y thought. In the May 4, 1948 edition, the New York Times ran a brief article concerning the fact that Japanese government leaders were showing less deference to the Emperor than ever before. Traditionally, the Emperor had been seen as being an almost "divine" being. As noted in a Newsweek article of the time, the Japanese word tenno (an honorific title for the Emperor) literally translates as "Heaven Emperor" ("Before the Rebirth" 34). In the New York Times, it was reported that, just two years before, government officials would always approach the Emperor with three bows and then retreat from him "crab fashion, with more bows, never turning their backs" ("Heads of Japanese Diet" 20). However, in a recent meeting of the Japanese government, it was observed that the ministers each bowed only once and "then turned his back" in order to read from a scroll (20). Thus, it was clearly implied that the stronghold of the Emperor over his people was gradually being reduced.
However, two days later, on May 6, 1948, the New York Times ran another article which indicated that certain other Japanese traditions were still being strongly held. Specifically, it was reported that the traditional annual "Boys' Festival" was still drawing large crowds of Japanese people. The purpose of this festival was to initiate boys into manhood. Part of the ceremonies included paying "reverent homage" to relics which were representative of "the ancient Samurai tradition" (Parrott 15). In Tokyo, it was reported that sales of dolls and toys relating to the festival had reached an all-time high. This was taken as an indication that the traditional festival had "assumed greater importance this year than at any time since the surrender" (15). The article also noted that the popularity of the festival contrasted the efforts of the occupation forces to remove all remnants of the "feudal spirit" among Japanese youth (15). Although the New York Times articl...