, also known as Akio Gotō, was a
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
author
An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states:
"''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...
.
Biography
Gotō was born in Yongheung County,
Chōsen
Between 1910 and 1945, Korea was ruled as a part of the Empire of Japan. Joseon Korea had come into the Japanese sphere of influence with the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876; a complex coalition of the Meiji government, military, and business offici ...
(now
Kumya County
Kŭmya County is a county in South Hamgyŏng province, North Korea. It borders the Sea of Japan (East Sea of Korea) to the east.
History
The area was settled at least since the Bronze Age, revealed by excavations of relics in the county. Dur ...
,
South Hamgyong Province
South Hamgyong Province (, ''Hamgyŏngnamdo''; ) is a province of North Korea. The province was formed in 1896 from the southern half of the former Hamgyong Province, remained a province of Korea until 1945, then became a province of North Kore ...
,
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
).
He fled with his family to
Kyūshū
is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surround ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
while in junior high school. He studied Russian literature at
Waseda University
, abbreviated as , is a private university, private research university in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as the ''Tōkyō Senmon Gakkō'' by Ōkuma Shigenobu, the school was formally renamed Waseda University in 1902.
The university has numerou ...
, with particular interest in
Nikolai Gogol
Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol; uk, link=no, Мико́ла Васи́льович Го́голь, translit=Mykola Vasyliovych Hohol; (russian: Яновский; uk, Яновський, translit=Yanovskyi) ( – ) was a Russian novelist, ...
. He then worked at an advertising agency and a publishing house, before becoming a professional novelist in 1968.
Major prizes
* 1977 Hirabayashi Taiko Award for ''Yume katari'' (Dreams Speak)
* 1981
Tanizaki Prize
The Tanizaki Prize (谷崎潤一郎賞 ''Tanizaki Jun'ichirō Shō''), named in honor of the Japanese novelist Jun'ichirō Tanizaki, is one of Japan's most sought-after literary awards. It was established in 1965 by the publishing company Chūō K ...
for ''Yoshino-dayu'' (吉野大夫, The Courtesan Yoshino)
English translations
* ''Shot By Both Sides'' (''Hasamiuchi'', 1973), trans. Tom Gill, Japanese Literature Publishing Project, 2005 list. Published in the United States by Counterpoint, fall 2008.
Selected works
* ''Shiteki seikatsu'', 1969.
* ''Waraijigoku'', 1969.
* ''Nani?'', 1970.
* ''Kakarenai hōkoku'', 1971.
* ''Kankei'', 1971.
* ''En to daen no sekai'', 1972.
* ''Gotō Meisei shū'', 1972.
* ''Hasamiuchi'' (Attacked from Both Sides), 1973.
* ''Yonjissai no Oburōmofu'', 1973.
* ''Fumbet suzakari no mufumbetsu'', 1974.
* ''Fushigi na temaneki'', 1975.
* ''Nemuri otoko no me'', 1975.
* ''Ōinaru mujun'', 1975.
* ''Omoigawa'', 1975.
* ''Ugetsu monogatari kikō'', 1975.
* ''Meguriai'', 1976.
* ''Hasamiuchi'', 1977.
* ''Waraizaka'', 1977.
* ''Yukikaeri'', 1977.
* ''Yume katari'' (Dreams Speak)
* ''Sake neko ningen'', 1978.
* ''Torashima'', 1978.
* ''Yonjissai no Oburōmofu'' (四十歲 の オブローモフ), Tōkyō : Ōbunsha, 1978.
* ''Yume to yume no aida'', 1978.
* ''Hari no ana kara'', 1979.
* ''Uso no yō na nichijō'', 1979.
* ''Hachigatsu'', 1980.
* ''
Ugetsu Monogatari
is a collection of nine supernatural tales first published in 1776. It is the best known work of Japanese author Ueda Akinari.
Largely adapted from traditional Japanese and Chinese ghost stories, the collection is among the most important work ...
,
Harusame Monogatari
The ''Harusame monogatari'' (kanji: 春雨 物語, hiragana: はるさめ ものがたり）, translated as ''"The Tales of Spring Rain"'' (less commonly "Tales of the Spring Rain") is the second famous collection of Japanese stories by Ueda Akin ...
'', 1980.
* ''Mieru sekai, mienai sekai'', 1981.
* ''Warai no hōhō : aruiwa Nikorai Gōgori'' (笑い の 方法 : あるいは ニコライ ゴーゴリ), Tōkyō : Chūō Kōronsha, 1981.
* ''Yoshinodayu'' (吉野大夫), 1981.
* ''Fukushū no jidai'', Tōkyō : Fukutake Shoten, 1983.
* ''Nanji no rinjin'' (汝 の 隣人), Tōkyō : Kawade Shobō Shinsha, 1983.
* ''Shōsetsu ikani yomi ikani kaku ka'', 1983.
* ''Omocha no chi, chi, chi'' (おもちゃ の 知、 知、 知), Tōkyō : Tōjusha, 1984.
* ''Bungaku ga kawaru toki'' (文学 が 変る とき), Tōkyō : Chikuma Shobō, 1987.
* ''Kafuka no meikyū : Akumu no hōhō'' (カフカ の 迷宮 : 悪夢 の 方法 ), Tōkyō : Iwanami Shoten, 1987.
* ''Memento mori : Watakushi no shokudō shujutsu taiken'' (メメント モリ : 私 の 食道 手術 体験), Tōkyō : Chūō Kōronsha, 1990.
* ''Sukēpu gōto'' (スケープ ゴート), Tōkyō : Nihon Bungeisha, 1990.
References
External links
Meisei Gotoat J'Lit Books from Japan
at JLPP (Japanese Literature Publishing Project)
1932 births
1999 deaths
Japanese writers
Japanese people of Korea under Japanese rule
People from Kumya County
Waseda University alumni
{{Japan-writer-stub