The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Literature: Volume 2: 1945 to the Present / Edition 1

by J. Thomas Rimer

Overview

In Volume 2 of Columbia's comprehensive anthology of modern Japanese literature, thoughtfully selected and carefully translated readings portray the vast changes that have transformed Japanese culture since the end of the Pacific War. Beginning with the Allied Occupation in 1945 and concluding with the early twenty-first century, these stories, poems, plays, and essays reflect Japan's heady transition from poverty to prosperity, its struggle with conflicting ideologies and political beliefs, and the growing influence of popular culture on the country's artistic and intellectual traditions.

Organized chronologically and by genre within each period, readings include fiction by Hayashi Fumiko and Oe Kenzaburo; poems by Ayukawa Nobuo, Katsura Nobuko, and Saito Fumi; plays by Mishima Yukio and Shimizu Kunio; and a number of essays, among them Eto Jun on Natsume Soseki and his brilliant novel Kokoro (The Heart of Things), and Kawabata Yasunari on the shape of his literary career and the enduring influence of classical Japanese literature.

Some authors train a keen eye on the contemporary world, while others address the historical past and its relationship to modern culture. Some adopt an even broader scope and turn to European models for inspiration, while others look inward, exploring psychological and sexual terrain in new, often daring ways. Spanning almost six decades, this anthology provides a thorough introduction to a profound period of creative activity.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780231138048
Publisher:	Columbia University Press
Publication date:	04/24/2007
Series:	Modern Asian Literature Series
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	864
Sales rank:	1,136,117
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.25(h) x (d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

J. Thomas Rimer is emeritus professor of East Asian languages and literatures at the University of Pittsburgh. He is the author of several works, including Traditions in Modern Japanese Fiction: An Introduction and A Reader's Guide to Japanese Literature, and is the editor, with Van C. Gessel, of the first volume of The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Literature: From Restoration to Occupation, 1868-1945.Van C. Gessel is professor of Japanese literature at Brigham Young University. He is the author of Three Modern Novelists: Soseki, Tanizaki, Kawabata and coeditor of The Showa Anthology: Modern Japanese Short Stories.

Date of Birth:

1894

Date of Death:

1971

Table of Contents

1. First Experiments
Fiction
Mori Ogai
"The Dancing Girl"
San'yutei Encho
The Ghost Tale of the Peony Lantern
Tokai Sanshi
Strange Encounters with Beautiful Women
Poetry
"Spring Blossoms into Flower"
"Butterflies"
Yuasa Hangetsu
"Twelve Stones"
Ueki Emori
"Liberty Song"
Ochiai Naobumi
"Song of the Faithful Daughter Shiragiku"
Shimazaki Toson
"The Foxís Trick"
"First Love"
Yosano Hiroshi
"Victory Arches"
"Withered Lotus"
Takeshima Hagoromo
"The Maiden Called Love"
2. Beginnings
Fiction
Futabatei Shimei
Drifting Clouds
Izumi Kyoka
The Holy Man of Mount Koya
Koda Rohan
The Icon of Liberty
Kunikida Doppo
"Meat and Potatoes"
Masamune Hakucho
"The Clay Doll"
Mori ogai
"The Boat on the River Takase"
Nagai Kafu
"The Mediterranean in Twilight"
Ozaki Koyo
The Gold Demon
Shimazaki Toson
"The Life of a Certain Woman"
Tayama Katai
"The Girl Watcher"
Tokuda Shusei
"The Town's Dance Hall"
Tokutomi Roka
"Ashes"
Poetry in the International Style
Kodama Kagai
"The Suicide of an Unemployed Person"
"The Setting Sun"
Ishikawa Takuboku
"Better than Crying"
"Do Not Get Up"
"A Spoonful of Cocoa"
"After Endless Discussions"
Kawai Suimei
"Snowflame"
"Living Voice"
Kitahara Hakush
"Anesthesia of Red Flowers"
"Spider Lilies"
"Kiss"
Yamamura Bocho
"Ecstasy"
"Dance"
"Mandala"
Takamura Kotaro
"Bear Fur"
"A Steak Platter"
Kinoshita Mokutaro
"Nagasaki Style"
"Gold Leaf Brandy"
Yosano Akiko
"Beloved, You Must Not Die"
"In the First Person"
"A Certain Country"
"From Paris on a Postcard"
"The Heart of a Thirtyish Woman"
Poetry in Traditional Forms
Kanshi
Tanka and Haiku
Ishikawa Takuboku
Masaoka Shiki
Tanka
Haiku
Natsume Soseki
Wakayama Bokusui
Yosano Akiko
"The Dancing Girl"
"Spring Thaw"
Essays
Natsume Soseki
"The Civilization of Modern-Day Japan"
"My Individualism"
Yosano Akiko
"An Open Letter"
3. The Interwar Years
Fiction
Akutagawa Ryunosuke
"The Nose"
"The Christ of Nanking"
Arishima Takeo
"The Clock that Does Not Move"
Edogawa Ranpo
"The Human Chair"
Hori Tatsuo
The Wind Has Risen
Inagaki Taruho
One-Thousand-and-One-Second Stories
Ito Sei
"A Department Store Called M"
Kajii Motojiro
"The Lemon"
Kawabata Yasunari
"The Dancing Girl of Izu"
Kobayashi Takiji
"The Fifteenth of March, 1928"
Kuroshima Denji
"A Flock of Circling Crows"
Miyamoto Yuriko
"A Sunless Morning"
Origuchi Shinobu
Writings from the Dead
Shiga Naoya
"The Diary of Claudius"
"The Paper Door"
"The Shopboy's God"
Takeda Rintaro
"The Lot of Dire Misfortune"
Tani Joji
"The Shanghaied Man"
Tanizaki Jun'ichiro
"The Two Acolytes"
Uno Koji
"Landscape with Withered Tree"
Yokomitsu Riichi
"Mount Hiei"
Poetry in the International Style
Takamura Kotaro
"Cathedral in the Thrashing Rain"
Hagiwara Sakutaro
"On a Trip"
"Bamboo"
"Sickly Face at the Bottom of the Ground"
"The One Whoís in Love with Love"
"The Army"
"The Corpse of a Cat"
Miyazawa Kenji
"Spring & Asura"
"The Morning of the Last Farewell"
"November 3rd"
Nishiwaki Junzaburo
Seven Poems from Ambarvalia
No Traveler Returns
Kitasono Katsue
"Collection of White Poems"
"Vin du masque"
"Words"
Two Poems
"Almost Midwinter"
Kitasono's First Letter to Ezra Pound
Nakano Shigeharu
"Imperial Hotel"
"Song"
"Paul Claudel"
"Train"
"The Rate of Exchange"
Poetry in Traditional Forms
Akutagawa Ryonosuke
Kitahara Hakushu
Mitsuhashi Takujo
Ogiwara Seisensui
Okamoto Kanoko
Ozaki Hosai
Saito Mokichi
Shaku Choku
Sugita Hisajo
Taneda Santoka
Yamaguchi Seishi
Drama
Kishida Kunio
The Swing
Tanizaki Jun'ichiro
Okuni and Gohei
Essays
Kobayashi Hideo
"Literature of the Lost Home"
Sato Haruo
"Discourse on 'Elegance'"
4. The War Years
Fiction
Dazai Osamu
"December 8th"
Ishikawa Tatsuzo
Soldiers Alive
Kajiyama Toshiyuki
"The Clan Records"
Nakajima Atsushi
"The Ox Man"
ooka Shohei
Taken Captive ota Yoko
"Fireflies"
Shimao Toshio
"The Departure Never Came"
Uno Chiyo
"A Wife's Letters"
Poetry in the International Style
Takamura Kotaro
"The Elephant's Piggy Bank"
"The Final Battle for the Ryukyu Islands"
Yoshida Issui
"Swans"
Kusano Shinpei
"Mount Fuji"
Oguma Hideo
"Long, Long Autumn Nights"
Poetry in Traditional Forms
Saitp Sanki
Toki Zenmaro
"Evidence"
Essays
Hagiwara Sakutaro
"Return to Japan"
Kobayashi Hideo
"On Impermanence"
"Taima"
Sakaguchi Ango
"A Personal View of Japanese Culture"

Editorial Reviews

Those studying Asian literature in translation will be grateful for this next volume in the fine Columbia set...Highly recommended.

Choice

The most comprehensive overview of modern Japanese literature available in translation.

Bloomsbury Review - Terry Hong

Columbia University's monumental collection... best bridges the gulf between the literary expert and the common reader.

Japan Times

The most comprehensive overview of modern Japanese literature available in translation.

— Terry Hong

Bloomsbury Review