While American culture and media were deeply impacted by the discovery and usage of atomic warfare after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during WWII, the culture of Japan was similarly facing sudden and rapid change in the stories, messages, and mediums they wished to portray. The aftermath of the atomic bombings and fire raids left the country devastated, concerned for their future as a prosperous and capable nation. This left such an impact on Japanese culture that it infiltrated the media of the time, and lasting even so far as into the modern day.
The Dangers of Technology
One idea both American and Japanese citizens of the time struggled to grapple with was of technology rapidly becoming so powerful, so capable of danger that it was no longer wise or safe for humans to pursue or utilize—the fire of knowledge that was never meant for mankind suddenly being placed into their naive, irresponsible hands. A deeply unsettling thought that both countries—in their own unique ways—turned to popular media to help digest and ease concerns over. In Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy, a scientist grieving the death of his son turns to science in an attempt to fill the hole in his heart, before soon realizing he will never be able to see Astro Boy as his son—or even a true person—rejecting him and sending him away before he eventually finds a truly loving home.
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| Astro Boy's creation—was technology ever meant to create life? | |
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The comic begs the question; is life capable (or worthy of) being replaced
by technology? In humanity's constant search for advancement and
answers, have we possibly overlooked what is more important: the
ordinary people around us?
The Hope for the Future
Despite the initially dreary outlook of the media at the time, they also contain the core theme of hope for a better, brighter future. Japan is a country very rooted in tradition, so many of these stories—some in a more on-the-nose fashion than others—have traditional values or ideas as the keystone of the solution to their conflicts, suggesting that the modern, science-obsessed way may not always be the best.
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Astro Boy's happy, hard-earned resolution.
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Although the characters of these stories face difficult, disastrous, and even down-right depression scenarios, much like those that Japan faced during the time, that through hope and hard work, there is always a chance for change, for resurrection, and for humanity to learn from their mistaken ways—before it becomes too late.
