Contents
Kaikō Takeshi (Ken) (December 30, 1930 - December 9, 1989)
Underlying Kaikō’s literature is an appreciation for the vitality of everyday life that draws on two aspects of his own experience: a youth spent working at various part-time jobs due to his father’s death, and the desolation he witnessed at firsthand in the wake of World War II. After graduating from the law department of Osaka City University, Kaikō took a job with Kotobukiya (the present Suntory), where he worked in the public-relations department. In 1957 he published the short story Panikku (Panic) -- a satirical allegory comparing human beings to mice -- which created a sensation in the literary world thanks to the freshness of its conception and Kaikō’s technical skill. Hadaka no ōsama (The Emperor’s New Clothes), published in 1957, brought him the Akutagawa Prize. These early works, which took as their theme the role of the individual within the organization, were followed by several others that dealt with rather different subject matter, including Nihon sanmon opera (The Japanese Three-penny Opera, 1959) and Robinson no matsuei (The Descendents of Robinson, 1960). Another shift came when Kaikō started covering the Vietnam War as a reporter. The result was Kagayakeru yami (Darkness in Summer, 1968) and a number of works of reportage dealing with social conditions and the war itself.
Kajii Motojirō (February 17, 1901 - March 24, 1932)
Novelist born in Osaka who wove the distress of illness and the fervent wish for recovery into a memorable series of short stories and other works of poetic prose. As a student at the Third High School in Osaka, he became friends with Nakatani Takao and Iijima Tadashi, and developed an interest in literature through reading the works of Natsume Sōseki and Tanizaki Jun’ichirō. Kajii developed symptoms of tuberculosis in 1920, the year after entering the school, and thereafter he was never free of the disease, which was already fairly advanced by the time he entered the English department of Tokyo University in 1924. In the summer of that year, he visited his sister in Matsuzaka, Mie Prefecture, the natural beauty of which impressed him greatly, as did the kindness of the local residents. This experience became the basis for Kajii’s story Shiro no aru machi nite (In a Castle Town), which appeared in 1925 in a coterie magazine called Aozora (Blue Sky) that Kajii started with Nakatani Takao and Tonomura Shigeru. Remon (Lemon) and Rojō (On the Road) were both also published in Aozora in the same year. In 1927, Kajii moved to the Yugashima hot-spring district in Izu for the purpose of recuperation, and there struck up a friendship with Kawabata Yasunari. After publishing Fuyu no hi (A Winter’s Day) in 1928, Kajii moved back to Tokyo and wrote Fuyu no hae (Winter Flies, 1928). With his tuberculosis worsening, Kajii returned to Osaka, where he continued to write such stories as Yami no emaki (A Picture Scroll in the Darkness, 1930), Kōbi (Copulation, 1931), and Nonki na kanja (An Optimistic Patient, 1932). The last of these in particular seemed to indicate the attainment of an attitude free from the fear of death, but death nevertheless claimed Kajii in March 1932, shortly after he had reached the age of 31.
Karaki Junzō (February 13, 1904 - May 27, 1980)
Critic born in Nagano Prefecture; a graduate of the Department of Philosophy, Kyoto University. He studied under Nishida Kitarō. Karaki wrote Gendai Nihon bungaku josetsu (An Introduction to Modern Japanese Literature, 1932) as a way of dealing with the suicide of Akutagawa Ryūnosuke. Other major works include ?gai no seishin (?gai’s Spirit, 1955) and Chūsei no bungaku (Medieval Literature, 1955). His last book was Kagakusha no shakaiteki-sekinin ni tsuite no oboegaki (A Memorandum on the Social Responsibility of Scientists, 1980).
Katō Shūichi (b. September 19, 1919)
Critic born in Tokyo. Katō’s earliest critical sensibilities, developed during middle school, were defined by a sense of antimilitarism and an opposition to the idolatry of historical personages. After entering the First Higher School, he became acquainted with lifelong friends Nakamura Shin’ichirō and Fukunaga Takehiko and read French literature. He went on to medical school at Tokyo Imperial University, where he also attended classes in the French department. After the Second World War, Katō, Nakamura, Fukunaga and others formed the Matinée Poetique society, the members of which published poetry in fixed, rhyming forms. Beginning in 1951, Katō spent three years studying medicine in France. After his return to Japan, he began publishing articles on Japan from a Western-oriented standpoint, among which Zasshu bunka (A Crossbred Culture, 1955) in particular created something of a controversy. He lectured widely both in Japan and abroad, and continued to produce criticism in a thoroughly cosmopolitan vein. In literary criticism, this approach led to his Nihon bungakushi josetsu (A History of Japanese Literature, 1979-80), but he has also published several novels, a memoir, and since 1984 an irregular column for the Asahi Shinbun titled Sekiyo mōgo (False Words at Sunset).
Kawada Junzō (b. June 20, 1934)
Critic born in Tokyo; graduated from the Department of Liberal Arts, Tokyo University. Living on the African savannah with the Mossi tribe, Kawada demonstrated that language and music cannot be defined solely in terms of Western concepts. In his book Koe (Voices, 1988), he carried out an analysis of recorded voices, which tend to lose their essence when written down. Other books include Nishi no kaze, minami no kaze (West Wind, South Wind, 1992), in which Kawada proposes a rethinking of the term "civilization."
Kirino Natsuo (b. October 7, 1951)
Real name, Hashioka Mariko. Novelist born in Kanazawa; graduate of the law department of Seikei University. Received the Edogawa Ranpo Prize in 1993 for Kao ni furikakaru ame (A Face Wet with Rain) and the Japan Mystery Writers' Association Prize in 1998 for OUT. Yawaraka na hoho (Soft Cheeks, 1999) received the 121st Naoki Prize. Lives in Musashino City, Tokyo.
Kita Morio (b. May 1, 1927)
Medical doctor and novelist born in Tokyo as the second son of tanka poet Saitō Mokichi. A graduate of the medical school at Tōhoku University, where he came under the influence of the works of Thomas Mann, he won the Akutagawa Prize in 1960 for the story Yoru to kiri no sumi de (In a Foggy Corner of the Night). Kita also garnered widespread popular acclaim as an author when he published Dokutoru Manbō kōkaiki (The Voyage of Doktor Manbō, 1960), the humorous account of a doctor serving aboard a Fisheries Office survey ship. Kita subsequently published a series of “Doctor Manbō” books. Other novels include Nire-ke no hitobito (The Nire Family, 1964), a lighthearted history of the Saitō family over a period of three generations that was praised as the first true "novel of the people" (shiminteki na hajimete no shōsetsu) by Mishima Yukio. In 1998 he completed a widely admired four-volume biography of his famous father.
Kiyotaka Takayuki (b. June 29, 1922)
Novelist and poet born in Dairen, China, who graduated from the French Department at Tokyo University. His Akashiya no Dairen (Acacias in Dairen, 1969), in which he describes meeting his previously deceased wife, received the 62nd Akutagawa Prize. A poet at heart, Kiyooka has published such collections as Kōtta honō (Frozen Frames, 1959) and Nichijō (Daily Life, 1963), along with critical works like Jojō no zensen (On the Front Lines of Lyricism, 1970). Even such fictional works as Umi no hitomi (The Eyes of the Ocean, 1971) and Rito no kuni de (In the Country of Li Po and Tu Fu, 1986) are written with can be called poetic clarity of vision.
Kōda Aya (September 1, 1904 - October 30, 1990)
Essayist and novelist born in Tokyo; a graduate of Joshi Gakuin High School. Kōda debuted as a writer with two essays about the death of her father, Kōda Rohan: Shūen (Final Days, 1947) and Sōsō no ki (Account of a Funeral, 1947). She then established herself as a novelist with Kuroi suso (The Black Hem, 1954) and Nagareru (Swept Away, 1955). She is highly regarded for having a style that is said to hark back to the literature of the Heian period, and her life itself was characterized by a simple elegance.
Kuroda Saburō (February 26, 1919 - January 8, 1980)
Poet born in Hiroshima Prefecture who graduated from the Department of Economics at the University of Tokyo. His work helped make the language of modern poetry easy for the average reader to understand, as seen especially in the collections Hitori no onna ni (To a Woman, 1954) and the masterly Chiisai Yuri to (With Little Lily, 1960). The former, bolstered by a strong sense of courage, qualifies as a postwar version of Takamura Kotarō's Chieko shō (Vignettes of Chieko), while the latter portrays Kuroda's life with his daughter while his wife was in the hospital. Other works include Jidai no shūjin (Prisoner of the Times, 1965).
Kurumatani Chōkitsu (b. July 1, 1945)
Born in Himeji City, Hyōgo Prefecture. Real name, Kurumatani Yoshihiko. After graduating from the German Department at Keio University, worked at an advertising agency, a publishing company, and as a cook's helper at various locations in the Kansai region. Received the Mishima Yukio Prize for Shiotsubo no saji (The Salt-Bowl Spoon, 1992) and the Hirabayashi Taiko Award for Hyōryūbutsu (Drifting Object, 1995). Lives in Bunkyō Ward, Tokyo.
Kusano Shinpei (May 12, 1903 - November 12, 1988)
Poet born in Fukushima Prefecture. After dropping out of Keio University, he studied at Lingnan University in Guangdong, China, publishing at his own expense a volume of poems composed by him and his deceased elder brother. Kusano returned to Japan in 1925 in the face of growing anti-Japanese sentiment and persuaded Miyazawa Kenji and Ogata Kamenosuke to write for the coterie magazine Dora (The Bell) that he had started publishing in China. Kusano’s first widely recognized anthology, Dai-hyaku kaikyū (The Hundredth Estate), appeared in 1928. It postulated a class of frogs positioned far below the Fourth Estate on the social ladder that Kusano used as a vehicle for giving anarchistic expression to the everyday emotions of ordinary people. In 1935 he established the magazine Rekitei (The Course Traveled), in which he continued to publish his own poetry and that of other poets. The anthology Bogan (Mother Lode, 1934) witnessed a turn toward a more positive style that affirmed the value of human life. The anthology Fujisan (Mt. Fuji, 1943) represented an attempt to come to terms with this famous mountain as a symbol of beauty. Other works include Kaeru (Frogs) and Teihon: Kaeru (Frogs: The Standard Edition).
Maeda Yūgure (July 27, 1883 - April 20, 1951)
Tanka poet from Kanagawa Prefecture who left Naka-gun Junior High School without graduating. Together with Wakayama Bokusui , he joined the Shazensō-sha founded by Onoe Saishū . His collection Shūkaku (Harvest, 1910) caused him to be placed, along with Bokusui, at the forefront of the Japanese Naturalist school. He later started the journal Nikkō with Kitahara Hakushū, which opposed itself to the darker tones of the Araragi poets. Other collections include Suigen chitai (At the Headwaters, 1932).
Maruya Saiichi (b. August 27, 1925)
Novelist born in Yamagata Prefecture. His work is characterized by a supple philosophical approach based on a familiarity with both Japanese and Western classical traditions. His works include Sasa-makura (Bamboo Grass Pillow, 1966), Toshi no nokori (The Rest of the Year, 1968), Tatta hitori no hanran (A Singular Rebellion, 1972), Uragoe de utae: Kimi ga yo (Sing "Kimi ga yo" in Falsetto, 1982), and Onnazakari (A Woman at Her Peak, 1993). Criticism and essays include Go-Toba In (The Retired Emperor Go-Toba, 1973), Nihon bungakushi hayawakari (A Quick Guide to Japanese Literary History, 1976), Asobi jikan (Play Time, 1976) and Chūshingura to wa nani ka (What Is the Chūshingura?, 1984).
Maruyama Masao (March 22, 1914 - August 15, 1996)
Political theorist born in Osaka who graduated from the Department of Tokyo University. He studied under the political scientist Nanbara Shigeru. Nihon seiji shisōshi kenkyū (Studies in the Intellectual History of Tokugawa Japan, 1952) can be considered an early representative work. His broad knowledge of Western intellectual history and the Oriental classics helped him play a leading role in developing democratic ideas in Japan after World War II. Other major works include Gendai seiji no shisō to kōdō (Thought and Behavior in Modern Japanese Politics, 1964), Nihon no shisō (Thought in Japan, 1961), and Kōei no ichi kara (From the Rear Lines, 1982).
Masamune Hakuchō (March 3, 1879 - October 28, 1962)
Novelist and dramatist born in Okayama Prefecture; a leading representative of the Japanese Naturalist school. Hakuchō’s personality was characterized by an objective attitude and a sharp critical spirit. Major works include Jin’ai (Dust, 1907), Doko e (To Where?, 1908), Bikō (A Faint Light), Nippon dasshutsu (Escape from Japan, 1949), and the drama Tenshi hokaku (Captive Angels, 1947). His criticism includes Shizenshugi seisuishi (The Rise and Fall of Naturalism, 1948), and Uchimura Kanzō (1949).
Matsumoto Seichō (December 21, 1909 - August 4, 1992)
Native of Fukuoka Prefecture and prolific writer of socially oriented detective and mystery stories. Matsumoto debuted as a writer after reaching the age of forty with the historically based Saigō-satsu (Saigō Takamori Chits, 1950) and Aru Kokura Nikki Den (The Legend of the Kokura Diary, 1952). He then went on to establish his unique style of detective fiction with the works Me no kabe (The Walls Have Eyes, 1957) and Ten to sen (Points and Lines, 1958). Historical novels include Mushukunin betchō (List of the Homeless, 1957), Kagerō ezu (Drawing of Heat Haze, 1958-59), and Tenpō zuroku (Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Tenpō Period, 1962-64). Well-known nonfiction works are Nippon no kuroi kiri (Black Fog over Japan, 1961) and the Shōwa-shi hakkutsu (Unearthing the Shōwa Period, 1964-1971) series. Matsumoto also wrote works on the theory of history, including Kodaishi-gi (A Skeptical Look at Ancient History, 1967).
Miki Taku (b. May 13, 1935)
Poet and novelist born in Tokyo; member of the coterie groups that publish the poetry magazines Han (Inundation) and Shi soshiki (Poetry Organization). His is a simple style that gives expression to life’s diversity. Anthologies of poetry include Tokyō gozen sanji (Three A.M. in Tokyo, 1959) and Wa ga kidirando (My Kiddyland, 1971). Some novels are Hiwa (The Siskin, 1972), Furueru shita (With Quivering Tongue, 1974), Karera ga hashirinuketa hi ( The Day They Went the Distance, 1978), Gyosha no aki (The Charioteer in Autumn, 1985) and Koguma-za no otoko (The Man from the Little Dipper, 1989). A collection of essays is Tokyo bishiteki hokō (Microscopic Strolls Through Tokyo, 1975). He has also written criticism (Kotoba no suru shigoto [The Work Words Do, 1975]) and a work of juvenile fiction, Potapota (Drip, Drip, 1984).
Mishima Yukio (January 14, 1925 - November 25, 1970)
Miura Ayako (April 25, 1922 - October 12, 1999)
Miyamoto Teru (b. March 6, 1947)
Novelist born in the city of Kobe. After graduating from ōtemon Gakuin University, Miyamoto started working at an advertising agency, but the tedious novels he read in literary magazines inspired him to try his hand at writing. He was awarded the Dazai Osamu Prize for Doro no kawa (River of Mud, 1977), the Akutagawa Prize for Hotarugawa (River of Fireflies, 1977), and the Yoshikawa Eiji Prize for Literature for Yūshun (A Fine Horse, 1986). Miyamoto takes the position that professional authors have an obligation to write novels that are interesting.
Miyamoto Yuriko (February 1, 1899 - January 21, 1951)
Novelist born in Tokyo. While still a student at Japan Women’s University, she published the story Mazushiki hitobito no mure (A Crowd of Poor People, 1916). After leaving the university without graduating, she traveled to the United States, where she studied at Columbia University and met her first husband. Her novel Nobuko (1924-26) deals with the failure of this marriage. After a lengthy stay in the Soviet Union, she came back to Japan and married Communist Party leader Miyamoto Kenji, becoming active in the Proletarian Literature movement. She held firmly to her beliefs both during and after the Second World War. Works include Fūchisō (The Weathervane Plant, 1946), Hanshū heiya (The Harima Plain, 1946), Futatsu no niwa (Two Gardens, 1948), and Dōhyō (Mileposts, 1947-50).
Mizukami Tsutomu (March 8, 1919 - September 8, 2004)
Novelist born in Fukui Prefecture. Poverty forced Mizukami’s family to send him to a temple in Kyoto to serve as an acolyte when he was nine years old. Disillusioned by the conduct of the temple's chief priest, however, he left the temple in 1936. Murakami’s literary outlook was shaped by his years at the temple and by the geography and climate of his birthplace, Wakasa. Mizukami entered the Japanese literature department at Ritsumeikan University, but was forced to drop out for financial reasons and because of bad health. While recuperating at home, he began reading literature in earnest. After World War II he apprenticed himself to Uno Kōji, and under his influence wrote the autobiographical Furaipan no uta (Song of the Frying Pan, 1952), which became a best-seller. For the next 10 years, however, Mizukami remained apart from the literary world. Then, in 1960, he published a work on Minamata disease titled Umi no kiba (The Ocean's Fangs), beginning a career as a writer of detective stories on social themes. His autobiographical Gan no tera (Temple of the Geese, 1961) adapted the genre to give expression to the melancholy feelings of a young boy, winning Mizukami the Naoki Prize. He followed this in 1962 with Kiga kaikyō (Starvation Straits). In 1963, under the influence of Matsumoto Seichō’s Ten to sen (Points and Lines), he published Kiri to kage (Fog and Shadows), then turned to the writing of novels dealing with the plaintive fate of women, including Gobanchō Yūgiri-rō (The Pavilion of the Evening Mist at Gobanchō, 1963) and Echizen takeningyō (The Bamboo Dolls of Echizen, 1964). Gradually Mizukami turned away from the depiction of social mores and manners, producing such biographical works as Ikkyū in 1974 and the explicitly autobiographical Teradomari (A Temple Stay) in 1977). Subsequent works included Kinkaku enjō (The Burning of the Golden Pavilion, 1979), an exploration of the psychology behind the famous incident previously fictionalized by Mishima Yukio, Ryōkan (1984) and Utsutake no fue (The Hollow Bamboo Flute, 2002).
Mori Ōgai (January 19, 1862 - July 9, 1922)
Morisaki Kazue (b. April 20, 1927)
Poet and nonfiction writer born in Korea; a graduate of Fukuoka Women’s Technical College (the present Fukuoka University). Beginning in the late 1950s, Morisaki joined the group publishing Boin (Vowels), a journal of poetry edited by Maruyama Yutaka. After moving to the coal-producing Chikuhō district of northern Kyushu, she founded the magazine Sākuru Mura (Circle Village) along with poet and critic Tanigawa Gan and historian Ueno Eishin. Running through her works is a strong awareness of the oppression suffered by individuals, especially laborers and women, at the hands of the state, and many of her works document this sort of oppression. These include Makkura (Pitch Black, 1961), Dai-san no sei (The Third Sex, 1965), and Karayuki-san (Sold Overseas,1976). More recently, Morisaki has written a number of works about the recovery of human Eros in symbiosis with nature, including Inochi hibikiau (Echoes of Life, 1998).
Mukōda Kuniko (November 28, 1929 - August 22, 1981)
Novelist born in Tokyo. Graduated from the Japanese Literature Department of the Jissen Josen school. She was awarded the Naoki Prize for short stories including Hana no namae (The Name of the Flower, 1980). Mukōda wrote more than 1,000 radio and television screenplays in her career, which was cut short by a tragic plane accident. Other works include Chichi no wabijō (A Father's Apology, 1978), Nemuru sakazuki (The Sleeping Sake Cup, 1979), and Omoide toranpu (Memories of Playing Cards, 1980).
Murakami Haruki (b. January 12, 1949)