Introduction

This blog is a project which seeks to explore how narratives of resilience may be differentially framed in two national contexts where “cultures of disaster” shape the lives of generations of its inhabitants (Kruger, Bankoff, et al. 2015).  Using the 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Japan and the 2013 super typhoon Yolanda in the Philippines, this project will explore and assess phenomenological strategies focusing on the cultural framings of these named disasters.  This will be done through text analysis of existing archives and new digital materials while emphasizing the development of methods to capture lived perspectives of diasporic communities and historically underrepresented sectors.

This project will highlight underrepresented and untold stories from both Japan and the Philippines during times of extreme crisis.

 

Tohoku Earthquake

On March 11th, 2011, a 9.1 earthquake in Japan caused a 133 ft high tsunami that penetrated 6 mi inland. Japanese and international responses to this disaster and resultant recovery often focus on stereotypical explanations that the people from northeastern Japan have “Tohoku damashii,” or a particular kind of region-specific “spirit.”

 

Typhoon Yolanda 

Super typhoon Haiyan (known locally as Yolanda) hit the east-central Philippines on November 8th, 2013, with Category 5 winds of 195 mi/hour afflicting 16 million people, Philippine and international responses to this disaster and resultant recovery often focused on stereotypical ideals of “bayanihan” or collective work/reciprocity, asserting that people helping the afflicted share a spirit of resolve to overcome the devastation.