was a

Japanese author This is an alphabetical list of writers who are Japanese, or are famous for having written in the Japanese language. Writers are listed by the native order of Japanese names, family name followed by given name to ensure consistency although some ...

, novelist, and scholar of

French literature French literature () generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of France other than F ...

. Tsuji was born in

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 37.46 ...

, attended Matsumoto High School with

Kita Morio was the pen name of , a Japanese psychiatrist, novelist and essayist. Kita was the second son of poet Mokichi Saitō. Shigeta Saitō, his older brother, was also a psychiatrist. The essayist Yuka Saitō is Kita's daughter. Kita attended Az ...

, and studied French literature at the

University of Tokyo , 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 b ...

. After graduation, he became an instructor at Gakushūin University and a literary critic. He spent the years 1957-1960 in France, which strongly influenced his development as a novelist. In 1963 he published his first mature work, ''Kairō nite'' (In the Corridor), which was awarded the Prize for Modern Literature. Some of his more celebrated later novels include ''Azuchi ōkanki'' (1968, translated as The Signore), winner of a Ministry of Education Commendation in the Arts for New Artists; ''Haikyōsha Yurianusu'' (The Apostate Julianus, 1972), winner of a Mainichi Award for Art; and ''Saigyo kaden'' (西行花伝, The Life of Saigyo) for which he received the 1995

Tanizaki Prize The Tanizaki Prize (谷崎潤一郎賞 ''Tanizaki Jun'ichirō Shō''), named in honor of the Japanese novelist Jun'ichirō Tanizaki, is one of Japan's most sought-after literary awards. It was established in 1965 by the publishing company Chūō K� ...

. Tsuji's works were on the whole idealistic and spiritual. They included many historical novels in which the protagonists search for the meaning of life at times of great social change. Tsuji died of cardial infarction at a hospital in

Karuizawa, Nagano is a resort town located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 20,323 in 9897 households, and a population density of 130 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Karuizawa is one of the oldest and most ...

English translations

* ''The signore : shogun of the warring states'' (Azuchi ōkanki, 1968), trans. Stephen Snyder, Tokyo ; New York : Kodansha International, 1989. .

Selected works

* ''Ikoku kara''(異国から), 1968. * ''Azuchi ōkanki''(安土往還記), 1968. * ''Shiro, yoru''(城夜), 1969. * ''Kita no misaki''(北の岬), 1970. * ''Wakaki hi to bungaku to''(若き日と文学と), 1970. * ''Sagano meigetsuki''(嵯峨野明月記), 1971. * ''Amakusa no gaka''(天草の雅歌), 1971. * ''Tsuji Kunio shū''(辻邦生集), 1971. * ''Tsuji Kunio sakuhin''(辻邦生作品), 6 volumes, 1972-73. * ''Azuchi ōkan ki''(安土往還記), 1972. * ''Haikyōsha Yurianusu''(背教者ユリアヌス), 1972. * ''Ihō ni te''(異邦にて), 1972. * ''Poseidon kamensai''(ポセイドン仮面祭), 1973. * ''Pari no shuki''(パリの手記), 5 volumes, 1973-1974. * ''Pari futatabi'', 1973. * ''Shi e no tabi shi kara no tabi'', 1974. * ''Kita no mori kara'', 1974. * ''Mommarutoru no nikki''(モンマルトルの日記), 1974. * ''Umibe no bochi kara''(海辺の墓地から), 1974. * ''Aru shōgai no nanatsu no basho'', Tokyo : Chūō Kōronsha, 1975-1982. * ''Mahiru no umi e no tabi''(真昼の海への旅), 1975. * ''Saramanka no techō kara''(サラマンカの手帖から), 1975. * ''Kiri no Santo Mari''(霧の聖マリ), Tōkyō : Chūō Kōronsha, 1975. * ''Shōsetsu e no joshō''(小説への序章), 1976. * ''Natsu no toride''(夏の砦), 1976. * ''Aki no asa hikari no naka de'', 1976. * ''Kiri no haikyo kara''(霧の廃墟から), 1976. * ''Waga bungaku no kiseki'', 1977. * ''Toki no tobira''(時の扉), 1977. * ''Toki no owari e no tabi'', 1977. * ''Shiro, yoru''(城夜), 1977. * ''Haru no taikan''(春の戴冠), 1977. * ''Mishiranu machi ni te''(見知らぬ町にて), 1977. * ''Natsu no umi no iro'', 1977. * ''Tsuji Kunio zentampen'', 1978. * ''Raimei no kikoeru gogo''(雷鳴の聞える午後), 1979. * ''Nadare no kuru hi''(雪崩のくる日), 1980. * ''Kaishōkan'', 1980. * ''Orību no koeda''(橄欖の小枝), 1980. * ''Mori Arimasa''(森有正), 1980. * ''Fūjin no machi kara''( ), 1981. * ''Jūni no shōzōga ni yoru jūni no monogatari'', Tokyo : Bungei Shunjū, 1981. * ''Uki no owari''(雨季の終わり), Tōkyō : Chūō Kōronsha, 1982. * ''Ki no koe umi no koe''(樹の声海の声), Tokyo : Asahi Shinbunsha, 1982. * ''Fuyu no kiri tachite''(冬の霧立ちて), Tōkyō : Chūō Kōronsha, 1983. * ''Toki no kajitsu'' (時の果実), Tōkyō : Asahi Shinbunsha, 1984. * ''Jūni no fūkeiga e no jūni no tabi'' (十二の風景画への十二の旅), Tōkyō : Bungei Shunjū, 1984. * ''Tenshitachi ga machi o yuku : sokkyō kigeki'' (天使たちが街をゆく : 即興喜劇), Tōkyō : Chūō Kōronsha, 1985. * ''Umi'' (海), Tōkyō : Sakuhinsha, 1987. * ''Shi to eien'' (詩と永遠), Tōkyō : Iwanami Shoten, 1988. * ''Watakushi no eiga techō'' (私の映画手帖), Tōkyō : Bungei Shunjū, 1988. * ''Eien no shoka ni tachite'' (氷遠の書架にたちて), Tōkyō : Shinchōsha, 1990. * ''Suiren no gogo'' (睡蓮の午後), Tōkyō : Fukutake Shoten, 1990. * ''Toki no naka no shōzō'' (時刻のなかの肖像), Tōkyō : Shinchōsha, 1991. * ''Bishin to no kyōen no mori de'' (美神との饗宴の森で), Tōkyō : Shinchōsha, 1993. * ''Sengo 50-nen o tou : teidan''(戦後 50年を問う : 鼎談) by Tsuji Kunio, Tsutsumi Seiji, Yasue Ryōsuke; Nagano-shi : Shinano Mainichi Shinbunsha, 1994. * ''Saigyō kaden'' (西行花伝), Tōkyō : Shinchōsha, 1995.

External links

Kunio Tsuji
at J'Lit Books from Japan {{DEFAULTSORT:Tsuji Kunio 20th-century Japanese novelists 1999 deaths 1925 births