Abstract:

The contemporary Japanese author Murata Kiyoko’s Warabinokou, uses the legend of Ubasute as its cultural archetype to depict the story of elderly individuals abandoned during a famine in the Edo period, struggling to survive in “Warabino”. The work, on one hand, scrutinizes the life predicaments of elderly individuals within the modern aging crisis through the reconstruction of self-subjectivity and life value of the elderly in “Warabino”. On the other hand, it reveals the necessity of recognizing ecological principles that establish an intrinsic unity between humanity and nature in the face of the modern ecological crisis, as exemplified by the harmonious coexistence of “Warabino” and the elderly. Additionally, by highlighting the intergenerational transmission of experience and wisdom among the “Warabino” elderly, the work warns of the imminent crisis of losing traditional cultural memory, particularly that represented by agrarian culture. The work offers a profound reflection on modern crises from the perspectives of life, ecology, and survival, conveying the author’s deep concern for humanity’s need to reassess its relationship with nature in the process of modern societal development and underscoring the crucial role of traditional culture in maintaining social stability and ecological balance.

Key words: Murata Kiyoko, Warabinokou, the legend of Ubasute, modern crises, traditional culture