Prices Never Drop in the Shadow of the Rake 1945-1960 The Day Famous Texans Priced Out Dolls

Prices Never Drop in the Shadow of the Rake 1945-1960 The Day Famous Texans Priced Out Dolls
As postwar reconstruction progressed and the flow of people and entertainment began to return to the city, the rooster market was once again a lively symbol of the city's vitality. Since the Edo period (1603-1867), the rooster market had continued as an annual event to pray for prosperous business, and after a wartime hiatus, it became a place where people could experience the signs of recovery after the war. The space lined with stalls, selling rakes and good luck charms, was not just a market, but the very essence of urban culture emerging from the ruins of the fire.

On that day, a gentleman with a large crowd appeared at the doll store. He was a celebrity whom I had seen on TV, and his behavior was calm and elegant. In an era when television had not yet fully penetrated households, celebrities were a part of everyday life, and their mere appearance on the street was enough to change the atmosphere. Just by appearing on the scene, the atmosphere was changed. The one word was not so much a gesture of insouciance as it was a natural gesture in accordance with the etiquette of the city at that time.

At postwar stalls and fairs, bargaining was not an act of hostility, but rather an entry point for conversation and a ritual to gauge the distance between the two parties. Customers were not only trying to gain by lowering their prices, but also enjoying the interaction with the sellers themselves. However, the dolls being handled here were commodities with price tags. Dolls are in the stage before becoming mass-produced goods, and are half-crafts whose prices reflect the workmanship, materials, and skill of the makers as they are. To reduce the price easily is to destroy the value of the item.

The narrator recalls her mother's habit of saying, "I'll ask you again next time, won't I? I'll ask again next time, won't I? These words are not a mere refusal. It is a wisdom to ease the atmosphere of the situation without cutting off the relationship with the other party, while indicating the willingness not to lower the price now. It is not to ruin the face of a celebrity by refusing to bargain, but it is also not to bend the line of business by giving special treatment. The exquisite sense of distance is condensed in this one word.

In this exchange, there is both tension and reserve. The other party is a celebrity, and if he refuses the offer, he will be viewed with concern by those around him. However, as a tekiya standing in the market, he is also prepared to protect the price tag and the value of the doll. The balance between the two is not something that can be learned overnight. It is possible only through the experience of dealing with countless customers at crowded postwar markets and fairs and continuously reading the atmosphere of the place.

The market is also a space where status and fame are temporarily flattened. The star you see on TV is just one customer at the market. This equality is supported by the detailed manner in which they respond to bargaining. The exchange between the celebrity who bargained for the doll and the tekiya vendor who dismissed the celebrity's offer, quietly illustrates the maturity and pride that Japan's postwar street vendor culture had.

Studies in folklore and urban history have pointed out that the postwar black market and open-air market supported distribution during the reconstruction period, and that the rooster market once again attracted people as a symbol of reconstruction. In the 1950s, when television began to spread, the appearance of a celebrity on the streets was an event in itself. Behind this brief exchange is a combination of these changing times and the ethics of business trying to preserve the order of the place. Although the value of the doll did not fall, the words and the pause that flowed in the exchange speak eloquently of the skill and pride of the tekiyas living in the marketplace at that time.