Although it lasted briefly, Japan’s Bubble Economy (ca. 1986-1991) had an unprecedented impact on people’s perception of money and consumption. Resulting from skyrocketing hikes in stock and land values due to a massive scale of speculative investments, the tremendous amount of capital gains
grew to 140% Japan’s GDP: 497 trillion JPY, or approximately 497 billion dollars in 1987.
The rapidly produced wealth unleashed people’s insatiable desires, blatant materialism, and unabashed mammonism. Far beyond their basic subsistence, the Bubble money made consumers’ dreams come true, giving them access to high-end real estate, brand accessories and apparel, lavish restaurant meals, luxury automobiles, overseas vacations, and much more. Marked by showy and bandwagon consumption and bold squandering, the Bubble era represented Japan’s collective folly and recklessness. Even so, the Bubble Economy remains significant to Japanese consumer culture because the festive years propelled a drastic transition from postwar frugality to consumptions driven by individual choice and pleasure. The new labor market for women and the growth of leisure activities also fueled the collective passion for consumption. Notwithstanding some bright sides, the Bubble Economy was doomed to be precarious, and its end brought to Japan the beginning of the harsh Lost Three Decades: 1991 to the present day.
Ikuho Amano holds a BA in Journalism, MA in Comparative Literature from the University of Georgia, and PhD in Comparative Literature from Penn State. Her research engages in a wide range of Japan's modern and contemporary cultural phenomena. She is particularly interested in themes of decadence, consumer and material culture, and the industrial history of Japan at the intersection of aesthetics and economy. To broaden the horizon of these thematic interests, she is currently exploring Japan's whisky production, consumption, development of global market, and nighttime economy. Additionally, she is translating Tanizaki Jun'ichiro's texts that insinuate modern Japan's complicity with the theories and practice of eugenics. At UNL, she teaches Japanese literature, culture, film, and advanced language courses.