“No X, but Y is X”: Community revitalization strategy from the viewpoint of alienation theory

Abstract

A slogan created by Kuroshio Town, “Our town doesn’t have an art museum; our beautiful beach is our art museum,” follows a notable schema, “No X, but Y is X.” This paper shows, based on Mita’s alienation theory, that this schema can serve as a powerful tool for supporting the revitalization of rural communities suffering from rapid depopulation. The theory assumes a dual layer structure, “alienation from X” in the overt layer, preceded by “alienation to X” in the fundamental layer. “Alienation from X”; i.e., misfortune caused by the lack of X, is preceded by “alienation to X”, where X functions as the only standard for satisfaction. Obtaining X via outside assistance appears to be an easy solution; however, this is often unsatisfactory because it maintains “alienation to X.” In contrast, “No X, but Y is X”, in which local people declare that there is no need to seek X because Y is a functional equivalent of X, can be one of the most effective strategies for revitalizing rural communities.