Need good article(s), can anyone help?

[Charlie Kondek]

Hi, friends. I am looking for any good articles comparing pre-war to post-war kendo. I've already done a quick search at the EJMAS site and turned up a few generally interesting things, but nothing specific enough. Can anyone direct me to any others? The personal reminiscences of someone who had studied kendo both before and after the war would be great.

Thanks in advance.

-Charlie

[Joseph Svinth]

Try http://www.furyu.com/archives/issue8/Omoto.html ; Eiichiro Azuma, "Social History of Kendo and Sumo in Japanese America," in Brian Niiya, ed., *More Than A Game, Sport in the Japanese American Community* (Los Angeles: Japanese American National Museum, 2000); and Azuma's recent PhD dissertation from UCLA.

As for pre- and post-war, where? Kendo training in California was different from kendo training in Oregon, so probably training at the national university in Seoul was different from training at Toyama Military Academy. Likewise, when? The training in Denver ca. 1912 had different motivations than the training in San Francisco in 1939. Similar techniques, but different speeches, and the speeches change the context.

From a research standpoint, there is a vast amount of stuff in the National Archives on kendo in Japan before WWII. Probably there is some stuff in German, too, in those recently located pre-WWII Nazi archives.

Also remember to read Rafu Shimpo on microfilm. Its English-language pages start in 1926, and as you only need to read to 1942, it shouldn't take more than a couple months to read the papers. From there you simply start writing everyone named, and there you are.