is a Japanese writer.

Life

She went to the Catholic

Sacred Heart The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus ( la, Cor Jesu Sacratissimum) is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devo ...

School in Tokyo after elementary school. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, she evacuated to

Kanazawa is the capital city of Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 466,029 in 203,271 households, and a population density of 990 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . Overview Cityscape File:もてな ...

. After writing for the

fanzine A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...

s ''La Mancha'' and ''Shin-Shicho'' (新思潮: "New Thought"), she was recommended by Masao Yamakawa, an established critic at the time, to

Mita Bungaku ''Mita Bungaku'' (三田文学) is a Japanese literary magazine established in 1910 at Keio University that published early works by young Japanese authors such as Yōjirō Ishizaka, Kyōka Izumi, Hakushū Kitahara, Jun'ichirō Tanizaki,Dawn to t ...

, for which she wrote ''Enrai No Kyaku Tachi'' (遠来の客たち: "Visitors from Afar"), one of the shortlisted stories for the

Akutagawa Prize The is a Japanese literary award presented biannually. Because of its prestige and the considerable attention the winner receives from the media, it is, along with the Naoki Prize, one of Japan's most sought after literary prizes. History Th ...

in 1954. In 1953, she married

Shumon Miura was a Japanese novelist. He attended the University of Tokyo, and upon graduation joined the staff of the literary magazine ''Shin-Shicho'' (新思潮: "New Thought") in 1950. The next year, Miura published his first book. He then married fell ...

, one of the members of Shin-Shicho. The naming of ''The Bas Bleu Era'' (才女時代: Saijo-Jidai) by the writer and critic

Yoshimi Usui was a Japanese writer and critic from Azumino, Nagano prefecture. Usui won the 1974 10th Tanizaki Prize for ''Azumino'' (安曇野). In 1977 he published a novelised account of Kawabata's death that led to a law-suit against him by the Nobel P ...

described the prosperous activities of female writers including Sono and Sawako Ariyoshi—one of her contemporaries who had published many reputable books that are still being read. In the history of Japanese literature, Sono belongs to the category of " the Third Generation" together with

Shūsaku Endō was a Japanese author who wrote from the rare perspective of a Japanese Catholic. Internationally, he is known for his 1966 historical fiction novel ''Silence'', which was adapted into a 2016 film of the same name by director Martin Scorsese. ...

Shōtarō Yasuoka was a Japanese writer. Biography Yasuoka was born in pre-war Japan in Kōchi, Kōchi, but as the son of a veterinary corpsman in the Imperial Army, he spent most of his youth moving from one military post to another. In 1944, he was conscript ...

Junnosuke Yoshiyuki was a Japanese novelist and short-story writer, and a member of the so-called " Third Generation of Postwar Writers" (第3の新人). Life Yoshiyuki was born in Okayama, the oldest child of author Yoshiyuki Eisuke, but his family moved to T ...

, Nobuo Kojima,

Junzo Shono was a Japanese novelist. A native of Osaka, he began writing novels after World War II. He won the 1954 Akutagawa Prize for his book ''Purusaido Shokei'' (''Poolside Scene''). Shōno's other award-winning books include ''Seibutsu'' (''Still Life' ...

, Keitaro Kondo,

Hiroyuki Agawa (December 24, 1920 – August 3, 2015) was a Japanese author. He was known for his fiction centered on World War II, as well as his biographies and essays. Literary career Agawa was born in Hiroshima, Japan. As a high school student Agawa wa ...

, Shumon Miura, Tan Onuma, and

Toshio Shimao was a Japanese novelist. He has been called a "writer's writer", which is used as both a compliment and criticism. Biography Shimao was born in Yokohama, but his family moved to Kobe when he was eight. His mother died when he was seventeen and s ...

. She was awarded the

Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice ''Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice'' ("For Church and Pope" in Latin) is a decoration of the Holy See. It is currently conferred for distinguished service to the Catholic Church by lay people and clergy. History The medal was established by Leo XIII o ...

in 1979. Sono drew criticism for a column she wrote in the Japanese far-right ''

Sankei Shimbun The (short for ) is a daily newspaper in Japan published by the It has the seventh-highest circulation for regional newspapers in Japan. Among Japanese newspapers, the circulation is second only to ''Yomiuri Shimbun'', Seikyo Shimbun, ''Asa ...

'' newspaper in February 2015. She stated that while she was "supportive" of the "need to bring in immigrants to ease the shortage of workers to care for Japan's ballooning elderly population", she also advocated non-Asian immigrants such as

whites White is a racialized classification of people and a skin color specifier, generally used for people of European origin, although the definition can vary depending on context, nationality, and point of view. Description of populations as ...

and

blacks Black is a racialized classification of people, usually a political and skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have dark skin; in certain countries, often in ...

to Japan be separated from the general population and made to live in special zones amongst themselves.

Political and social activities

*Sono is known as a

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

. *In 2000, she welcomed

Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto ( or ; born 28 July 1938) is a Peruvian politician, professor and former engineer who was President of Peru from 28 July 1990 until 22 November 2000. Frequently described as a dictator, * * * * * * he remains a ...

, ex-President of Peru from 1990 to 2000, to stay at her house after his exile. *After the death of Ryoichi Sasakawa, one of the biggest

rightist Right-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position on the basis of natural law, economics, auth ...

leaders, Sono took over his position as the head of the

Nippon Foundation of Tokyo, Japan, is a private, non-profit grant-making organization. It was established in 1962 by Ryoichi Sasakawa. The foundation's mission is to direct Japanese motorboat racing revenue into philanthropic activities, it uses this money t ...

, whose funds come from 3 percent of the profits of the

boat race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

s all over Japan. As the chairperson, she had focused on

welfare Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

and assistance of undeveloped countries, until 30 June 2005, when her term of office finally expired after nine and a half years. The position of the foundation chairman was taken over by Yohei Sasakawa. *She founded an

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

named “Kaigai-senkyosha-katsudo-enjo-koenkai” (JOMAS: Japan Overseas Missionaries Assistance Society) to help Japanese missionaries devoting their lifetime in foreign countries. *She has been selected as a Person of Cultural Merits in 2003, following her husband's honor in 1999. *She was nominated as director of the Japan Post Holding Co.'s board by

Shizuka Kamei is a former Japanese politician and a former chairman of the Parliamentary League for the Abolition of the Death Penalty. Early life He was born in the city of Shōbara in Hiroshima Prefecture into a poor family. He studied at the department o ...

, minister in charge of postal reform, in October 2009. *She was appointed to one of 15 members of an education reform panel in January 2013, a position from which she resigned in October of that year. *She believes women have no right to work after giving birth and should quit their jobs upon becoming pregnant. * In her regular column in the ''

'' on 11 February 2015, Sono advocated that immigrants in Japan be assigned separate living zones segregated by race, citing South Africa's

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

as an example. The comments drew widespread criticism.

Works

Novels

Her major novels include *'' Tamayura '' (たまゆら: Transience), which portrays the nihilistic daily life of man and woman *'' Satōgashi ga Kowareru Toki'' (砂糖菓子が壊れるとき: When a Sweetmeat Breaks), modeled on

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...

and made into a film starring Ayako Wakao *'' Mumeihi '' (無名碑: A Nameless Monument), featuring the construction sites of the Tagokura Dam and the

Asian Highway The Asian Highway Network (AH), also known as the Great Asian Highway, is a cooperative project among countries in Asia and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) to improve their connectivity via h ...

*'' Kizu-tsuita-ashi '' (傷ついた葦: Bruised Reed), which describes in a most dry style a life of a Catholic father *'' Kyokō-no-ie '' (虚構の家: The House of Fiction), a bestseller depicting

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

*'' Tarō-Monogatari '' (太郎物語: Taro Story), which features her son Taro as the protagonist *'' Kami-No-Yogoreta-Te '' (神の汚れた手: The Soiled Hands of the god, translated into English as '' The Watcher from the Shore '' ()), on the theme abortion and dignity of life problems, with a gynecologist as the protagonist *'' Tenjō-no-ao '' (天上の青: Heavenly Blue, translated into English as '' No Reason for Murder '' (), a crime novel based on real serial murder and rape cases by a man named

Kiyoshi Ōkubo was a Japanese serial killer. Between March 31, 1971 and May 10, 1971, he raped and murdered eight women. He used a pen name, Tanigawa Ivan (谷川伊凡). Early life Ōkubo was born in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture. He was a quarter Russian. H ...

, which tries to describe the extremity of love *'' Kyō-ō-Herode '' (狂王ヘロデ: Herod the Mad), which portrays the half life of

Herod the Great Herod I (; ; grc-gre, ; c. 72 – 4 or 1 BCE), also known as Herod the Great, was a Roman Jewish client king of Judea, referred to as the Herodian kingdom. He is known for his colossal building projects throughout Judea, including his renov ...

, who is notorious for the Massacre of the Innocents, through the eye of a mute lute player called "Ana" (hole). *'' Aika '' (哀歌: Lamentations), a record of the dramatic experience of a nun Haruna, who encountered the

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

Genocide. *'' Kiseki '' (奇蹟: Miracles, translated into English as '' Miracles: A Novel '' ()), a work of travel fiction set in Poland and Italy in pursuit of the miracles ascribed to St. Maximilian Kolbe Ayako Sono 1953 wedding day

Short stories

*''Nagai-kurai-fuyu'' (長い暗い冬: Long, Dark Winter), which is known as a masterpiece and anthologized often *''Rakuyō-no-koe'' (落葉の声: The Voice of Falling Leaves), which describes the end of Father

Maximilian Kolbe Maximilian Maria Kolbe (born Raymund Kolbe; pl, Maksymilian Maria Kolbe; 1894–1941) was a Polish Catholic priest and Conventual Franciscan friar who volunteered to die in place of a man named Franciszek Gajowniczek in the German death camp ...

*''Tadami-gawa'' (只見川: The River Tadami), which sings of a love torn apart by

Essays

*The two million bestseller '' Dare-no-tame-ni-aisuruka? '' (誰のために愛するか: For Whom Do You Love?) *'' Kairō-roku '' (戒老録: A note of Admonition to the Old) on the way how we behave in old age *'' II-hito-o-yameruto-raku-ni-naru '' (「いい人」をやめると楽になる: Stop Being ”Nice”, and You'll Be Liberated), a collection of

epigrams An epigram is a brief, interesting, memorable, and sometimes surprising or satirical statement. The word is derived from the Greek "inscription" from "to write on, to inscribe", and the literary device has been employed for over two millen ...

* "Ningen no Bunzai." A collection of writings.

References

External links

J'Lit , Authors : Ayako Sono , Books from Japan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sono, Ayako 1931 births Living people Japan Post Holdings Japanese essayists 20th-century Japanese novelists 21st-century Japanese novelists Japanese women short story writers Japanese nationalists Japanese philanthropists Japanese Roman Catholics Pan-Asianism Roman Catholic writers Writers from Tokyo 20th-century Japanese short story writers 21st-century Japanese short story writers 20th-century essayists 21st-century essayists University of the Sacred Heart (Japan) alumni