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The Mimizuka (耳塚) is a monument in Kyoto, Japan, dedicated to the Seven-Year War fought against Korea from 1592 to 1598. The name translates to Ear Mound, and the monument enshrines the ears and noses of approximately 38,000^{[citation needed]} Koreans killed during Toyotomi Hideyoshi's invasions. Traditionally, Japanese warriors would bring back the heads of enemies slain on the battlefield as proof of their deeds. However, because of the number of civilians killed along with soldiers, and crowded conditions on the ships that transported troops, it was far easier to just bring back ears and noses instead of whole heads.

The dismembered facial features were brought to Japan in barrels of brine. Some might have been discarded, so it’s impossible to be sure how many were killed during the war. Estimates have been as high as one million.^[1]

The Mimizuka is not unique. Other nose and ear mounds dating from the same period are found elsewhere in Japan.^[1]

Legacy

The Mimizuka was dedicated September 28 1597.^[1] The exact reasons it was built are unknown. In that time, it was uncommon for a defeated enemy to be interred into a Buddhist shrine. Alternatively, the Mimizuka could have been meant as a warning for those who resisted Japanese conquest.

Whatever the reason it was built, it has almost certainly come to represent something other than what Hideyoshi intended. The Mimizuka has received curiously little attention from either Japanese or Korean scholars, but to those who know of it, it is a symbol of cruelty. In the 1970s, members of the Korean government asked Japan to level the monument.

The shrine is located just to the west of Toyokuni Jinja, the Shinto shrine honoring Hideyoshi in Kyoto. It is less than half a kilometer north northwest of Sanjusangendo.

Effect on Modern Foreign Relations

On September 28, 1997, the 400th anniversary of the Mimizuka, a ceremony was held in respect for those killed, which people of all nationalities and faiths attended.

Citations

^ ^a ^b ^c (Kristof 1997)

References

Kristof, Nicholas D. (September 14, 1997), "Japan, Korea and 1597: A Year That Lives in Infamy", The New York Times, New York, retrieved 2008-09-22 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)CS1 maint: date and year (link)

External links

[kristof-1] (Kristof 1997)

[1]

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+[[Image:Mimizuka.jpg|frame|right|The front of the Mimizuka, March 2004]]The '''Mimizuka''' (耳塚) is a monument in [[Kyoto]], [[Japan]], dedicated to the [[Hideyoshi's invasions of Korea|Seven-Year War]] fought against [[Korea]] from [[1592]] to [[1598]]. The name translates to ''Ear Mound'', and the monument enshrines the ears and noses of approximately 38,000{{Fact|date=May 2008}} Koreans killed during [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]]'s invasions. Traditionally, [[samurai|Japanese warriors]] would bring back the heads of enemies slain on the battlefield as proof of their deeds. However, because of the number of civilians killed along with soldiers, and crowded conditions on the ships that transported troops, it was far easier to just bring back ears and noses instead of whole heads.
-The '''magical negro''' (sometimes called the '''mystical negro''' or '''magic negro''') is a term generally used to describe a supporting, often mystical [[stock character]] in fiction who, by use of special insight or powers, helps the  [[White people|white]] [[protagonist]] get out of trouble.  The word ''[[negro]]'', now considered by many as archaic and offensive, is used intentionally to suggest that the archetype is a racist throwback, an update of the "[[Sambo (racial term)|Sambo]]" and "savage other" stereotypes.<ref>{{cite book|title=Race, Sex, and Suspicion: The Myth of the Black Male |first= D. Marvin | last =  Jones |pages= p. 35 |location = [[Westport, Connecticut|Westport, Conn.]]| publisher=Praeger Publishers |year=2005 |isbn = 0275974626 | oclc = 56095393}}</ref> [[Spike Lee]] popularized the term, deriding the [[archetype]] of the "super-duper magical negro" in 2001 while discussing films with students at [[Washington State University]] and at [[Yale University]].<ref name="strangehorizons">{{cite news |url= http://www.strangehorizons.com/2004/20041025/kinga.shtml |title= Stephen King's Super-Duper Magical Negroes |first= Nnedi | last = Okorafor-Mbachu | authorlink = Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu| work = Strange Horizons |date= [[2004-10-25]] | accessdate = 2006-12-03 }}</ref><ref name="SpikeLee">{{cite news | url = http://google.yale.edu/search?q=cache:gvGSzN9InH0J:www.yale.edu/opa/v29.n21/story3.html+Spike+Lee&access=p&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&client=bluesite_frontend&site=Yale_News&proxystylesheet=bluesite_frontend&oe=ISO-8859-1 | title = Director Spike Lee slams 'same old' black stereotypes in today's films | first = Susan | last = Gonzalez | work = Yale Bulletin & Calendar | publisher =[[Yale University]] | date = [[2001-03-02]] | accessdate = 2006-12-03 }}</ref>
+The dismembered facial features were brought to Japan in barrels of brine. Some might have been discarded, so it’s impossible to be sure how many were killed during the war. Estimates have been as high as one million.<ref name="kristof"/>
-==The magical negro in fiction==
-The magical negro is typically but not always "in some way outwardly or inwardly disabled, either by discrimination, disability or social constraint," often a janitor or prisoner.<ref name="Hicks">{{cite journal|first=Heather J. |last = Hicks | journal = Camera Obscura | title= Hoodoo Economics: White Men's Work and Black Men's Magic in Contemporary American Film |publisher=Camera Obscura |volume=18 |issue=2 |date=[[2003-09-01]] |pages= 27–55 |url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-24435280_ITM |accessdate=2007-02-03 | doi= 10.1215/02705346-18-2_53-27}}</ref>  He has no past; he simply appears one day to help the [[White people|white]] protagonist.<ref name="ejumpcut">{{cite journal | url= http://www.ejumpcut.org/archive/jc45.2002/colombe/ |title= White Hollywood's new Black boogeyman |first= Audrey | last = Colombe | issue = 45 | work = Jump Cut: A Review of Contemporary Media | month = October | year = 2002 | accessdate = 2006-12-03 }}</ref>  He sometimes fits the black stereotype, "prone to criminality and laziness."<ref>{{cite book|title=Contemporary Patterns of Politics, Praxis, and Culture | first = Georgia Anne | last = Persons |pages= p. 137 | location = [[New Brunswick, New Jersey|New Brunswick, NJ]] | publisher=Transaction Publishers |year=2005 |isbn = 141280468X | oclc = 56510401 }}</ref> To counterbalance this, he has some sort of magical power, "rather vaguely defined but not the sort of thing one typically encounters."<ref name="ejumpcut" />  He is patient and wise, often dispensing various words of wisdom, and is "closer to the earth."<ref name="strangehorizons" />
+The Mimizuka is not unique.  Other nose and ear mounds dating from the same period are found elsewhere in Japan.<ref name="kristof"/>
-The magical negro serves as a plot device to help the protagonist get out of trouble, typically through helping the white character recognize his own faults and overcome them.<ref name="strangehorizons" />  Although he has magical powers, his "magic is ostensibly directed toward helping and enlightening a white male character."<ref name="Hicks" /> It is this feature of the magical negro that some people find most troubling.  Although from a certain perspective the character may seem to be showing African-Americans in a positive light, he is still ultimately subordinate to European-Americans.  He is also regarded as an exception, allowing white America to "like individual black people but not black culture."<ref>{{cite book|title=Black Magic: White Hollywood and African American Culture | first = Krin | last = Gabbard |pages=p. 173 | location = [[New Brunswick, New Jersey|New Brunswick, NJ]] | publisher=Rutgers University Press |year= 2004|isbn = 081353383X | oclc = 53215708}}</ref>
+==Legacy==
-To save the white protagonist, however, he would do anything, including sacrificing himself, as [[Sidney Poitier]] portrays in ''[[The Defiant Ones]]'', the prototypical magical Negro movie.<ref name="strangehorizons" /> Note that Poitier's character is also saved by the white protagonist, as the two help each other throughout the film.
+[[Image:Mimizuka-M1773.jpg|thumb|left]]The Mimizuka was dedicated [[September 28]] 1597.<ref name="kristof">{{harv|Kristof|1997}}</ref> The exact reasons it was built are unknown. In that time, it was uncommon for a defeated enemy to be interred into a [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] shrine. Alternatively, the Mimizuka could have been meant as a warning for those who resisted Japanese conquest.
+Whatever the reason it was built, it has almost certainly come to represent something other than what Hideyoshi intended. The Mimizuka has received curiously little attention from either Japanese or Korean scholars, but to those who know of it, it is a symbol of cruelty. In the 1970s, members of the Korean government asked Japan to level the monument.
-The magical negro is a recurring theme in [[Chinese Literature]] from the [[Tang Dynasty]].<ref name=snow>Snow, Philip. ''The Star Raft: China's Encounter With Africa''. Cornell Univ. Press, 1989 (ISBN 0801495830)</ref> Known as "Kun-lun" (崑崙, an ancient Chinese term that denoted all dark-skinned races), these African slaves were portrayed as having supernatural strength and the power to invade people's dreams to reveal great knowledge. One tale known as the ''[[Kunlun Nu|Kun-lun slave]]'' mentions a slave leaping over high walls while laden with the weight of two people in order to rescue his master's lover.<ref>Liu, James J.Y. ''The Chinese Knight Errant''. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1967 (ISBN 0-2264-8688-5)</ref> Other tales mention them swimming to the bottom of raging rivers to retrieve heavenly treasures for their lord. The color of their skin was believed to be a medicinal balm that could be wiped off and used to cure a person's illness.<ref name=snow/>
+The shrine is located just to the west of Toyokuni Jinja, the Shinto shrine honoring Hideyoshi in Kyoto.  It is less than half a kilometer north northwest of Sanjusangendo.
-===Examples===
+===Effect on Modern Foreign Relations===
-Examples of magical negroes as published by social commentators include:
+On [[September 28]], [[1997]], the 400th anniversary of the Mimizuka, a ceremony was held in respect for those killed, which people of all nationalities and faiths attended.
-<!-- ================================================================================
-     **WARNING** DO NOT ADD AN EXAMPLE UNLESS YOU HAVE A REFERENCE!!
-     ================================================================================ -->
-*[[Uncle Remus]] ([[James Baskett]]) in the film ''[[Song of the South]]'' (1946) <ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.patrickkillough.com/ethics/brer_rabbit.html |title=BRER RABBIT SEZ, SEZEE: THE WISDOM OF JOEL CHANDLER HARRIS |first=Patrick |last=Killough |date=1997-12-09 |accessdate=2007-05-16}}</ref>
-*Noah Cullen ([[Sidney Poitier]]) in the film ''[[The Defiant Ones]]'' (1958)<ref name="strangehorizons" />
-*The magical negro is a recurring archetype [[Stephen King]]'s [[novel]]s as well as some adaptations of his work:
-**Dick Hallorann in ''[[The Shining (novel)|The Shining]]'' (1977), and in both the [[The Shining (film)|1980 film adaptation]] ([[Scatman Crothers]]) and the [[The Shining (mini-series)|1997 TV miniseries]] ([[Melvin Van Peebles]])<ref name="strangehorizons" />
-**Mother Abagail in ''[[The Stand]]'' (1978), and the [[The Stand (TV miniseries)|1994 TV adaptation]] ([[Ruby Dee]])<ref name="strangehorizons" />
-**John Coffey in ''[[The Green Mile (book)|The Green Mile]]'' (1996), and the [[The Green Mile (film)|1999 film adaptation]] ([[Michael Clarke Duncan]])<ref name="strangehorizons" /><ref name="ejumpcut" /><!-- <ref name="nationalreview">{{cite news | url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_16_53/ai_76915717 | title= The Numinous Negro - His importance in our lives; why he is fading | first = Richard | last = Brookhiser | authorlink = Richard Brookhiser | publisher = [[National Review]] |date= [[2001-08-20]] | accessdate = 2007-04-17}}</ref> -->
-*Moses the Clock Man ([[Bill Cobbs]]) in the film ''[[The Hudsucker Proxy]]'' (1994) <ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.fortheretarded.com/?p=37 |title=Exposing Hollywood's Fascination with the Magic Negro |first=Noel |last=Wood |date=2002-10-29 |accessdate=2008-03-19}}</ref>
-*Cash ([[Don Cheadle]]) in the film ''[[The Family Man]]'' (2000)<ref name="SpikeLee" /><ref name="ejumpcut" />
-*Bagger Vance ([[Will Smith]]) in the film ''[[The Legend of Bagger Vance]]'' (2000)<ref name="strangehorizons" /><ref name="SpikeLee" /><ref name="ejumpcut" /><ref>{{cite news||title=That Old Black Magic |date= [[2000-05-27]] | first = Christopher John | last = Farley | authorlink = Christopher John Farley |work = [[Time (magazine)|Time]] | url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,998604,00.html |accessdate=2007-02-03}}</ref>
-*Gloria Dump ([[Cicely Tyson]]) in the film ''[[Because of Winn-Dixie (film)|Because of Winn-Dixie]]'' (2005)<ref name='charlotteObs'>{{cite news | first=Gary | last=Thompson | coauthors= | title='Winn-Dixie' Gets No Place Fast | date=[[2005-02-18]] | publisher=[[Philadelphia Media Holdings LLC]] | url =http://ae.charlotte.com/entertainment/ui/charlotte/movie.html;jsessionid=2738A0AB6137F17664C1590346E175C7.prodapp14_ae_02?id=241836&reviewId=17357 | work =[[The Philadelphia Daily News]] | pages = | accessdate = 2007-07-21 | language = }}</ref>
-<!-- **WARNING** Do not add an example unless you have a reference ... see the talk page first!! -->
-*God ([[Morgan Freeman]]) in the films ''[[Bruce Almighty]]'' and ''[[Evan Almighty]]''.<ref>{{cite news |title= Just Say Noah |date= [[2007-06-22]] |first= David |last= Plotz |work= [[Slate (magazine)|Slate]] |url= http://www.slate.com/id/2168886/ |accessdate= 2007-06-22}}</ref>
-* Eddie "Scrap Iron" Dupris (Morgan Freeman) in ''[[Million Dollar Baby]]''<ref>{{cite web
-|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/03/24/AR2005032400739.html
-|title=Oscar's 'Ray' Of Hope
-|author=Eugene Robinson
-|publisher=The Washington Post Company
-|accessdate=2008-07-27}}</ref>
-*[[Morpheus (The Matrix)|Morpheus]] in ''[[Matrix series|The Matrix]]''.<ref name="ejumpcut" />
-*Lamont ([[Guy Torry]]) in the film ''[[American History X]]''.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/americanhistoryxhunter.htm "'History X': Hate With a Passion"], By Stephen Hunter, Washington Post Staff Writer. October 30, 1998</ref>
-<!-- ================================================================================
-     **WARNING** DO NOT ADD AN EXAMPLE UNLESS YOU HAVE A REFERENCE!!
-     ================================================================================ -->
-==Uses outside of fiction==
-Examples of the use of the term ''magical negro'' as published by commentators in non-fictional contexts include:
-*[[Barack Obama]]--Candidate for the [[United States|American]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] [[United States presidential election, 2008|Presidential nomination]] (2008)<ref name=nonfic>[http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-ehrenstein19mar19,0,5335087.story?coll=la-opinion-center Obama the 'Magic Negro' - Los Angeles Times<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
-*[[David Hampton]]--[[Con artist]]<ref name=nonfic/>
-*[[Magic Johnson]]--[[Basketball player]]<ref name=nonfic/>
 ==See also==
+*[[Yasukuni Shrine]]
+*[[Japanese history textbook controversies]]
+==Citations==
-*[[Noble savage]]
+{{reflist}}
 ==References==
-{{Reflist|2}}
+* {{Citation
+ | last=Kristof
+ | first=Nicholas D.
+ | title=Japan, Korea and 1597: A Year That Lives in Infamy
+ | newspaper=The New York Times
+ | publication-place=New York
+ | date=[[September 14]], [[1997]]
+ | year=1997
+ | month=September
+ | url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C03EED71E39F937A2575AC0A961958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all
+ | accessdate=2008-09-22
+ }}
 ==External links==
+*[http://www.orientalarchitecture.com/kyoto/mimizukaindex.htm Oriental Architecture: Mimizuka]
-*{{cite web |url= http://www.doubletongued.org/index.php/dictionary/magic_negro/ |title= "magic Negro" definition from Double Tongued Dictionary |accessdate=2007-10-04}}
+*[http://www.jkcf.or.jp/friendship2005/ Japan-Korea Friendship Year 2005]
+{{coord missing|Japan}}
+[[Category:Monuments and memorials in Japan]]
+[[Category:Kyoto]]
+[[Category:Japanese invasions of Korea (1592-1598)]]
+[[ko:귀무덤]]
-[[Category:Fictional African-Americans]]
+[[ja:耳塚]]
-[[Category:Stock characters]]