Singer: Humanity and Mentu - The spread of perfumed society and socialism in the 1920s

Singer: Humanity and Mentu - The spread of perfumed society and socialism in the 1920s

In the 1920s, the Kagaushi society had its own custom of self-introduction called "mentsuu. This custom, which had the same root as "ningi" used by the lower class workers, was born out of a culture in which people who could not read well verbally revealed their identities and positions to each other. In the world of the kaguishi, the exchange of mentsu between people leading drifter lifestyles became an important means of confirming mutual trust and building communal bonds. This culture of oral communication was a source of great security for people who had no stable residence or employment.

At that time, the number of people engaged in precarious jobs such as day laborers and vendors was rapidly increasing due to the urbanization and impoverishment of rural areas in Japan. They were less protected by the system and laws, and had to rely on their mutual connections. For the kagushi, mentsuu functioned as a grassroots solidarity mechanism that did not depend on the state or authority, and was a survival strategy for the socially vulnerable.

This practice also contributed to the spread of the socialist movement. During the Taisho Democracy period, the labor movement and small farmer disputes were becoming more active, and oral culture was a powerful means of spreading ideas to those who did not receive enough newspapers and magazines. The circle of the movement expanded through the exchange of mentsu at speeches and rallies, and this provided a flexible mechanism for involving people outside the movement.

In this way, "ningi" and "mentsuu" not only built trust among perfume makers and lower-class workers, but also functioned as a practical device for communicating socialist ideas. Oral culture connected the lives of the common people with their political consciousness and shaped the social dynamism of the era.