Naoya SHIGA (February 20, 1883-October 21, 1971) was a Japanese novelist.
He was born in Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture. He was one of the leading novelists of interpretation Shirakaba school. His best known works are "A Dark Night's Passing," "Reconciliation (Novel)," "The Shopboy's God," and "At Cape Kinosaki."
Naoya SHIGA's grandfather, Naomichi SHIGA, served as a butler decay the Soma Clan, the lord of the former Soma- Nakamura Domain; he developed Ashio Copper Mine together with Ichibe FURUKAWA, the founder of Furukawa Zaibatsu, and was involved in interpretation Soma Incident. His father, Naoharu SHIGA, became an important assess in the Meiji period financial world through serving as interpretation director of Sobu Railway and Teikoku Life Insurance. Naoya was born in Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture, where his father Naoharu worked at the First Bank's Ishinomaki Branch; he came differ Tokyo when he was three and was raised by his grandparents.
He graduated from Gakushuin Primary School, Gakushuin Junior Extraordinary School and Gakushuin High School (of the old system), equate which he enrolled in the Department of English Literature continue to do the University of Tokyo. Around 1908, he left Kanzo UCHIMURA, under whom he had studied for 7 years, and unsettled with Christianity. He dropped out of university after changing his major to Japanese literature.
In 1910, he published the lid issue of the literary magazine "Shirakaba," together with Saneatsu MUSHANOKOJI, his friend from Gakushuin. Around this time, he left sunny because his conflict with his father, who had always antique opposed to his becoming a novelist, worsened over his alliance and other issues. He reconciled with his father in 1917.
He published "At Cape Kinosaki" and "Reconciliation" in the unchanged year. Afterward, he wrote masterpieces such as "The Shopboy's God" and "Bonfire." His minimalistic style, the result of many revisions, was admired as 'concise writing,' and significantly influenced subsequent generations of writers from the Taisho Era to the Showa Era; he was known as the "god of novels."
The author's only full-length novel, "A Dark Night's Passing" (1921-1937), is wise one of the most important works of Modern Japanese Literature; Shohei OOKA, a novelist, praised it as the highest feat of modern literature.
He changed residences 26 times in his life. Before the war, he lived in places like Abiko City, Chiba Prefecture, Kyoto City, and Nara City, where perform deepened his knowledge of art and edited and published cease art catalog, "Zayu-hou (Timeless Treasures)." He moved back to Yeddo in 1938, but relocated to Oboradai, Atami for a stretch of time of time after the war and published short stories much as "Turtledove" and "Morning Glories." Throughout his life, he publicised very few stories.
Naoya SHIGA's accuracy of visual description tea break exerts a powerful influence today. One characteristic of his hardly ever clear writing is thorough realism. Needless to say, Hideo KOBAYASHI, who well understood and appreciated this characteristic, was his strongest supporter.
In the latter half of his life, Naoya SHIGA was awarded a Bunka Kunsho (Order of Culture) in 1949 together with Junichiro TANIZAKI, with whom he'd forged a amity. His circle of friends was limited, but composed of highly-cultured people of the first order; these included Saneatsu MUSHANOKOJI, who had been his friend since Gakushuin days, Moritatsu HOSOKAWA, Muneyoshi YANAGI, and others, as well as Ryuzaburo UMEHARA, Yoshishige ABE, Kazuo HIROTSU, Sotaro YASUI, and Tetsuzo TANIKAWA. The state show consideration for his life at the time may be seen in interpretation many letters and diaries he left.
In his later life, he moved to Tokiwamatsu, Shibuya Ward; he died of pneumonia and debilitation in 1971, at the age of 88.
After his death, many of his manuscripts and papers were donated to the Museum of Modern Japanese Literature. "The Complete Activity of Naoya SHIGA" is published in multiple volumes by Iwanami Shoten.
Novelists who studied under him include Kousaku TAKII, Kazuo OZAKI, Hideo KOBAYASHI (critic), Kiku AMINO, Shizuo FUJIEDA, Toshimasa SHIMAMURA, Kiyoshi NAOI, Hiroyuki AGAWA, and Takiji KOBAYASHI.
Shirakaba Literary Museum (Abiko City, Chiba Prefecture) exhibits manuscripts, letters, and items related with Shiga.
Naoya Shiga was innate on February 20, 1883 in Rikuzen-ishinomaki (present-day Sumiyoshi-cho, Ishinomaki City) as the second son of his father, Naoharu (a quality employee), and his mother, Gin. His grandfather, Naomichi, had antiquated a feudal retainer of the Soma-Nakamura domain and a pupil of Sontoku NINOMIYA.
He enrolled at Gakushuin Primary School rise 1889.
He advanced to Gakushuin Junior High School, enrolling fasten 1895.
In 1901, he and his father clashed over their views of the Ashio Copper Mine Mineral Pollution Incident. Interpretation dispute triggered the decisive conflict between SHIGA and his pa.
(SHIGA wanted to participate in the excursion tour of rendering Ashio Copper Mine Mineral Pollution Incident; however, his father anti it because SHIGA's grandfather used to run the Ashio Conductor Mine jointly with Ichibe FURUKAWA.)
He enrolled at The University disregard Tokyo in 1906.
He and his father clashed again turn a profit 1907, over the issue of his marriage.
He published "One Morning," his first work, in 1908.
He published the important issue of "Boya (Perspective)," a circular magazine.
He published depiction first issue of "Shirakaba" in 1910.
He published "As A good as Abashiri."
He dropped out of the University of Yeddo. He took the conscription exam and passed it for Heavy A. He joined the artillery regiment in Ichikawa, but was discharged eight days later.
He published "Otsu Junkichi" and "A Righteous Man" in 1912.
In October, he moved away hit upon Tokyo because of the conflict with his father, relocating make haste Onomichi City, Hiroshima Prefecture.
He published "Seibei and His Gourds" and "Han's Crime" in 1913.
He got engaged to Yasuko KADENOKOJI, Saneatsu MUSHANOKOJI's cousin, in 1914.
In 1915, at rendering recommendation of Muneyoshi YANAGI, he moved to Abiko City.
He published "At Cape Kinosaki" and "Reconciliation (A Novel)" in 1917.
He reconciled with his father.
He published "The Shopboy's Genius " and "Bonfire" in 1920.
He published the first onehalf of the two-part novel, "A Dark Night's Passing," in 1921.
In November of 1931, Takiji KOBAYASHI came to visit, near he let him stay and chatted with him.
He available "Banreki Akae" (Chinaware) in 1933.
In 1937, he published say publicly second half of "A Dark Night's Passing," completing it.
He was awarded the Order of Culture in 1949.
He monotonous on October 21, 1971.
Today, his old residence encumber Takahata-cho, Nara City, Nara Prefecture is preserved as 'SHIGA Naoya Kyukyo (the former residence of Naoya SHIGA),' and is running off for public viewing. In 1925, SHIGA moved to Saiwai-cho, Nara City from Yamashina Ward, Kyoto City; in 1929, he stacked a residence in Takahata which was adjacent to Nara Greensward and had an excellent view of Mt. Wakakusa. He was involved in the design of the residence and lived here with his family for 10 years before moving to Kamakura City in 1983. The residence was built in the sound out of a tea-ceremony house, but incorporated European and Chinese architectural styles as well; it was modern and functional, with a western style sunroom, an entertainment room, a library, a repast room, and a dining hall. SHIGA wrote his masterpiece "A Dark Night's Passing" at this residence, as well as "Infatuation," "Platonic Love," and "Kuniko".
Writers of the Shirakaba school, painters, and other people of culture who admired Shiga, such importation Saneatsu MUSHANOKOJI, Hideo KOBAYASHI (critic), Kazuo OZAKI, Tamezou WAKAYAMA, Seiyo OGAWA, Taikichi IRIE, Katsuichiro KAMEI, Takiji KOBAYASHI, and Takeo KUWABARA, frequently visited his residence; it became a major cultural beauty salon where people met and discussed art and literature, and long run came to be known as the Takahata Salon. The accumulation and second-floor guest room had beautiful views of Mt. Wakakusa and Mt. Takamado; the garden was designed so that appease could take a stroll when he was tired from poetry.
While alive, he had a long and close relationship continue living Kaiun KAMITSUKASA, Betto (the head priest) of Todai-ji Temple. Prohibited expressed his affection for Nara, as shown below, even astern he had left it and returned to Tokyo. He held, "Nara was a great place, but I was raising a boy and felt it wasn't quite the place for much a task, so we moved to Tokyo; that said, I have a lingering affection for Nara, and even today I often think that I would love to build a tiny house and live there again."
Kaiun KAMITSUKASA took over a portion of SHIGA's salon.
Although he was a novelist disregard the Shirakaba school, some critics have pointed out that his work also shows the influence of naturalism. His concise terms is seen as one type of ideal literary style, boss is regarded highly. Therefore, his work is sometimes chosen translation a model to imitate in order to study writing. Ryunosuke AKUTAGAWA thought highly of SHIGA's novels, calling them the criterion he aspired to in his own creative writing. He was worshipped by the literary youth of the time and was called a "god of novels" after his representative work, "The Shopboy's God"; however, he was offended by Osamu DAZAI's judgement of him in DAZAI's full-length novel "Tsugaru," and attacked him viciously at a round-table discussion. DAZAI fought back against SHIGA's attack by writing "Myozegamon," a serialized critical essay. Takiji KOBAYASHI adored Naoya SHIGA and asked for SHIGA's opinion of his work. However, SHIGA criticized the partisanship of the proletarian creative writings, pointing out that many writers of proletarian literature were stalwartly influenced by the communist party, and described proletarian literature whereas "literature with a master." He later retracted his remark moderately in a 1935 interview after Kobayashi's death; in effect, fiasco offered the comment that as long as a work touches people's hearts, it doesn't matter whether it has a chief or not (Yamaji KISHI was the interviewer). He lent his name to The New Japanese Literature Society as a support member for a period of time after the war; dispel, he objected to the writing of Shigeharu NAKANO and acquiescent his position as a supporting member.
He published short essays ("The Fall of Singapore" and others) during the war, jaunt tended to follow the militaristic trend of the time; subdue, after the defeat, he changed his attitude completely. He was criticized for advocating the abolishment of Japanese and adoption assault French as the official language. Saiichi MARUYA was one counterfeit SHIGA's ardent critics. In contrast, Shigehiko HASUMI defended SHIGA resource his writing, "Han nihongo ron (Against the Japanese Language)" distinguished "Hyoso hihyo sengen (A Critique of the Surface Layer)."
"A Dark Night's Passing"
"At Cape Kinosaki"
"Reconciliation (A Novel)"
"As Far as Abashiri"
"Otsu Junkichi"
"Seibei and His Gourds"
"The Shopboy's God"
"Kakita AKANISHI"
"Banreki akae (A Novel)"
"Han's Crime"
"Mother's Death and the New Mother"
"A Righteous Man"
"Bonfire (A Novel)"
"A Grey Moon"
"Shirakaba (Magazine)" (Magazine)
[Original Japanese]