이 글은 사회·문화적 특수성과 역사성을 반영한 ‘일본 시민사회와 공공성’에 대한 내용을 담고 있다. 사회문제 해결과 정책방향을 모색하려는 공공성 논의에 주목하면서 근대화 이후 일본 시민사회 성장과정에서의 공공성의 변화를 이해하고, 신자유주의적 개혁과 함께 가시화된 ‘새로운 공공’과 ‘공공 공간’의 의미를 통해 시민사회의 전반적 지형을 파악하는데 목적을 둔다. 문헌연구를 통해 근대국가성립이후부터 최근까지의 시민사회 성장과 공공성 논의과정을 조망하고, 정부개혁의 측면에서 행정과 민간영역, 특히 시민사회간의 관계와 패러다임 전환의 내용을 구체적으로 살펴보는 체계로 구성하였다. 공공성 변용의 과정을 따라가면서 일본 시민사회에 대한 보다 깊이 있는 이해와 생활세계를 근간으로 한 시민운동을 통해 앞으로의 전망과 가능성을 도출해 볼 수 있을 것으로 기대한다. 일본의 시민사회는 근대국가 성립이후 오랫동안 독자적 의의를 찾지 못하다가 70년대 근대화의 반성으로서의 주민운동, 90년대 이후 신자유주의적 개혁을 배경으로 한 행정개혁과 지방분권, 민간개방을 통해 역할과 주체성을 찾아가고 있는 것으로 생각된다. 일본의 공공성 재편 논의에서는 ‘시민적 공공성’과 ‘국민공동체를 지향하는 대중형 내셔널리즘’이라는 상반된 견해가 공존하고 있고, 시민사회 내부에서의 갈등이 본격화되면서 공공성 논의의 필요성은 더욱 강조되고 있다.

This writing pays attention to the discussion about public that tries to analyze on ‘Japanese civil society and public,’ which reflected social & cultural particularity and historical tendency, and to solve social issue and to seek for direction of a policy through this. In the meantime, the aim is to understand a change in public in the process of growth in Japanese civil society since modernization and to grasp the whole topography in civil society through the significance in ‘the new public’ and ‘public space,’ which were visualized along with the new liberal reform. Through the literature research, it looked out over the process of discussion about growth and public in civil society up to the recent times from after the establishment of a modern nation by reflecting the Japanese-styled particularity. A system was formed that specifically examines about the contents of a change in relationship and paradigm among administrative & private spheres and especially civil society, in the aspect of the governmental reform. There is expectation for the deeper understanding about Japanese civil society while proceeding with following the process of modification in public and for being capable of eliciting future prospect and potentiality through civil movement based on the living world. Japanese civil society is thought to proceed with pursuing a role and identity through the administrative reform, decentralization, and private opening against the residents’ movement as the reflection of modernization in the 1970s and the new liberal reform since the 1990s as having failed to find out the independent significance following the establishment of modern nation. In the discussion about reorganization of public in Japan, the contrary opinions coexist called ‘civil public’ and ‘popular nationalism of pointing to national community.’ As a conflict is substantiated in the inside of civil society, the necessity for discussion about public is being emphasized more.

This writing pays attention to the discussion about public that tries to analyze on ‘Japanese civil society and public,’ which reflected social & cultural particularity and historical tendency, and to solve social issue and to seek for direction of a policy through this. In the meantime, the aim is to understand a change in public in the process of growth in Japanese civil society since modernization and to grasp the whole topography in civil society through the significance in ‘the new public’ and ‘public space,’ which were visualized along with the new liberal reform. Through the literature research, it looked out over the process of discussion about growth and public in civil society up to the recent times from after the establishment of a modern nation by reflecting the Japanese-styled particularity. A system was formed that specifically examines about the contents of a change in relationship and paradigm among administrative & private spheres and especially civil society, in the aspect of the governmental reform. There is expectation for the deeper understanding about Japanese civil society while proceeding with following the process of modification in public and for being capable of eliciting future prospect and potentiality through civil movement based on the living world. Japanese civil society is thought to proceed with pursuing a role and identity through the administrative reform, decentralization, and private opening against the residents’ movement as the reflection of modernization in the 1970s and the new liberal reform since the 1990s as having failed to find out the independent significance following the establishment of modern nation. In the discussion about reorganization of public in Japan, the contrary opinions coexist called ‘civil public’ and ‘popular nationalism of pointing to national community.’ As a conflict is substantiated in the inside of civil society, the necessity for discussion about public is being emphasized more.

Japanese civil society, Public, Civil publicness, Residents’ movement, NPO