was a Japanese writer active during the Taishō and Shōwa periods of Japan, whose work was distinguished by its lucid, straightforward style and strong autobiographical overtones.

Early life

Shiga was born in

Ishinomaki is a city located in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 138,538, and a population density of 250 persons per km2 in 61,919 households. The total area of the city is . Geography Ishinomaki is in northeastern Miya ...

Miyagi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,305,596 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefecture to the nort ...

, as the son of a banker and descendant of an aristocratic

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

family. In 1885, the family moved to

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

and Shiga given into his grandparents' custody. His mother died when he was twelve, an experience that marked the beginning of an obsession with and fear of death both on an individual and a collective level, and which stayed with him until his early thirties. At the same time, his relationship with his father became increasingly strained. One conflict resulted from Shiga's announcement to participate in the protests following the 1907 and his father's forbidding him to do so, as part of the family's wealth was owed to a past investment in the mine. Shiga's imagination was inspired by nature, and he was an avid reader of

Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, Dum ...

and

Ralph Waldo Emerson Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803April 27, 1882), who went by his middle name Waldo, was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, abolitionist, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champ ...

, as well as of

Lafcadio Hearn , born Patrick Lafcadio Hearn (; el, Πατρίκιος Λευκάδιος Χέρν, Patríkios Lefkádios Chérn, Irish language, Irish: Pádraig Lafcadio O'hEarain), was an Irish people, Irish-Greeks, Greek-Japanese people, Japanese writer, t ...

's stories of the supernatural. At the age of 18, Shiga converted to Christianity under the influence of

Uchimura Kanzō was a Japanese author, Christian evangelist, and the founder of the Nonchurch Movement (Mukyōkai) of Christianity in the Meiji and Taishō period Japan. He is often considered to be the most well-known Japanese pre-World War II pacifist. Ea ...

, but struggled with his new religion due to his own homosexual tendencies. He graduated from the Gakushuin Peer's Elementary School in 1906 and started studying English literature at

Tokyo Imperial University , abbreviated as or UTokyo, is a public research university located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1877, the university was the first Imperial University and is currently a Top Type university of the Top Global University Project by ...

, but left two years later without a degree. Another family crisis arose when Shiga announced to marry one of the housemaids, Chiyo, with whom he was having an affair. The father terminated his son's plans, and the maid was removed from the household.

Literary career

In 1910, Shiga co-founded the magazine ''

Shirakaba The was an influential Japanese literary coterie, which published the literary magazine '' Shirakaba'', from 1910 to 1923. History In 1910, a loose association of alumni of the prestigious Gakushuin Peer’s School in Tokyo began a literary s ...

'' ("White birch"), the literary publication of the Shirakaba-ha ("White birch society"). Other co-founders included

Saneatsu Mushanokōji was a Japanese novelist, playwright, poet, artist, and philosopher active during the late Taishō and Shōwa periods of Japan. Later on in life he requested that the pronunciation of his surname (as far as was concerned) be changed from the usua ...

and Rigen Kinoshita, who Shiga had befriended at Gakushuin Peer's School, and

Takeo Arishima was a Japanese novelist, short-story writer and essayist during the late Meiji and Taishō periods. His two younger brothers, and , were also authors. His son was the internationally known film and stage actor, Masayuki Mori. Early life Ar ...

and

Ton Satomi Ton is the name of any one of several units of measure. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses. Mainly it describes units of weight. Confusion can arise because ''ton'' can mean * the long ton, which is 2,240 pounds ...

. The Shirakaba-ha rejected

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

and Naturalism, and instead propagated

individualism Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology and social outlook that emphasizes the intrinsic worth of the individual. Individualists promote the exercise of one's goals and desires and to value independence and self-reli ...

idealism In philosophy, the term idealism identifies and describes metaphysical perspectives which assert that reality is indistinguishable and inseparable from perception and understanding; that reality is a mental construct closely connected to ide ...

and

humanitarianism Humanitarianism is an active belief in the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotional ...

, for which Russian writer

Leo Tolstoy Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...

served as a model. Shiga contributed the story ''As Far as Abashiri'' (''Abashiri made'') to the first issue. In the following years, Shiga published short stories like ''The Razor'' (''Kamisori'', 1910), ''

Han's Crime is a short story by Japanese writer Naoya Shiga first published in 1913 in the magazine ''Shirakaba''. The story follows a police hearing after a woman was killed during a circus knifethrowing act by the hands of her husband, the professional k ...

'' (''Han no hanzai'', 1913) and ''Seibei and his Gourds'' (''Seibei to hyotan'', 1913). The story ''Ōtsu Junkichi'', published in ''

Chūō Kōron is a monthly Japanese literary magazine (), first established during the Meiji period and continuing to this day. It is published by its namesake-bearing Chūōkōron Shinsha (formerly Chūōkōron-sha). The headquarters is in Tokyo. ''Chūō ...

'' in 1912, his first publication for which he received a fee, was an autobiographical account of his affair with the former housemaid Chiyo and the familial conflicts. It also marked the first time that Shiga drew on the method of a narrating self, a distinctive mark of the

I-novel The I-novel (, , ) is a literary genre in Japanese literature used to describe a type of confessional literature where the events in the story correspond to events in the author's life. This genre was founded based on the Japanese reception of ...

genre, to which many of Shiga's works are ascribed to. While working on ''Ōtsu Junkichi'', Shiga had read the English translation of

Anatole France (; born , ; 16 April 1844 – 12 October 1924) was a French poet, journalist, and novelist with several best-sellers. Ironic and skeptical, he was considered in his day the ideal French man of letters. He was a member of the Académie França ...

's novel '' The Crime of Sylvestre Bonnard'', which he cited as an important influence on his own writing. In 1914, Shiga married Sada Kadenokōji, a widow with a six-year-old daughter (and a cousin of Mushanokōji), which led to a complete break between father and son. However, 1917 saw the reconciliation with his father, which he thematised in his novella ''Reconciliation'' (''Wakai'', 1917). He followed with a series of short stories and ''

A Dark Night's Passing is the only full-length novel by Japanese writer Naoya Shiga. It was published in serialised form in the magazine ''Kaizō'' between 1921 and 1937. The story follows the life of a wealthy, young Japanese writer in the early 1900s, who seeks to ...

'' (''An'ya koro'', 1921–1937); the latter, his only full length novel, was serialized in the socialist magazine ''

Kaizō ''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" ...

'' and is regarded as his major work. The novel's protagonist, young struggling writer Kensaku, has often been associated with its author. Shiga's sometimes confessional stories also included a series of accounts of his extramarital affair in the mid-1920s, among them ''A Memory of Yamashina'' (''Yamashina no kioku'', 1926), ''Infatuation'' (''Chijo'', 1926) and ''Kuniko'' (1927). Shiga's work influenced many later writers, including Kazu Ozaki,

Kiku Amino was a Japanese writer and translator of English and Russian literature. She was a recipient of the Women's Literature Prize, the Yomiuri Prize, and Japan Academy of the Arts prize. Biography Amino was born in Azabu Mamiana-cho and raised in Aka ...

Motojirō Kajii was a Japanese writer in the early Shōwa period known for his poetic short stories. Kajii's works included , . and . His poetic works were praised by fellow writers including Yasunari Kawabata and Yukio Mishima. Today his works are admired for ...

Takiji Kobayashi was a Japanese writer of proletarian literature. He is best known for his short novel '' Kanikōsen'', or ''Crab Cannery Ship'', published in 1929. It tells the story of the hard life of cannery workers, fishermen and seamen on board a cannery ...

Fumio Niwa was a Japanese novelist with a long list of works, the most famous in the West being his novel ''The Buddha Tree'' (Japanese ''Bodaiju'', "The Linden", or "The Bodhi Tree", 1956). He was ordained as a Shin Buddhist priest in his youth, but aba ...

Kōsaku Takii was a noted Japanese haiku poet, short story writer, and author of the celebrated I novel ''Mugen Hōyō''. Takii was born in Takayama, Gifu where his father was a cabinetmaker. At age 13, he lost his mother and two brothers, and was forced to ...

, Kiyoshi Naoi,

Toshimasa Shimamura was a noted Japanese author of fiction. Shimamura was born in Nagano Prefecture, and in 1931 graduated from college with an English degree. His first book was published in 1941, and in 1943 his book 暁雲 became the first of his several candidate ...

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 ...

and

Shizuo Fujieda was a Japanese writer. Shizuo Fujieda's first profession was of an ophthalmologist. For many years before becoming a full-time author he wrote only when he was free from his work as an ophthalmologist. Fujieda's literary career began rather lat ...

. While his work was praised by

Ryūnosuke Akutagawa , art name , was a Japanese writer active in the Taishō period in Japan. He is regarded as the "father of the Japanese short story", and Japan's premier literary award, the Akutagawa Prize, is named after him. He committed suicide at the age of ...

and Sei Itō, other contemporaries like

Dazai Osamu was a Japanese author. A number of his most popular works, such as ''The Setting Sun'' (''Shayō'') and ''No Longer Human'' (''Ningen Shikkaku''), are considered modern-day classics. His influences include Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, Murasaki Shiki ...

Mitsuo Nakamura was the pen-name of a writer of biographies and stage-plays, and a literary critic active in Shōwa period Japan. His real name was Koba Ichirō. Early life Nakamura Mitsuo was born in Tokyo, in the plebeian district of Shitaya, (present-day Akih ...

and

Sakunosuke Oda was a Japanese writer. He is often grouped together with Osamu Dazai and Ango Sakaguchi as the '' Buraiha.'' Literally meaning ruffian or hoodlum faction, this label was not a matter of a stylistic school but one bestowed upon them by conservati ...

were strongly critical of it.

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 ...

praised the "practicality" (jitsuyō) of Shiga's style, in which he discovered, with reference to ''At Kinosaki'', a "tightening up" (higishimeta) of the sentences: " ��any word that is not absolutely necessary has been left out". Shiga was also known for being a harsh moral critic of the literary establishment, blaming

Tōson Shimazaki was the pen-name of Haruki Shimazaki, a Japanese writer active in the Meiji, Taishō and early Shōwa periods of Japan. He began his career as a Romantic poet, but went on to establish himself as a major proponent of Japanese Naturalism. Ea ...

for having written his debut novel ''

The Broken Commandment ''The Broken Commandment'' is a Japanese novel written by Tōson Shimazaki published in 1906 (late Meiji period) under the title ''Hakai'' (破戒). The novel deals with the ''burakumin'', formerly known as ''eta''. This book enjoyed great popular ...

'' under such precarious financial hardship that Shimazaki's three young daughters died of malnutrition.

Later life

Shiga published very few new works in his later years. These included the short stories ''A Gray Moon'' (''Haiiro no tsuki'', 1946) and ''Yamabato'' (1951), or essays like ''Kokuko mondai'' (1946), in which he proposed to make French the national language of Japan. He served as the first post-war president of the from 1947 to 1948, and was awarded the

Order of Culture The is a Japanese order, established on February 11, 1937. The order has one class only, and may be awarded to men and women for contributions to Japan's art, literature, science, technology, or anything related to culture in general; recipien ...

in 1949. He died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

on October 21, 1971 at Kantō Central Public Hospital in

Setagaya, Tokyo is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is also the name of a neighborhood and administrative district within the ward. The ward calls itself Setagaya City in English. Its official bird is the azure-winged magpie, its flower is the fringed orch ...

. His grave is at

Aoyama Cemetery is a cemetery in Aoyama, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, managed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. The cemetery is also famous for its cherry blossoms, and at the season of hanami, which many people would visit. History The cemetery was origin ...

in Tokyo. His house in

Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...

, where he lived from 1929 to 1938, has been preserved and is open to the public as a memorial museum.

Selected works

* 1910: ''As Far as Abashiri'' (''Abashiri made'') * 1910: ''The Razor'' (''Kamisori'') * 1911: ''Nigotta atama'' * 1912: ''Ōtsu Junkichi'' * 1913: ''

'' (''Han no hanzai'') * 1913: ''Seibei and his Gourds'' (''Seibei to hyotan'') * 1917: ''At Kinosaki'' (''Kinosaki ni te'') * 1917: ''The Case of Sasaki'' (''Sasaki no baai'') * 1917: ''Reconciliation'' (''Wakai'') * 1917: ''Kōjinbutsu no fūfu'' * 1920: ''The Shopboy's God'' (''Kozō no kamisama'') * 1920: ''Manazuru'' * 1920: ''Bonfire'' (''Takibi'') * 1921–1937: ''

'' (''An'ya koro'') * 1926: ''A Memory of Yamashina'' (''Yamashina no kioku'') * 1926: ''Infatuation'' (''Chijo'') * 1927: ''Kuniko'' * 1946: ''A Gray Moon'' (''Haiiro no tsuki'')

Translations (selected)

* * *

References

External links

National Diet Library biographyProminent people of Minato CityJ'Lit , Authors : Naoya Shiga , Books from Japan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shiga, Naoya 1883 births 1971 deaths 20th-century Japanese male writers 20th-century Japanese novelists 20th-century Japanese short story writers Japanese former Christians Japanese male short story writers Persons of Cultural Merit People from Ishinomaki Recipients of the Order of Culture Shirakaba-ha University of Tokyo alumni Writers from Miyagi Prefecture Japanese magazine founders