ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the claims about Sarutobi Sasuke by elucidating the political circumstances of the Taisho era, during which the sokkibon of the Tatsukawa bunko were produced. It examines one of the cultural features of the age pertinent to interpretations of ‘orality’ by members of the working class, that is, the pedagogical system of ondoku in relation to questions of literacy, ‘vocal literature’, and identity politics during Japan’s industrial age. The introduction of stringent assessment measures for illiteracy helped the government implement effective reforms, but the survey revealed that the overall standard of literacy in the west of Japan remained inadequate. Uneven literacy, a result of Japan’s increasingly differential economy, meant that reading aloud in a group setting remained an essential practice for many. Newly industrialised, Osaka exemplified much of what was wrong with Japan’s modernity.
