Kaizō
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''Kaizō'' (改造 ''kaizō'') was a Japanese general-interest magazine that started publication during the Taishō period and printed many articles of socialist content. ''Kaizō'' can be translated into English as "Reorganize", "Restructure", "Reconstruct" or "Reconstruction".


Beginnings

In 1919, after
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, Yamamoto Sanehiko's company, called '' Kaizōsha'' (改造社), began publishing ''Kaizō.'' Although it is well known for carrying works of fiction, its sales grew because of the articles it carried pertaining to labor and social problems. At this time, due to the influence of the
Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government ...
,
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 n ...
ese intellectuals were also examining social issues and socialist thought. Essays by writers such as Christian socialist Kagawa Toyohiko, Marxist
Kawakami Hajime was a Japanese Marxist economist of the Taishō and early Shōwa periods. Biography Born in Yamaguchi, he graduated from Tokyo Imperial University. After writing for ''Yomiuri Shimbun'', he attained a professorship in economics at Kyoto ...
, and Yamakawa Hitoshi were published and helped the magazine gain popularity. It also published Shiga Naoya's novel '' A Dark Night's Passing'' (1921–37),
Riichi Yokomitsu was an experimental, modernist Japanese writer. Yokomitsu began publishing in dōjinshi such as ''Machi'' ("Street") and ''Tō'' ("Tower") after entering Waseda University , mottoeng = Independence of scholarship , established ...
's ''Shanghai'' (1929-1931), and
Jun'ichirō Tanizaki was a Japanese author who is considered to be one of the most prominent figures in modern Japanese literature. The tone and subject matter of his work ranges from shocking depictions of sexuality and destructive erotic obsessions to subtle por ...
's '' Quicksand'' (1928–30). Another popular general-interest magazine '' Chūōkōron'' (中央公論) was established before ''Kaizō,'' but sales of ''Kaizō'' overtook it despite its radical content. In 1922, ''Kaizōsha'' invited
Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theor ...
to give lectures in Japan. He arrived in Japan 7 days after the
Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences ( sv, Kungliga Vetenskapsakademien) is one of the royal academies of Sweden. Founded on 2 June 1739, it is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization that takes special responsibility for prom ...
had announced he won the
Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
. Jun Ishiwara, a Japanese theoretical physicist, summarized his lecture at
Keio University , mottoeng = The pen is mightier than the sword , type = Private research coeducational higher education institution , established = 1858 , founder = Yukichi Fukuzawa , endowment ...
and published it in ''Kaizō''. ''Kaizōsha'' published translations of Einstein’s lecture texts in Japan the next year and during the period from 1922 to 1924 it published translations of all of his papers.


Oppression

In 1942, during the middle of
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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, publications printing communist essays begin to suffer government oppression ( Yokohama Incident). After police beat confessions out of "Communist" staffers, ''Kaizō'' was forced to "voluntarily" dissolve in 1944.James L. McClain, ''Japan: A Modern History'' p 491 Publication was resumed in 1946, but management was poor, and labor troubles exacerbated the situation, forcing ''Kaizō'' to cease publication in 1955.


Featured Works

'' A Dark Night's Passing'' - by Shiga Naoya
'' Quicksand'' - by
Jun'ichirō Tanizaki was a Japanese author who is considered to be one of the most prominent figures in modern Japanese literature. The tone and subject matter of his work ranges from shocking depictions of sexuality and destructive erotic obsessions to subtle por ...

Nobuko is a feminine Japanese given name. Although the name is always romanized the same way, the kanji characters can be different. Possible writings * 信子, "trust, child" * 伸子, "to lengthen, child" * 延子, "to prolong, child" * 暢子, "ext ...
- by Miyamoto Yuriko
''
Kappa Kappa (uppercase Κ, lowercase κ or cursive ; el, κάππα, ''káppa'') is the 10th letter of the Greek alphabet, representing the voiceless velar plosive sound in Ancient and Modern Greek. In the system of Greek numerals, has a value ...
'' - by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa
''
The Wind Has Risen ''The Wind Has Risen'' (風立ちぬ, ''Kaze tachinu'') is a Japanese novel by Tatsuo Hori, published between 1936 and 1938, and is regarded as his most acknowledged work. The story is set in a sanitarium in Nagano, Japan, where the nameless pro ...
'' - by
Hori Tatsuo was a Japanese translator and writer of poetry, short stories and novels. Early life Born in Tokyo, Hori studied Japanese literature at Tokyo Imperial University under Saisei Murō and Ryūnosuke Akutagawa. In addition to Japanese writers of ...

A Flock of Swirling Crows - by Kuroshima Denji
Shanghai - by
Riichi Yokomitsu was an experimental, modernist Japanese writer. Yokomitsu began publishing in dōjinshi such as ''Machi'' ("Street") and ''Tō'' ("Tower") after entering Waseda University , mottoeng = Independence of scholarship , established ...


References

Keene, Donald. ''Dawn to the West: Japanese Literature in the Modern Era''. Columbia University Press


External links


An article in Japanese that includes a cover picture of ''Kaizō''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kaizo 1919 establishments in Japan 1955 disestablishments in Japan Defunct political magazines published in Japan Magazines established in 1919 Magazines disestablished in 1955 Monthly magazines published in Japan Banned magazines Censorship in Japan