is a 1964 novel by the Japanese writer

Yukio Mishima , born , was a Japanese author, poet, playwright, actor, model, Shintoist, Nationalism, nationalist, and founder of the , an unarmed civilian militia. Mishima is considered one of the most important Japanese authors of the 20th century. He was ...

. The subject of the novel is taken from an actual strike in Japan in 1954 at Omi Kenshi, a silk thread and fabric manufacturer, which lasted for 106 days. The novel was first serialised in the monthly magazine ''

Gunzo {{Unreferenced, date=December 2009 :''The article is about the historical figure. For the Japanese magazine, see Gunzo''. Gunzo (also ''Cunzo'') was a 7th-century duke of the Alamanni under Frankish sovereignty. His residence was at ''villa Iburni ...

'' between January–October 1964. It was published in hardcover format by

Kodansha is a Japanese privately-held publishing company headquartered in Bunkyō, Tokyo. Kodansha is the largest Japanese publishing company, and it produces the manga magazines ''Nakayoshi'', ''Afternoon'', ''Evening'', ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' an ...

on 15 October 1964. It was translated into English in 1998 by

Hiroaki Sato Hiroaki Sato may refer to: *, Japanese fighter and wrestler with ring name Hikaru Sato *, Japanese figure skater *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese poet and translator * Hiroaki Sato (animation director) (born 1959) {{hndis, Sato, Hiroaki ...

. Although a commercial failure, the novel was awarded the Mainichi Prize from

Mainichi Shimbun The is one of the major newspapers in Japan, published by In addition to the ''Mainichi Shimbun'', which is printed twice a day in several local editions, Mainichi also operates an English language news website called ''The Mainichi'' (previ ...

Publication

''Silk and Insight'' was first serialised ten times in the monthly magazine ''

'' between January 1964 and October 1964. It was published in hardcover format by

on 15 October 1964. It was published in paperback by Kodansha Bunko on 1 July 1971. The novel was a commercial failure, with only 18,000 copies published. In comparison, Mishima's novel '' Kyōko no Ie'' (1959) sold 150,000 copies in its first month.

Translation

Mishima originally intended for the novel to be translated into English by

John Nathan John Weil Nathan (born March 1940) is an American translator, writer, scholar, filmmaker, and Japanologist. His translations from Japanese into English include the works of Yukio Mishima, Kenzaburō Ōe, Kōbō Abe, and Natsume Sōseki. Nathan is ...

, who Mishima first met in 1963. In 1965, Nathan translated Mishima's '' The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea''. Impressed by Nathan's translation, Mishima requested Nathan sign on as his translator and help Mishima in his quest in being awarded the

Nobel Prize for Literature ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , caption = , awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature , presenter = Swedish Academy , holder = Annie Ernaux (2022) , location = Stockholm, Sweden , year = 1901 , ...

. Nathan was more interested in translating the work of

Kenzaburō Ōe is a Japanese writer and a major figure in contemporary Japanese literature. His novels, short stories and essays, strongly influenced by French and American literature and literary theory, deal with political, social and philosophical issues, i ...

. Nathan initially agreed to translate ''Silk and Insight'', but was unimpressed with it upon his first reading. He ultimately refused to translate the novel, opting instead to translate Kenzaburō Ōe's ''

A Personal Matter is a 1964 semi-autobiographical novel by Japanese writer Kenzaburō Ōe. It tells the story of a young father who must come to terms with the fact that his newborn son is severely mentally disabled. Plot The plot follows the story of Bird, a 27 ...

''. Mishima, who was considered an "arch-rival" of Ōe, abruptly severed ties with Nathan afterwards. ''Silk and Insight'' was later translated into English in 1998 by

and edited by

Frank Gibney Frank Bray Gibney (September 21, 1924 – April 9, 2006) was an American journalist, editor, writer and scholar. He learned Japanese while in the American Navy during World War II, then was stationed in Japan. As a journalist in Tokyo, he wrote ''F ...

as the seventh volume in The Library of Japan series, produced by the Pacific Basin Institute at

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became ...

Reception

The novel was awarded the Mainichi Prize from

Notes

External links

* 1964 novels 20th-century Japanese novels Fiction set in 1954 Japanese-language novels Novels by Yukio Mishima Novels set in Japan Kodansha books Works originally published in Gunzo (magazine) {{1960s-novel-stub