述語制映像表現の可能性Possibilities of Predicate-Based Moving Images

Differences between languages inevitably encounter untranslatability, and this is true not only of Japanese but all languages. Today, under the powerful influence of globalization, there seems to be a widespread belief that everything can be translated. However, while superficial understanding through translation may be possible, the essential core remains inevitably misaligned. Accepting this fundamental difference as inherent to communication between linguistic cultures appears to me to be the true key to communication in the 21st century.

This is exactly what I have been contemplating over the past few days. As I have mentioned several times in Shitsurae, especially when dealing with areas such as culture, lifestyle, and philosophy arising from the predicate-based realm (述語制界域) of Japanese language, there is always a limit beyond which concepts cannot be conveyed to people from different linguistic backgrounds. It is practically impossible to go beyond this invisible wall, yet if we do not find ways to address this challenging nature, global communication throughout the 21st century will inevitably reach its limits, leaving us without solutions.

This applies to all countries and cultures, but a major structural shift in linguistic realms formed a crucial backbone for modernity. I believe the linguistic structure known as the subject-based realm (主語制界域) is indispensable to the modernization process. How this subject-based realm was mixed with and established from earlier linguistic realms involves unique historical struggles specific to modernity, and as a result, modern history emerged.

Looking at the character of modernity from this context, in the case of Japan, the Meiji era serves as the most critical point of reference, clearly illustrating structural transformations into the Taisho and pre- and post-war Showa periods. Such developments vary across different nations and cultures, making it impossible to perceive them through a single global lens. Yet, the moment linguistic structures shifted toward the subject-based realm, unprecedented psychological changes emerged in each country or culture, allowing us to examine the transformations of an era.

I believe this process is still ongoing. However, countries and cultures where the subject-based realm has already progressed over significant time urgently need to identify the next step forward, as most advanced nations appear to have hit an impasse. Such problems represent a new issue specific to the 21st century, involving the difficult attempt—free from various ideologies—to reach a world line beyond modernity. Thus, we all need to seriously contemplate how to move forward.

For the last three days, I’ve been continuously thinking about how we might address these limitations and make meaningful progress. I kept returning to moving images, a classical method that still strikes me as extraordinarily compelling. Occasionally, I discuss Japanese cinema on Shitsurae, but in fact, I watch Japanese films nearly every day, particularly from the late 1930s, early 1950s, and the 1960s-70s. My intention is not entertainment but to grasp the “movements of the heart” of Japanese people from these periods. For me, classic films represent more than mere nostalgia—they serve as resources for tracing the historical transformations of the “movements of the heart.”

Indeed, films overtly embody influences from their times, and thus, interpretations vary widely. However, when focusing on these movements of the heart, we can uncover many keys to understanding how contemporary Japanese have been shaped. We can also reflect on what has been lost and the underlying reasons. By continually pondering these points, we gain linear and nonlinear perspectives on the extreme changes experienced by the same nation or culture within less than a century.

I believe the unique nature of visual media will maintain its fundamental importance moving forward. Therefore, as an experiment, I produced three distinct videos over the past three days, exploring whether themes that inevitably hit the untranslatable wall in textual or linguistic communication could instead be effectively conveyed visually. Consequently, these three videos contain no English or Japanese text but are presented entirely through visual language. I refer to this as predicate-based moving images (述語制映像)—a form of visual expression rooted not in the subject-based realm but in the predicate-based realm. Details about each video will be discussed in separate future articles, so today I invite you simply to experience them visually.

The first video is “原生疎外-Gensei Sogai-,” inspired by the philosopher Takaaki Yoshimoto’s concept of “原生的疎外” (genseiteki sogai). This concept is one of the most significant to me, visualized here through various perspectives.

The second video is “造化三神,” a visual depiction of the opening section of the Kojiki, Japan’s oldest chronicle.

The final video is “Tohaku’s Dream,” focusing on the predicate-based painting expression of the 16th-17th century painter Tohaku Hasegawa.

Each of these themes resists textual communication, yet visual representation breaks through this barrier differently, potentially offering diverse forms of insight. Having completed these videos, my conclusion is that such predicate-based moving communication will become increasingly significant in the future.