Read Japanese Literature

In this episode, we examine the history of the Aum Affair and its lasting impact on Japanese fiction. We'll start out with the history of new religions in Japan, including Aum Shinrikyo. We'll take a look at Haruki Murakami's non-fiction book, Underground: The Tokyo Gas Attack and the Japanese Psyche. We'll move on to an examination of four novels that respond directly to Aum or the Aum attacks—Keiichiro Hirano's Eclipse, Kenzaburo Oe's Somersault, Banana Yoshimoto's The Lake, and Haruki Mura...

Today, we’re talking about crime and mystery novels from Japan. We’ll start with the development of the crime and mystery genre in the English-speaking world. We’ll move on to Japanese crime and mystery writing—how it was inspired by Anglo-American crime and mystery writing and how it evolved in its own way. And we’ll end with the life and work of writer Seishi Yokomizo, especially his novel The Honjin Murders, translated into English by Louise Heal Kawai. Notes and sources on the episode pa...

In this episode, we take a look at the history of Koreans writing in Japan. We’ll start with the history of Koreans in Japan, including anti-Korean prejudice before and after WWII. We’ll move on to Zainichi Korean writing. And we’ll finish with a look at Kazuki Kaneshiro’s Go, translated into English by Takami Nieda. Notes and sources on the episode page. Transcript available. Correction: This episode claims Yi Kwang-su's book Ai Ka ("Is It Love?") does not appear in English translation. Ai...

In part two of this three part episode, we're looking at the apocalyptic and dystopian fiction of Japan. We'll begin with the evolution of the idea of "the end of the world" in Japan, especially after Japan started importing American and European science fiction. We'll move on to Japanese apocalyptic stories, especially between 1945 and the 1970s and then during the 1970s and 1980s. CW: brief mentions of historical and fictional violence and rape Part two mistakenly implies Jules Verne w...

In part two of this two-part episode on misogyny in Japanese literature, we're talking about the life and work of Yukio Mishima, especially by way of his I-Novel, Confessions of a Mask. Check out part one for 400 years of attitudes about women in JapanWoman in modern Japanese literature, especially in the work of some of its most important writersNotes and sources on the episode page. Transcript available. This episode is rated mature. CW: misogyny, fictional rape, internalized homopho...

There is no one quite like Kenji Miyazawa. Born into wealth, he longed to be “a real peasant”. One of Japan’s most influential children’s writers, he sold only one story during his lifetime. Read Japanese Literature takes a look at Miyazawa's colorful biography through three of his beloved stories. Miyazawa produced the artwork for this episode. It's a painted titled Power Pole in the Moonlight. Notes and sources on the episode page. Transcript available. Let RJL know what you think! (Co...

In this episode, we're talking about one of the most important voices in modern Japanese literature, Haruki Murakami. His biographyWhy so many people have such strong feelings about his writingAnd his short story "TV People"We'll end with what I like best about this much loved (and much hated) author. Notes and sources on the episode page. Let RJL know what you think! (Contact us through the website if you want a response.) Please note that text messages are for feedback only. RJL can't resp...

How does a book make it from the mind of a Japanese author into the hands of an English-language reader? In part 2 of this 2-part episode, we'll tackle the question, “How do Japanese books get translated into English?" What kinds of choices do translators make when they present a Japanese-language text to English-language readers? We're still looking at at Minae Mizumura's An I-Novel, translated into English by Juliet Winters Carpenter, and we'll end with some philosophical and ethical quest...