Yoshino Kosaku

This article critically enquires into prevailing discourses on the rise of nationalism among the youth in Japan and proposes a sociological approach to an understanding of the situation involving them. Given the lack of sociological studies on this subject, empirical research is essential in order to understand the situation regarding youth and nationalism in present-day Japan. I have had valuable experiences of reflecting on the issue with students in university courses, who themselves conducted social research on the subject. The article reports two of such efforts. One is an attempt to look into the nature of problems of mass media in the creation and dissemination of discourses on the rise of nationalism. The other identified social processes that could generate nationalism such as those involved in the invention of the seemingly patriotic cheering style among soccer supporters. The article concludes with theoretical considerations, in which market-generated nationalism is contrasted with state-initiated nationalism.