Hayarigami, or Fleeting Deities: Narrating the Unknown in Two Japanese Urban Legends

Abstract

This thesis examines Japanese urban legends as a cultural phenomenon and a modern folklore genre that deals with the unknown through mysterious narratives. While American and European scholars have extensively explored urban legends in their countries and fields, research on Japanese urban legends remains underdeveloped in global scholarship. This study addresses this gap by analyzing how these narratives interact with themes of modernity, digital culture, and folklore traditions, and become a unique metaphor for the unknown in contemporary Japan.To investigate this issue, the thesis employs a multidisciplinary approach, incorporating folklore studies, narratology, and cultural analysis. The primary materials selected for case analyses are two well-known Japanese urban legends: “Kotoribako” (コトリバコ) and “Kisaragi Eki” (きさらぎ駅). “Kotoribako” tells the story about a cursed box, and “Kisaragi Eki” is centered on a mysterious train station. The methodology involves textual analysis of these narratives alongside theoretical frameworks such as Freud’s concept of the uncanny, the narratological notion of frame narratives, and the study of netlore as digital folklore. The research also considers the interactive nature of internet-based storytelling and its role in shaping urban legends. This thesis examines the connotations of the “unknown” in the two urban legends. “Kotoribako” highlights the fear of contamination between urban modernity and rural superstition, while “Kisaragi Eki” reflects anxieties about technological incomprehensibility. The unknown is both unsettling and enticing, as it suggests a possibility of expanding the existing knowledge system. Whether through scientific explanations or mythological reinterpretations, urban legends help assuage modern anxieties. The thesis ends with an assessment of future research on urban legends regarding their narratives, external influences, and commercialization.