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 ...

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

. He is often grouped together with

Osamu Dazai 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 ...

and

Ango Sakaguchi was a Japanese writer of short stories and novels and an essayist. His real name was . Biography Born in Niigata, Sakaguchi was one of a group of young Japanese writers to rise to prominence in the years immediately following Japan's defeat i ...

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 conservative critics disparaging the authors' attitudes and subject matter.

Life and Writings

Oda's writing career spans both prewar and postwar Japan. A native of

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

, he wrote mostly of life in that city and the customs and manners of the common people there. In 1939, his story ''Zokushu'' (, Vulgarity) was a candidate 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 ...

. The following year, Oda published ''Meoto Zenzai'' (). Named after an Osaka sweet shop, it follows the life of a couple whose relationship survives despite the persistent wastefulness, debauchery, and unkept promises of the erring man. Oda's characters usually did not fit into what were traditionally considered appropriate forms, either in their frank humanness or in their stubborn individuality, as in ''Roppakukinsei'' (, Six Platinum Stars/Six White Venus, 1946), or out of the cruel necessity of survival. In the story ''Sesō'' (世相, The State of the Times, 1946), Oda describes the first months of the occupation period following Japan's surrender at the end 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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, which were marked by food shortages so severe that government rations were not enough even to sustain life and people turned to the black market to procure the food they needed for their own survival. During Oda's lifetime, several of his works were banned. Oda also wrote radio drama scenarios and submitted a script to a magazine that was later made into the film ''Kaette kita otoko'' (還って来た男, ''The Returnee'', 1944), by Kawashima Yūzō (it was the director's commercial debut). In addition to his fiction, Oda wrote many critical essays, most notably "Kanōsei no bungaku" (可能性の文学, "The Literature of Possibility", 1946). In 1947, after suffering from a lung hemorrhage, Oda died in

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

Hospital. After the funeral, his friend and fellow writer Osamu Dazai published an emotional eulogy blaming the critics for Oda's sudden death. More likely, it was from a recurrent bout of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...

. Oda is buried in

. In 1963, a monument was erected by Oda's friends and colleagues near Hozenji Temple in

. Hozenji Yokochō and its surrounding alleys are one of the main settings in ''Meoto Zenzai''. In 1983, under the sponsorship of the Osaka Bungaku Shinkōkai, a literary prize was established in Oda's name to commemorate the 70th anniversary of his birth and with the aim of carrying on the long tradition of Kansai literature. It is awarded annually to an outstanding work of fiction by a new author. An autographed photograph of Oda hangs in the Osaka restaurant Jiyūken (). Jiyūken opened as a coffee and snack shop in 1910, and has become known for its style of " curry rice". It is mentioned in Oda's writings. The inscription says that Oda has died, but has left us some of the good flavor of curry rice in his writing. The photograph shows Oda apparently writing while seated at a table in Jiyūken.Jiyūken restaurant autographed photo with inscription

Adaptations and Translations

Several of Oda's stories have been made into movies, including (2008) and, most notably, ''Meoto zenzai,'' which has been adapted four times, including an award-winning film, released in 1955, which was directed by Toyoda Shirō, and starred

Morishige Hisaya was a Japanese actor and comedian. Born in Hirakata, Osaka, he graduated from Kitano Middle School (now Kitano High School), and attended Waseda University. He began his career as a stage actor, then became an announcer for NHK, working in M ...

and Awashima Chikage. ''Meoto zenzai, Roppakukinsei,'' and ''Sesō'', along with another story, ''Ki no miyako'' (木の都, "City of Trees", 1943–44), have been translated by Burton Watson and published together as ''Stories of Osaka Life'' (Columbia University Press, 1990; paperback, Weatherhill, 1994).

Notes

https://web.archive.org/web/20101126091605/http://japan-101.com/culture/oda_sakunosuke.htm

External links

''Meoto Zenzai'' online text
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oda, Sakunosuke 1913 births 1947 deaths Writers from Osaka 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis Japanese writers Tuberculosis deaths in Japan

Life and Writings

Adaptations and Translations

See also

Notes

External links