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Shichigosan

Change and Continuity of a Family Ritual in Contemporary Urban Japan

  • Book
  • © 2016

Overview

Authors:
  1. Melinda Papp

    1. Department of Japanese Studies, Eötvös Loránd University, Spain

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Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies in Urban Anthropology (PSUA)

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Table of contents (8 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xi
    Download chapter PDF

  2. Introduction

    • Melinda Papp
    Pages 1-10

  3. The Study of Ritual in Contemporary Urban Society

    • Melinda Papp
    Pages 11-27

  4. Consumption and Ritual

    • Melinda Papp
    Pages 29-44

  5. Consumer Culture and Changes to the Ritual Calendar in Postwar Urban Japan

    • Melinda Papp
    Pages 45-86

  6. Shichigosan: The History of a Japanese Childhood Rite of Passage

    • Melinda Papp
    Pages 87-135

  7. Business Sector, Media, and Religious Institutions

    • Melinda Papp
    Pages 137-181

  8. Constructing the Ritual: Dress, Photographs, Actors, and Script

    • Melinda Papp
    Pages 183-242

  9. Conclusion: Children, Women, and Families—Creating a Ritual for One and All

    • Melinda Papp
    Pages 243-250

  10. Back Matter

    Pages 251-262
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Keywords

About this book

This book presents a case study of shichigosan, an extremely popular childhood family ritual in contemporary Japan.  It is an interesting example of a custom with very ancient roots (going back to the tenth century), that has undergone several transformations during the course of its history, adapting to changing socio-economic and cultural circumstances. Within the study, the ritual unfolds as a shared platform where basic social values, views on children and family life, and individual perceptions emerge, are expressed and moulded at the same time. This book offers a multidisciplinary approach to the study of a ritual practice in the intensely urbanized context of present-day Japan.

Reviews

“The book will be equally valuable to those conducting research on consumption in the Asia Pacific region, especially in comparison with the ‘West,’ for academics dealing with the history and/or the contemporary pattern of different kinds of festivities, as well as for researchers engaged in anthropological or sociological examinations of contemporary urban societies, or in gender studies.” (Ferenc Takó, Journal of Religion in Japan, Vol. 8 (1-3), 2019)

Authors and Affiliations

  • Department of Japanese Studies, Eötvös Loránd University, Spain

    Melinda Papp

About the author

Melinda Papp is Assistant Professor in Japanese Culture and Society at the Department of Japanese Studies, Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) University, Hungary. She has published on themes concerning Japanese folklore religious beliefs, modern patterns of family rituals, and consumption. She has edited the volume Encounters with Japan: Japanese Studies in the Visegrad Four Countries. 

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Shichigosan

  • Book Subtitle: Change and Continuity of a Family Ritual in Contemporary Urban Japan

  • Authors: Melinda Papp

  • Series Title: Palgrave Studies in Urban Anthropology

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-56538-9

  • Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan New York

  • eBook Packages: Social Sciences, Social Sciences (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2016

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-137-56537-2Published: 07 June 2016

  • eBook ISBN: 978-1-137-56538-9Published: 07 June 2016

  • Series ISSN: 2946-2436

  • Series E-ISSN: 2946-2444

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XI, 262

  • Number of Illustrations: 5 illustrations in colour

  • Topics: Sociology of Family, Youth and Aging

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