Abstract
The following study attempts to find and describe the discourse practices of rice-growing farmers under the current political and economic conditions which force them to struggle hard to maintain their existence.
Saika or Sabetuka refers to the policy of dividing of rice into quality levels which are reflected in the price, rather than having all quality levels of rice blended and given a standard price. Accepting this policy, farmers' responses are quite mixed in their meaning. Some farmers see it as the necessary principle of the survival of the fittest in a free market situation lacking any responsible control by government. Others see it as a way of living together through the cooperative function of the differentiated parts of the division of labor. A qualitative sociological panel survey done on this as well as other points at Fukagawa city （one of the most productive rice fields in Hokkaido） has tried to reveal an aspect of the world of meaning held among farmers.
