Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the essays written by children who experienced the Great East Japan Earthquake in order to clarify the characteristics of these essays focusing on the difference between tsunami and nuclear disaster experiences. A total of 161 essays written by school-aged children were extracted for text mining analysis concentrating on their expressions of will and want for the present and future. While after the tsunami incident children mentioned the importance of conveying the crisis experience for future generations, the children experiencing the nuclear disaster expressed their want (desire) to lead a life free from restrictions such as playing outside and meeting with friends and family from whom they had been separated. Although the tsunami experience evoked children's will to remember the painful incident for the future, the children experiencing the nuclear contamination evoked their wants about their present and future life.
