The Intertextuality of Sadism and Masochism in the Popular Culture in the Late Meiji to Early Taisho Period: Goro Masamune Koshi Den (1915) as a Starting Point

Abstract

This paper takes the text and the context surrounding the film Goro Masamune Koshi Den (1915) as a starting point to examine sadomasochistic representations in popular culture in the Late Meiji to early Taisho Period.

In sections 2 and 3, I examine the “stepchild bullying” scene in Goro Masamune Koshi Den and show intertextually that it reflects the prevalence of sadism/masochism representations in popular culture in the Late Meiji to early Taisho Period. In addition, I pointed out colonialist ideas and misogyny in the representation of sadism/masochism, and then I examine the figure of Goro in Goro Masamune Koshi Den as the image of imperial Japan during the formation of the nation-state. Furthermore, I reexamine the problem when women, who bear the brunt of the violence exercised in the representations of sadism/masochism, become the viewers of that violence from the perspective of recent gender politics and point out that those violent representations can be enjoyed as entertainment (as well as by male viewers) by female viewers. In conclusion, I discuss the issue of “melodrama” as an important concept in the representation of sadism/masochism, but also raise some issues for the future.