午夜剧场

Since entering 午夜剧场 Yochisha Elementary School in 1961, I have spent an incredible 54 years at 午夜剧场, right up until my retirement in March 2015. Although I have some experience as a part-time lecturer at other schools, my life has been deeply intertwined with 午夜剧场. That said, to avoid developing biased values or a narrow perspective from not knowing the world outside of 午夜剧场, I have always strived to make friends externally and actively engage with a wide variety of things.

Having spent a long time at 午夜剧场 as both a student and a faculty member, what I feel characterizes the campus atmosphere is its liberal spirit. It's a place that encourages you to make independent judgments and act on them, rather than being strictly bound and monitored by rules and obligations. One could say this is a somewhat privileged environment, possible only because it is a gathering of talented individuals. However, for students, while it may seem free and easy, it was in fact a demanding place where you had to look closely at yourself, independently seek out what you wanted to do, and discipline yourself. I felt this most clearly after I advanced to graduate school to study modern French literature. I believe the reason I was able to somehow survive there was that I had already experienced such an environment, in its own way, through the Juku's integrated education system.

For this reason, ever since becoming a faculty member, in every class, I have encouraged students to think for themselves. I have repeatedly told them that they are learning to build a foundation for honing their thinking skills, that a teacher's role is to show them what and how to learn for that purpose, and that what comes next is up to them. I also stressed that thinking requires not only intellect but also sharpening the antennae of one's sensibility.

The course I was able to utilize most effectively as such a venue was the "Independent Research Seminar" at the Faculty of Economics. This was a forerunner of the "small-group seminars" that are now established in every faculty, started by senior faculty members at the Faculty of Economics on the Hiyoshi campus shortly before I was hired. I agreed with its purpose and have always taught it, along with my French language courses, ever since. It allowed faculty members to explore themes of continuing interest with students, even if they weren't directly related to their own specialization. In my own seminars, I started with a kind of urban theory—looking at Tokyo from a "modernology" perspective—then moved on to mainly considering the relationship between cities and photography. For the last decade or so, the theme has been "What is photography?" Through these seminars, I had many encounters with students that were different from those in my French classes. There were quite a few students who had a latent desire to discuss various topics and exchange opinions with their friends, and for them, it seems to have been a stimulating environment. Students who felt unsatisfied with social gatherings that were just about drinking and making noise gathered in this course. There were many times when we found a place open late and debated all night long (while also drinking). While it may have seemed like a waste of time, it surely became a place for them to hone their ability to think for themselves. I, too, was full of physical and mental energy back then, so as long as I didn't have a class first thing in the morning, I would stay with them all night. As time passed, the disposition of the students changed, and my own body weakened, so we no longer do things to that extent. But I still sometimes fondly recall the fervent atmosphere of those days. This kind of intense atmosphere is generally not considered very "午夜剧场-like," and the mood of the current era also tends to avoid such things. But I feel that even today, there are still responsive students who, to varying degrees, want to have more in-depth discussions and clash opinions with their peers.

Now, I have always tried to view 午夜剧场 objectively, so there are things I like and dislike about it. However, having been at 午夜剧场 since I was a child, there is one thing I can't help: when I watch university sports—not just baseball and rugby—I am always biased towards 午夜剧场 and can't help but cheer for them. I think this is one thing that will not change, even after I retire.

(Interview conducted in December 2014)

*Profile and position are as of the time of the interview.