nations. What distinguishes Kallands work is his open defense of
> whaling, as he states in his preface that he will not pretend to be
> objective and neutral.... My main sympathy lies with the whalers (p.
> x). With this admission, his work proceeds to explore the hegemonic
> discourse that has shaped global perceptions about whaling and
> whalers, and the transformation of whales from practical commodities
> to conceptual icons (p. 59).
>
> Kallands introduction and chapter 1, The Creation of a Superwhale,
> begin by considering perceptions and constructions of animals,
> especially within the context of protectionist, environmental, and
> animal rights movements. Among all animals, though, whales are
> constructed, especially in Western thought, as unique. The superwhale,
> he argues, offers a single, anthropomorphized, conceptual construct
> that replaces, in most Western perceptions, proper recognition of the
> seventy-five different species included within the taxonomic order of
> Cetacea. The superwhale oversimplifies and obscures the actual
> ecological circumstances of whale species, so that all whales
> simultaneously are conceived of as endangered, and all whalers,
> whether commercial, indigenous, or otherwise legitimate, are rendered
> barbaric. Chapters 2 and 3 turn to the anti-whalers or protectionists,
> the cultural hegemons in Kallands eyes. In these chapters, he
> identifies key opponents of the industry and the political strategies
> and media used to transform whales from practical to protected
> resources. Especially valuable here is his articulation of diverse
> approaches of various groups who seek to protect whales for diverse
> reasons, from environmental radicals and animal rights groups to more
> fringe New Age movements. This chapter also reveals what Kalland sees
> as the double standard and cultural chauvinism of Western anti-whaling
> nations and the fact that cetaceans are equally exploited among
> non-whaling nations: whales are objects of tourism and theme parks and
> are even tolerably hunted by indigenous peoples. Chapter 4 focuses on
> the International Whaling Commission (IWC), revealing the
> transformation of this body from a management to protectionist body.
> Kalland approaches the IWC with an insiders eye, having participated
> in IWC meetings, but this same insight reveals some frustration with
> respect to the membership, decision making, and efficacy of this
> group. Chapters 5 and 6 stand apart from the rest of the book as less
> derisive and accusatory of non-whaling nations and whale sympathizers,
> and offer a moderate and informative look at the perspectives and
> practices of whalers, valuable information for any historian or social
> scientist. These chapters, along with chapter 4, are also the most
> significant to compare to Morikawas work as they provide opposing
> perspectives to the politics of whaling.[2]
>
> It may be difficult for some readers to move past Kallands palpable
> derision for opponents of whaling. His perspective simultaneously
> renders the work interesting, insightful, and nonacademic.
> Anti-whaling sympathizers are portrayed monolithically at times (as
> are the thoughts and beliefs of citizens of whaling nations).
> Non-whaling nations, mostly Westerners, are depicted as ignorant,
> misled, and culturally chauvinistic proponents of an oppressive
> hegemonic discourse on aspecific superwhales and barbaric whalers.
> While Kallands perspective is valuable for anyone involved in the
> whaling debate, past or present, his work falters in its academic
> value in his use of sources. His sources include canonical
> anthropological works, as well as modern cultural and political data,
> but Kalland often relies on a panoply of popular and fringe media to
> exemplify how ill-informed and generally radical most whale
> protectionists are.[3] Many of these sources ultimately are logical,
> given his focus on Western popular perception, but only if used
> contextually and reasonably. Kallands indiscriminate use of sources is
> seen, for example, on a single page (p. 39) where he cites two writers
> for womens magazines; the poems of Heathcote Williams; a readers
> letter from Fish International; John Lilly (New Age pioneer and
> proponent of alien-origins for dolphins); two eco-feminists; Carl
> Jung; Jacques Cousteau; and the biblical book of Genesis. Readers may
> be tempted to dismiss his work because of the strategically chosen
> radical or ill-informed voices whom he chooses to highlight, whose
> notions may not accurately represent the true perspectives of most
> non-whaling populations. Despite this, the book stands as a unique and
> important work, the antithesis of most academic, scientific, and
> popular literature that belies a sympathy for whales and negative
> judgments of whaling.
>
> In contrast, Morikawa, in Whaling in Japan, offers a more focused case
> study of whaling's role in modern Japanese culture and politics.
> Morikawa argues that Japanese whaling continues today as a political
> contrivance with a limited cultural favor, little economic demand, and
> a faux archaism. The popularity of whale meat, he argues, is waning
> and isolated to postwar populations, not younger generations, despite
> strident efforts by various government agencies to create a demand for
> whale meat. Whaling is a nationalistic issue by design, the political
> and economic bailiwick of a small elite echelon that exists within
> several incestuous government agencies. Morikawas work, like Kallands,
> is bold and critical, and seeks to rectify what Morikawa sees as
> wrongs within Japanese domestic and international policies. Morikawa
> relies on a wide range of contemporary data, surveys, and sources from
> government agencies, nongovernmental organization (NGOs), and the
> media in revealing the complex portrait of how whaling is perceived
> and supported within Japan. A useful series of appendices includes
> several key documents, media releases, resolutions, and compiled data.
>
> Chapters 1 and 2 offer explanation for why whaling, which was
> historically significant locally but not nationally in Japan, became a
> critical cultural issue after World War II. Whaling, the Japanese
> government has maintained, was necessary for Japans economic security,
> although arguments today more often assert that whaling is culturally
> innate and scientifically essential (p. 9). Despite public
> indifference to whaling, Japans government, Morikawa argues, continues
> to promote whaling based on four key issues, explored in chapters 2
> and 3: tradition, culinary culture, nationalism, and scientific
> survey. Chapters 3, 4, and 5 will be of great interest not only to
> environmental and whaling historians, but also to all students of
> international relations, as whaling here is contextualized alongside
> other significant international policies and concerns, including
> Japans international status and participation in the United Nations,
> particularly the Security Council. Whaling, diplomacy, and
> international and economic security are intertwined, and Morikawa
> reveals the extent of Japanese ministers willingness to cooperate or
> cajole on the issue of whaling based on international politics and
> partners. In chapter 3, Morikawa exposes the close relationship
> between the governments Fisheries Agency and the Institute for
> Cetacean Research (ICR), revealing the doubtful neutrality of this
> supposedly scientific institution. Whaling in Japan is not commercial
> but scientific, conducted under the auspices of the ICR. Chapter 4
> offers insight into domestic politics and media control, as whaling is
> promoted to a nation whose access to the anti-whaling movement is
> curtailed. Morikawa documents the contrivance of the cultural
> relevance of whaling, citing both the means by which the Japanese
> government attempted to promote whaling and the consumption of whale
> meat, and the relative insignificance of whaling, as seen in surveys,
> according to a majority of Japanese respondents. Chapter 5 shifts
> focus to Japanese whaling and the global stage. Morikawa prudently
> emphasizes that whaling is important, but not a singular driving issue
> for Japan in international relations. In the books longest (forty
> pages) and surely most controversial chapter, Morikawa scrutinizes
> Japanese economic aid partners and IWC voting records, revealing the
> means by which Japan seeks to alter the voting membership of the IWC
> if it cannot change minds on the issue of whaling itself. Morikawa
> clearly establishes the synchronicity of Japanese economic aid and the
> rise since 2000 of a voting block sympathetic to whaling within the
> IWC. One of the few accomplishments of the 2011 IWC meeting was
> approval of a resolution to prevent vote buying, precisely the issue
> Morikawa unveils in chapter 5. Finally, Morikawa concludes in chapter
> 6 with four potential scenarios for Japans future path in whaling. Had
> Morikawas work been written more recently, we must imagine that an
> additional scenario would be included, taking into account the
> calamitous effects of the 2011 tsunami, which some believe may bring
> Japanese whaling to its final stage.
>
> Whaling in Japan and Unveiling the Whale are complementary and
> informative in different ways, and readers on either side of the
> whaling debate are encouraged to read both works. Historians will find
> useful context for any contemporary study of whaling, past and
> present, while students of international relations and politics will
> be reminded of the cultural and economic significance of whaling on
> the global stage. Morikawas work is the more traditionally academic of
> the two, and offers more useful academic apparatus. Both works are
> well written and generally well edited (Kallands work includes a few
> typographical errors), with useful notes and bibliographies. Both
> works also serve as exceptionally good primers for anyone interested
> in current IWC policies and issues, debates on animal rights, and
> environmental movements.
>
> Notes
>
> [1]. Other recent works offer popular perspectives or broader surveys
> and none offers insiders perspectives as seen in the works of Kalland
> and Morikawa. See Eric Jay Dolin, Leviathan: The History of Whaling in
> America (New York: W. W. Norton, 2007); Philip Hoare, The Whale: In
> Search of the Giants of the Sea (New York: Harper Collins, 2008); and
> Joe Roman, Whale (London: Reaktion Books, 2006).
>
> [2]. On page 198, Kalland states that most Japanese do not understand
> why it is more morally wrong to kill a whale for food than to kill a
> cow or a pig for the same purpose.... How can people kill an animal
> they have fed? is a rhetorical question often heard in Japanese
> whaling communities. Morikawa strongly rejects such broad statements
> about what most Japanese believe with respect to whaling, citing
> instead a silent majority who find whaling, and the eating of whale
> meat, of remote relevance to their daily lives (p. 121).
>
> [3]. Morikawa describes a similar phenomenon in Japan, in which
> non-whalers and Westerners in general are described as emotional and
> unscientific on the issue of whaling (p. 13).
>
>
>
> If there is additional discussion of this review, you may access it
> through the list discussion logs at:
> http://h-net.msu.edu/cgi-bin/logbrowse.pl.
>
> Citation: Vicki Szabo. Review of Kalland, Arne, Unveiling the Whale:
> Discourses on Whales and Whaling and Morikawa, Jun, Whaling in Japan:
> Power, Politics, and Diplomacy. H-Environment, H-Net Reviews. August,
> 2011.
> URL: http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=31224
>
> This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-
> Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
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