Anthropological Approach to Vulnerability and Major Hazards - Vulnerability of Coastal Ecosystems and Adaptation - page 300

objective (describing a purely mechanical phenomenon) nor
subjective (due to the interpretation of a single individual); it is
“trajective” (that is to say alternance of a process of objectivation and
subjectivation). It is dependent on the physical (a large wave,
whatever its cause) and social (across differences in interpretation of
an ensemble of protagonists) aspects of the event.
In other words, the word “tsunami” conveys a general scheme of
apprehension and interpretation of major disasters: as a “meeting”
between nature and societies or, more precisely, as an essential motif
for the coexistence of the environment and human milieux. Let us
look again at Hokusai's print. Does it represent a tidal wave or a
tsunami?
- It may have been triggered by a telluric phenomenon, in which
case it depicts a tidal wave;
- it could also originate from a resonance phenomenon in sea
waves, in which case it represents a “rogue wave”;
- it may have been shaped by the wind, in which case it is a storm
wave;
- on the other hand, it is not entering an inhabited zone; therefore,
in any case, it is not a tsunami.
We have an additional sign, inscribed from top to bottom in the
rectangle, Figure 7.11: “Enormous wave offshore from Kanagawa”. It
could feature an exceptional wave or a roller that makes up one of the
“spots” sought out for pleasure by surfers. We do not know if Hokusai
is depicting the daily life of Japanese fishermen and seeking to show
their intrinsic courage, or if he is illustrating a rare event they have to
confront on this occasion. Hokusai leaves space for ambivalence, that
is to say for the quality that - at bottom - significantly characterizes
major disasters. It is also here that the essential difference lies between
the meaning of the words “tidal wave” and “tsunami”. The first is a
normative concept based on factors independent of human milieux
(the physical intensity of the tectonic phenomenon, the height and
speed of the wave). The second integrates a social percept, which