Catastrophes au Japon et complexité des relations homme/nature. De l’apport de la médiance…

Abstract

This article borrows from Orientalist scholar Augustin Berque a set of mesological analyzes about environmental disasters that have affected the Japanese society. The work of Berque, inspired by the Japanese philosopher Watsuji Tetsurō, shows that the links between the Japanese people and nature (shizen), as well as with their environment (fūdo), differ from the Western dualistic conception. In other words, the natural environment in Japan consists, on the one hand, of the inhabited and anthropic world which is referred to by ecumene and, secondly, the uninhabited world, the vast realm of nature and Shinto deities (kami) - ereme. Therefore, the perception that the Japanese have of nature is that of a subject «for granted». This opposes the conception of nature, often widespread in the West, which refers to an object to be dominated, i.e. the legacy of naturalism and anthropocentrism of Modern thought. Nature in Japan inspires a strong sense of respect and infuses many cultural forms. This conception of nature «for granted» has led the Japanese to think of the Meiji era modernization of Japan as «for granted». This led them to take «for granted» the ideology of progress, too. However, the Japanese have gradually stopped to consider the environment as a permanent and inseparable combination of nature and culture. This has resulted in a logical abstraction (lock-out) of nature. The Japanese were even conducted to expect nature to regulate or counteract the excess of their civilization beset by non-Western modernity challenges.

Keywords

• Mediance
• Co-suscitation
• Mesology
• Fukushima
• Japan