Introduction

Print was initially the most powerful resource used to create the ‘imagined communities’ associated with the ‘nationalisms’ of Japan. Contemporary studies question the perceived authority of text as a reliable and fixed source of information. The Tatsukawa bunko continues to influence popular culture in Japan. Aspects of Sarutobi Sasuke and his cohort of Braves helped lay the foundations for contemporary depictions of the samurai in other forms of print – newspaper serials and manga – as well as film, television, and radio. The chapter examines Tamada’s work published by Tatsukawa Kumajiro as a focus for exploring key facets of the emergence of modern urban culture in pre-war Japan. In identifying with the historical vitality of Japan’s largest industrial hub, Tamada and the Sekka Sanjin Collective inadvertently reflected the cultural might of the city during the early 1900s. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.