was a socialist monthly magazine, published in Tokyo, Japan, between November 1905 and November 1906.
Shin kigen = New era : a monthly socialist review
'

History and profile

''Shinkigen'' emerged after the October 1905 split in the ''

Heiminsha Political dissidence in the Empire of Japan covers individual Japanese dissidents against the policies of the Empire of Japan. Dissidence in the Meiji and Taishō eras High Treason Incident Shūsui Kōtoku, a Japanese anarchist, was critical ...

''. The first issue was published on November 10, 1905. ''Shinkigen'' was the organ of the reformist socialist group, dominated by Christian social democrats. ''Shinkigen'' was edited by personalities such as

Abe Isoo was a Japanese Christian socialist, parliamentarian and pacifist. He largely contributed to development of baseball in Japan, and was called "Father of Japanese baseball." He created a baseball club of Waseda University. Early life and educ ...

Sen Katayama Sen may refer to: Surname * Sen (surname), a Bengali surname * Şen, a Turkish surname * A variant of the Serer patronym Sène Currency subunit * Etymologically related to the English word ''cent''; a hundredth of the following currencies: ** ...

, Sanshiro Ishikawa, and

Naoe Kinoshita was a Japanese Christian socialist activist and author. Biography Kinoshita was a native of Matsumoto, Nagano. After graduating from the predecessor of Waseda University, he returned to Nagano to work as a journalist and lawyer. He later conver ...

.Beckmann, George M., and Genji Okubo.
The Japanese Communist Party 1922-1945
'. Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press, 1969. p. 3Mackie, Vera C.
Creating Socialist Women in Japan: Gender, Labour and Activism, 1900-1937
'. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. pp. 47, 232 ''Shinkigen'' argued in favour of universal suffrage and social reform (through parliamentary means). The first issue of the magazine included an article by Uchimura Kanzō, which stated "Though I am not a socialist, I cannot refrain from the greatest sympathy for this gentemanly work."Howes, John F.
Japan's Modern Prophet: Uchimura Kanzô, 1861-1930
'. Asian religions and society series. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2005. pp. 137, 417 ''Shinkigen'' was characterized by a

humanistic Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...

worldview. Its conception of socialism was spiritualistic and highly individualistic. The magazine frequently featured (Christian) religious motifs, with imagery such having an angel or a shining cross depicted on the cover page or with article titles such as 'The Revolutionary Thought of Mother Mary'. The magazine did however also feature criticisms of Christianity. In February 1906 ''Shinkigen'' and the other faction that emerged from ''Heiminsha'', the materialists, founded a political party together, the

Japan Socialist Party The was a socialist and progressive political party in Japan that existed from 1945 to 1996. The party was founded as the Social Democratic Party of Japan by members of several proletarian parties that existed before World War II, including ...

. Like other leftwing and liberal media, ''Shinkigen'' was targeted by government repression. All in all, thirteen issues of ''Shinkigen'' were published.Pioneers of the Women's Movement in Japan: Hiratsuka Raicho and Fukuda Hideko seen through their Journals, Seito and Sekai Fujin
/ref> The Japan Socialist Party survived until February 1907, when it was banned by police following its first party congress.

' In 1961, a volume containing the editions of ''Shinkigen'' were reprinted by Meiji Bunken Shiryo Kankokai.

References

{{italic title 1905 establishments in Japan 1906 disestablishments in Japan Christian socialist publications Defunct political magazines published in Japan Magazines established in 1905 Magazines disestablished in 1906 Magazines published in Tokyo Monthly magazines published in Japan Socialist magazines Meiji socialism

History and profile

See also

References