Many myths, legends and old folktales tell the story of the negotiation process between a human being and nature. By retelling the story through the perspective of development, we can see how human beings objectify the natural environment, and how they contextualize and relate to it. To assess these processes, this paper does the following : 1) analyzes these tales in relation to paddy field development, forest development, and urban development, 2) abstracts the Japanese view of nature and concept of the divine, 3) explains the power of the 'epistemological discourse' of folktales, 4) considers whether this power can be efficacious in dealing with today's urgent global problem of protecting the natural environment. 5) The problems included in Environmental Ethics such as 'Native Title', the issue of land ownership rights for aboriginal peoples, 'The Rights of Nature', awarding the right to existence for all natural things including inanimate objects, the concept of 'stewardship' which is found through a close reading of the Bible are considered from the perspective of the potential of folktales.

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A questionnaire survey was distributed to randomly selected tourists who visited Oze, Nikko National Park, during 13-15 July 1998. In total 391 responses were obtained. Tourists were asked questions to determine their attitude towards nature conservation, and their knowledge of nature, including the forests, flowers, mammals, birds, and insects. Even respondents who viewed controlling the number of tourists and charging an entrance fee to Oze positively, were in favor of the baths that are currently available to overnight guests which cause environmental pollution problems. In addition, most respondents had a poor knowledge of nature. If future tourists to Oze continue to hold such views and have little knowledge of nature, the characteristics which have made Oze a special protected area under the national park system may be degraded. Much stronger environmental education for the general public is essential and ecotourism should be considered as a new conservation tool to be introduced in Oze in order to promote the sustainable use of the environment.

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A questionnaire survey was conducted in September and October 1996 on tourists' attitude toward nature and forest damage by sika deer (Cervus nippon) in the Nikko National Park. Most of the 187 respondents came from the metropolitan districts ; Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba, and Tochigi. Nature, especially the landscape, attracted people's concern more than cultural, historic properties like shrines and temples. Most expected to hike, mountain climb, and go sightseeing rather than hot-spring bathing and visiting temples and shrines. The rate of photo-nature and nature observation was not high. People tended to favor beautiful landscape like colorful forests, waterfall, lakes and wetlands, but had little concern for individual creature. Half of them knew about forest damage by sika deer, but their information did not exceed the mass-media's one in quantities and quality. They understood that the damages probably affect the forest ecosystem, but most of them choose countermeasures other than killing the animals ; the agreement of sika control was less than 30%, nevertheless 60% of them accepted hunting in the national park.

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