Posts Tagged ‘mmf’
War is a victorious, perhaps bitter, maybe a painful playground for adults. In war, we imagine soldiers moving to shoot their enemies, nurses rushing to heal the injured, politicians and generals posing in front of battle plans, and civilians running away from the crossfire. Our memories of war are ingrained with images of adults trying to make sense out of that chaos. For years we have been surrounded by timeless photographs and movies about that war that to this day, we envision the war strongly as an adult’s world.
But what about the children? Where is the child’s place in our social memory of the Pacific war?
Finding the child’s place in social memory entails an understanding of social memory and the value of children’s experiences in relation to the grand historical World War II narrative. Their frail voices in World War II histories speak of how much their war experiences have been neglected. However, as these children find their voices as adults, the recollection of their World War II experience as children becomes unbearably loud.
These are the memories of three Japanese children during the war against the images of Japanese childhood as constructed by Japan’s propaganda machinery. The memories of Keiji Nakazawa, Osamu Tezuka, and Shigeru Mizuki present a different story of the Pacific War —providing a fresh yet powerful social memory that makes us question on how war affects people at all ages.
Tudors England is quite tricky — especially when you have a king who’s been hacking off his wives’ heads. One can only imagine the level of distrust in a royal court filled with intrigue and political turmoil. Ooku no K0, Child of the Kingdom, by Bikke rides on this atmosphere as Henry faces his last few days. Many were counting the days until his death while others were already plotting on who they should support next.
Mindful of of this political game is a young William Cecil who crosses a young actor on stage. He drags the young man to court and shows him to a young Elizabeth. He suggests that this young man be Elizabeth’s political decoy, a body double. And while Elizabeth finds it hard to believe, the young man proves to be as regal as her.
Hajimari. Beginning. The start. The foundation. The cause.
Many of us often neglect the beginning because we’re so caught up in the present and the future. We often assess today — with hopes to move forward — and yet we tend to forget and reflect on why we are even here and the purpose of our existence.
The beginning is as crucial as our present. But where do we begin? From our birth? From the time we became conscious? Or is it even further? How do we identify ourselves from the start?
History is an important, if not a convenient player, on helping us identify who we are. If your local historian is good, he or she gives you a nationality to identify with. However, if your historian is great, then not only do historical people shape your perceptions of nationality, but it even pushes you to question and shape your own emotions, thoughts, and the character you consider your identity.
History has the power to shape us. And it shapes us in the most conventional ways such as through textbooks, museums, classrooms, and heritage sites. And then there are unconventional ways, through stories both real and imagined, of which some are written as novels while some are drawn in pages of comics.
This month’s Manga Moveable Feast is a celebration of the great histories in manga that has moved and shaped our lives. We are looking at the grand romances of the French Revolution and Victorian England. We will be moved by the heroism of soldiers, shocked by the horrors of war, and weep at the sorrows that come after.
This MMF will be looking at great historical stories that help us not only recognize the differences in people’s culture but also the similarities in our human experience and how their history is our history as well.
I’m happy to welcome you to this beginning — history’s beginning in manga.
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The History MMF will be running from 24 March – 1 April 2014. If you’ve tackled historical manga one way or the other, please feel free to check this MMF’s guidelines. Send a tweet, a tumble, or an email with the hashtag #historymmf or the subject [historymmf]. I’ll be posting an article hopefully by tonight and as well as a round of people’s historicity.
This was a difficult set to write because it was difficult to whittle down the list to seven. This week/month, I’ve been reading various food manga and here are the seven titles that I enjoyed… right now. I have a feeling that if I read the other stories, I’d probably go to my wits and them here. But right now, these are the titles that we’ll all probably enjoy, regardless if we love manga or food a little more than the other.
I’m not a dessert person. AT ALL. Thus, as much as I’d like to try all these amazing desserts in Oishinbo, I know I will be bound for failure. But I did recognize that my meaty offerings of beef and bacon might not be to everyone’s fancy, this pancake might just be the closest I can get to making a dessert from the series. Besides, it’s fun to end this Moveable Feast on a sweet note.
By the time you reach the 62nd volume of Oishinbo, you probably won’t be surprised in seeing the Yamaokas (they’ve been married by then!) picking up another lost kid in the street. It’s a common theme in this series and this time, Takako was out searching for her mother.
While the adults discussed the mother’s difficulties in her household, Takako spends some time with Haru and cooks up an awesome pancake that Takako’s grandmother taught her.
Guest on 
d4rkn on 
Ash on 
