earticle

영어

This study analyzes Japan’s national textbooks for second year students in elementary school, Kokugo 2-(1) (こくご二上) and Kokugo 2-(2) (こくご二下), with a focus on the themes of literary materials included in the textbooks. The study contemplates each individual literary text in Kokugo 2, and points out four major themes that cut across the entire textbooks. First is nature. Nature is considered to be an important topic in Kokugo 2, as it is in Kokugo 1(こくご一), the textbook series for first year students. There are two different perspectives to deal with this topic. One is to see nature as a massive organism as shown in the examples such as Butterbur Sprout and Get Bigger. The other is to feel and enjoy the change of seasons, as described in the texts like Who is this? and A Bright Red Autumn. Second is human relationship. Unlike Kokugo 1, which mainly underlines the relationship between humans and animals, Kokugo 2 puts more attention to the relationship between individuals. Suho’s Horse is the only work discussing the coexistence with animals in entire Kokugo 2 series. Others are increasingly highlighting human relationship. For instance, A Letter and I am the Elder Sister suggest how to behave inside the relationship with close acquaintances. A Letter provides the ways to achieve an ideal form of friendship, while I am the Elder Sister portrays the detailed image of a kind sister. Third is an individual and society. Students can learn many types of attitudes as individuals in a society. Suimi, the main character of Suimi, shows an active leadership by challenging problems with her wisdom and the spirit of cooperation. On the other hand, Gonsuke from The Yellow Bucket, prioritizes the consensus among society members when making decision, and concedes whatever the results are.Fourth is the strength to live on. Wisdom, self-satisfaction, and the ability to appreciate fine things are mainly described as the powers that enable individuals to survive in the competitive and risk-filled modern society. This message is clearly contained in the examples like Three Sheets of Paper Charms, The Beginning of 12 Zodiac, and Suimi.