Abstract
This paper examines the reading practices of the first radicals of the Tokyo Imperial University (1919-1929, Tokyo Teidai Shingin-Kai). By particularly focusing on the idea "From Science to Imagination" that they assimilated through their activities, this paper will explore how these students came to adopt this idea, which is different from the past viewpoints. In doing so, this paper reconsiders the students' social movement between the world wars.
Shinjin-Kai was one of the biggest student groups at that time. Many of their practices and social activities influenced the then regime, and their reading practices formed the basis for their actions.
For Shinjin-Kai, the reading practices did not merely imply reading but also included the characteristic act of transcending back and forth between the text and the real world. First, the students gained the knowledge by reading the text, and then understood the actual circumstances by communicating with the employees. Following this, they interpreted the then present situation by trying to match the knowledge of the text and the actual situation. Later, they intended to improve the situation by returning to the text again.
Through such activities, they aimed to create a reading community not based on any social attribute, but on the similarity of interest. They interpreted the present situation scientifically using the text, and then developed this interpretation by imagining their new community through the text. In this process, they experienced a reversal of the role of a sender and a receiver, and then, realized that they have to respond to the present state that they try to change through their activities. The reading practices of Shinjin-Kai involved being aware of one's internal passiveness.
