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The “Aum Incident” as a Catalyst for Societal Critique: An Analysis of Letters to the Editor of Asahi Shinbun on Aum Shinrikyō

The “Aum Incident” as a Catalyst for Societal Critique: An Analysis of Letters to the Editor of... AbstractThis article analyses the discussion of Aum Shinrikyō in letters to the editor of one of the major Japanese newspapers, Asahi Shinbun, through the method of qualitative content analysis. The examination focuses on two aspects of the letters in order to uncover how Aum is understood and localised in a bigger context: first, how Aum itself is discussed, and second, what topics are brought up in relation to the group. The analysis reveals that Aum was rarely referred to as a cult or a false religion, but more often merely as a religion, which is subsequently associated with negative notions. The majority of letters, however, did not specify the nature of Aum at all. This is congruent with the topics covered in the letters, since the content of a large portion of them is not concerned with Aum directly but with a more abstract critique of society and authorities. Letters to the editor of Asahi Shinbun for a large part do not make use of sensationalist wording, all the while expressing a critical stance towards the movement, and additionally they focus on a critique of the dealings with Aum prior to and after the subway attack in 1995. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Vienna Journal of East Asian Studies de Gruyter

The “Aum Incident” as a Catalyst for Societal Critique: An Analysis of Letters to the Editor of Asahi Shinbun on Aum Shinrikyō

Vienna Journal of East Asian Studies , Volume 13 (1): 33 – Dec 1, 2021

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References (52)

Publisher
de Gruyter
Copyright
© 2021 Patricia Sophie Mayer, published by Sciendo
eISSN
2521-7038
DOI
10.2478/vjeas-2021-0006
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

AbstractThis article analyses the discussion of Aum Shinrikyō in letters to the editor of one of the major Japanese newspapers, Asahi Shinbun, through the method of qualitative content analysis. The examination focuses on two aspects of the letters in order to uncover how Aum is understood and localised in a bigger context: first, how Aum itself is discussed, and second, what topics are brought up in relation to the group. The analysis reveals that Aum was rarely referred to as a cult or a false religion, but more often merely as a religion, which is subsequently associated with negative notions. The majority of letters, however, did not specify the nature of Aum at all. This is congruent with the topics covered in the letters, since the content of a large portion of them is not concerned with Aum directly but with a more abstract critique of society and authorities. Letters to the editor of Asahi Shinbun for a large part do not make use of sensationalist wording, all the while expressing a critical stance towards the movement, and additionally they focus on a critique of the dealings with Aum prior to and after the subway attack in 1995.

Journal

Vienna Journal of East Asian Studiesde Gruyter

Published: Dec 1, 2021

Keywords: Aum Shinrikyō; cult debate; media; content analysis; discourse of religion

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