午夜剧场

I study the modern history of Spanish politics, particularly Spain's democratization (mid-1970s), from the perspective of politics and language—how political and media elites communicated politics through their words, and the "power dynamics" between a single word's multiple meanings. During the democratization period, the achievement of "reconciliation" among the Spanish people, who had been divided by the Spanish Civil War (1936–39), was widely proclaimed. However, after the 1975 general election, this "reconciliation" faded into the background, and suddenly the "consensus" of the Spanish people came to the forefront. Investigating the reasons for this is my current theme.

During a trip to Spain as a student, I happened to witness a general election. In that election, a change of government occurred for the first time in 15 years, with a high voter turnout of about 80%, and there was tremendous excitement in central Madrid. This is something unimaginable in Tokyo today. This was one of the things that sparked my interest in Spanish politics.

I was also in Madrid for work from 2006 to 2008. 2008 was the 30th anniversary of the enactment of Spain's current constitution, and at events with large public participation, the aforementioned "reconciliation" and "consensus" were celebrated. However, the Historical Memory Law was enacted in 2007 on the grounds that this "reconciliation" was insufficient, and it established compensation for the victims of the Civil War and the Franco dictatorship (1936–75). Moreover, this law was described by some as "satisfying no one." It's a strange story, because "reconciliation" was supposed to have been achieved during the democratization.

These scenes of Spanish politics that I witnessed with my own eyes form the foundational landscape of the studies I now pursue as a profession.

In my classes, I teach Spanish language in addition to Spanish affairs, and a few years ago I published a grammar drill book. I also feel I need to study more about methods of foreign language education in the future.

I suppose it's the ability to contribute to establishing new insights on a case that many people know about and consider important.

When you talk about Spain's democratization, it's considered a glamorous "success story" because the "main actors" who promoted it, the king and the prime minister, were so flamboyant. It's a good case study for thinking about what democratization and democracy are, but in fact, it has only been 40 years since the dictator Franco died. There must be historical materials that have yet to emerge, and reinterpretation, including rereading existing materials, is still to come.

Also, in East Asia, issues of historical perception have become points of contention in domestic and foreign policy. Spain also has its own issues of historical perception. Since Spain's historical perception deals with the post-Civil War and dictatorship period, it is fundamentally a domestic issue. Nevertheless, it is similar in terms of how to establish an "objective" historical perception, or in the fact that historical perception has become politicized. I am studying this with the thought that there might be something that can contribute to the understanding of the various cases in East Asia.

Please cherish your own interests. Even if something seems useless given the circumstances when you are studying it, there are actually many things that will be useful to you and to the world one, two, three, five, ten, or even more years down the line. This is something that your seniors in the business world also say. Don't get caught up in whether something is useless in the short term; instead, focus on developing your interests over the long term.

Also, please develop the habit and methods of studying. While you can surprisingly make time and find the physical energy after you enter the workforce if you try, acquiring the habit and methods of studying requires a solid block of time to focus intently. In other words, your student years are the perfect opportunity. It's best to do this while you're young and your patterns of behavior and thought haven't completely solidified, but the time to start is when you awaken to it—the sooner, the better. In our ever-changing modern world, the need to study does not diminish even after you enter the workforce; if anything, it increases.

Moreover, what you gain or lose through studying after entering the workforce is not academic credits, but your achievements and credibility as a professional and as a human being. In particular, the humanities subjects you learn while at Hiyoshi, including foreign languages, are called *humanidades* in Spanish, and the original meaning is "humanity" or "that which makes us human." Let's aim to become people who can build achievements and be trusted around the world by polishing this universal humanity.

(Interview conducted in January 2016)