In the Shadow of the Bomb: Nagasaki's Place in Atomic Memory
Date
2021-08
Authors
Moles, Taylor
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Abstract
This thesis examines the unique memory of Nagasaki formed after the atomic attack by the United States. Nagasaki’s Peace and Atomic Bomb Museum and the city’s
narrative of the attacks are overshadowed by the narrative presented in Hiroshima and the Hiroshima Peace Memorial. While Hiroshima has encapsulated its identity in nuclear
disarmament and peace, Nagasaki’s memory encompasses the wide experiences of those impacted by the nuclear bomb and how their identities have grown. The relative lack of attention regarding Nagasaki’s experience with the atomic bomb has allowed its survivors to explore their memory of the bomb unhindered by a globalized or unified
memory. Part of Nagasaki’s unique memoryscape is due to its position as a city of otherness. It is a city of people, culture, and religion foreign to Japan. This otherness
opens the city up to broader memorialization. My thesis discusses Nagasaki’s atomic literature, the differences between the two cities’ museums, and the memorialized objects in Nagasaki’s landscape.
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Keywords
Memory studies, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Atomic memory, Atomic bomb, World War Two, Pacific War, Dark tourism
Citation
Moles, T. (2021). <i>In the shadow of the bomb: Nagasaki's place in atomic memory</i> (Unpublished thesis). Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas.