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'''Yuzo Yamamoto''' (山本 有三 ''Yamamoto Yūzō'', [[July 27]], [[1887]] - [[January 1]], [[1974]]) was a [[Japanese person|Japanese]] novelist and playwright. His real name was written 山本 勇造 but pronounced the same as his adopted pen-name. He was born to a family of [[kimono]] makers in [[Tochigi, Tochigi|Tochigi-city]], [[Tochigi Prefecture]].
{{short description|Japanese novelist and playwright}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Yūzō Yamamoto
| image = File:Yūzō Yamamoto at his Mitaka house 1938.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = At his house [[Mitaka, Tokyo|Mitaka]], summer 1938
| birth_date = {{birth date|1887|7|27|df=yes}}
| birth_place = [[Tochigi (city)|Tochigi City]], [[Tochigi Prefecture]], Japan
| birth_name = 山本 有三
| death_date = {{death date and age|1974|1|11|1887|7|27|df=yes}}
| death_place = [[Yugawara]], [[Kanagawa Prefecture]], Japan
| nationality = Japanese
| occupation = Novelist and playwright
| yearsactive =
| spouse =
| children =
}}
{{nihongo|'''Yūzō Yamamoto'''|山本 有三|Yamamoto Yūzō|extra=27 July 1887 - 11 January 1974}} was a Japanese novelist and playwright.<ref name="yamamoto museum">{{cite web|url=https://mitaka-sportsandculture.or.jp/yuzo/about/ |title=山本有三 紹介 (Introducing Yūzō Yamamoto) |website=公益財団法人三鷹市スポーツと文化財団 (Mitaka City Sports and Culture Foundation) |language=ja |access-date=5 July 2022}}</ref><ref name="miller">{{cite book|title=The A to Z of Modern Japanese Literature and Theater |last=Miller |first=J. Scott |publisher=Scarecrow Press |year=2010 |page=142 |isbn=9781461731887}}</ref><ref name="kotobank">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%B1%B1%E6%9C%AC%E6%9C%89%E4%B8%89-144359 |title=山本 有三 (Yamamoto Yūzō) |website=Kotobank |language=ja |access-date=6 July 2022}}</ref> His real name was written as "山本 勇造" but pronounced the same as his [[pen name]].


==Biography==
After graduating [[Tokyo Imperial University]], in [[1920]] he made his literary debut with the play ''The Crown of Life'' (生命の冠, ''Seimei no kanmuri''). Later, with the writers [[Kikuchi Kan]] and [[Ryūnosuke Akutagawa|Akutagawa Ryūnosuke]] he helped to co-found the Japanese Writer’s Association and openly criticized Japan's wartime military government for its censorship policies.
Yamamoto was born to a family of [[kimono]] makers in [[Tochigi (city)|Tochigi City]], [[Tochigi Prefecture]].<ref name="yamamoto museum" /> After finishing high school, he started an apprenticeship and later worked in the family business, before eventually entering the German literature department at [[University of Tokyo|Tokyo Imperial University]].<ref name="yamamoto museum" /> While still a student, he contributed to the literary magazine ''Shinshicho''.<ref name="kotobank" /> He debuted as a playwright with ''The Crown of Life'' (1920) and gained a reputation for his solidly crafted plays, notably ''Sakazaki, Lord Dewa'' (1920) and ''Dōshi no hitobito'' ({{lit}} "Comrades", 1923).<ref name="yamamoto museum" /><ref name="miller" /> A recurring theme were social injustices, suffered by women in particular,<ref name="drama">{{cite book|title=Drama of the East and West: A Critical Anthology of Plays, with Special Sections on Oriental and Philippine Drama |editor1-first=Carolyn E. |editor1-last=Fosdick |editor2-first=Jean G. |editor2-last=Edades |publisher=The University of Michigan |year=1956 |page=74 }}</ref> while the contemporary settings of his early plays later gave way to historical ones.<ref name="kotobank" /> In 1926 he turned to novels, known for their clarity of expression and dramatic composition,<ref name="dictionary">{{cite book|editor1=[[Jaroslav Průšek]] |editor2=Zbigniew Słupski |title=Dictionary of Oriental Literatures: East Asia |publisher=Charles E. Tuttle Company |date=1978 |page=206}}</ref> and also wrote children's books.<ref name="miller" /> Together with [[Kan Kikuchi]] and [[Ryūnosuke Akutagawa]], he helped establish the Japanese Writers Association (Nihon Bungeika Kyōkai).<ref name="miller" /> In addition to his own writings, Yamamoto translated the works of European dramatists into Japanese, including [[August Strindberg]] and [[Arthur Schnitzler]].<ref name="drama" />


Yamamoto opposed the use of enigmatic expressions in written Japanese and advocated the limited use of ''[[furigana]]''.<ref name="kotobank" /><ref>{{cite book|title=Literacy and Script Reform in Occupation Japan: Reading Between the Lines |last=Unger |first=J. Marshall |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1996 |page=26 |isbn=9780195356380}}</ref> During [[World War II]], he openly criticized Japan's wartime military government for its [[Censorship in the Empire of Japan|censorship policies]]<ref name="miller" /> (which had stopped the serialisation of his novel ''Robō no ishi'', {{lit}} "A stone by the wayside").<ref name="kotobank2">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E8%B7%AF%E5%82%8D%E3%81%AE%E7%9F%B3-663914 |title=路傍の石 (Robō no ishi) |website=Kotobank |language=ja |access-date=7 July 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Child's Play: Multi-Sensory Histories of Children and Childhood in Japan |editor1-last=Walthall |editor1-first=Anne |editor2-last=Frühstück |editor2-first=Sabine |publisher=University of California Press |page=109 |year=2017 |isbn=9780520296275}}</ref> On the other hand, Yamamoto was involved in establishing a guide issued by the government which gave instructions on how to write children's stories,<ref>{{cite book|title=Negotiating Censorship in Modern Japan |editor1-last=Hutchinson |editor1-first=Rachael |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2013 |isbn=9781135069810}}</ref> and later joined the Patriotic Association for Japanese Literature (1942–1945).
After World War II he joined the debate on Japanese language reform, and from [[1947]] to [[1953]] he served in the National Diet as a member of the [[House of Councillors]]. He is well known for his opposition to the use of enigmatic expressions in written Japanese and his advocacy for the limited use of [[furigana]]. In [[1965]] he was awarded the prestigious [[Order of Culture]].


Between 1947 and 1953, Yamamoto served in the [[National Diet]] as a member of the [[House of Councillors]].<ref name="yamamoto museum" /> In 1965, he was awarded the prestigious [[Order of Culture]].<ref name="yamamoto museum" /><ref name="kotobank" /> He died in [[Yugawara]], [[Kanagawa Prefecture]], in 1974,<ref name="yamamoto museum" /> leaving his last serialised work ''Dakuryū'' ({{lit}} "Muddy stream") unfinished.<ref name="kotobank" />
After his death, Yamamoto’s large European-style house in [[Mitaka]], [[Tokyo]], was converted into the Yamamoto Yūzō Memorial Museum. There is also a museum dedicated to him in his hometown of Tochigi-city.


==Selected works:==
==Legacy==
[[File:Yuzo Yamamoto, 1954.jpg|thumb|Photo of Yūzō Yamamoto by [[Tadahiko Hayashi]], 1954]]
Yamamoto's works have been translated into English, French, German and other languages. His play ''The Sad Tale of a Woman, the Story of Chink Okichi'' served as the basis for the 1940 play ''[[The Judith of Shimoda|Die Judith von Shimoda]]'' by [[Bertolt Brecht]] and [[Hella Wuolijoki]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.welt.de/welt_print/article2410637/Wie-neu-ist-dieses-Brecht-Stueck-wirklich.html |title=Wie neu ist dieses Brecht-Stück wirklich? |website=Welt.de |language=de |date=8 September 2008 |access-date=6 July 2022}}</ref> His works have also repeatedly been adapted for film and television.


In 1996, Yamamoto's house in [[Mitaka, Tokyo|Mitaka]], [[Tokyo]], which had been expropriated during the [[Occupied Japan|occupation period]] following World War II, was converted into the Mitaka City Yūzō Yamamoto Memorial Museum.<ref name="yamamoto museum 2">{{cite web|url=https://mitaka-sportsandculture.or.jp/yuzo/about/ |title=三鷹市山本有三記念館 (Yuzo Yamamoto Memorial Museum, Mitaka City) |website=公益財団法人三鷹市スポーツと文化財団 (Mitaka City Sports and Culture Foundation) |language=ja |access-date=5 July 2022}}</ref> A museum dedicated to his memory was also opened in his hometown Tochigi.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tochigi-kankou.or.jp/spot/yamamotoyuzo-furusatokinenkan |title=山本有三ふるさと記念館 (Yuzo Yamamoto Furusato Memorial Hall) |website=公益財団法人三鷹市スポーツと文化財団 (Tochigi City Tourist Association) |language=ja |access-date=5 July 2022}}</ref>
*''A Woman’s Life'' (女の一生, ''Onna no isshō'')

*''Towards the Truth'' (真実一路, ''Shinjitsu ichiro'')
==Works (selected)==
*''The Crown of Life'' (生命の冠, ''Seimei no kanmuri'') a play
*''Two Women and War'' (戦争と二人の夫人, ''Sensō to futari no fujin'')
* 1920: ''Crown of Life'' (生命の冠, ''Inochi no kanmuri'') stage play
*''Kindred Spirits'' (同志の人々, ''Dōshi no hitobito'') a play
* 1920: ''Infanticide'' (嬰児殺し, ''Eijigoroshi'') stage play
* 1921: ''Sakazaki, Lord Dewa'' (坂崎出羽守, ''Sakazaki Dewa no Kami'') stage play
*''Waves'' (波, ''Nami'')
* 1923: ''Dōshi no hitobito'' (同志の人々) stage play
*''A Stone by the Roadside'' (路傍の石, ''Robō no ishi'')
* 1926: ''Nami'' (波) novel
* 1929: ''The Sad Tale of a Woman, the Story of Chink Okichi'' (''Nyonin Aishi, Tojin Okichi monogatari'') stage play
* 1933: ''Onna no isshō'' (女の一生) novel
* 1935: ''Shinjitsu ichiro'' (真実一路) novel
* 1937: ''Robō no ishi'' (路傍の石) novel
* 1938: ''Sensō to futari no fujin'' (戦争と二人の夫人)

==Film and television adaptations (selected)==
* 1936: ''Seimei no kanmuri'' (dir. [[Tomu Uchida]])
* 1937: ''Shinjitsu ichiro: Chichi no maki/Haha no maki'' (dir. [[Tomotaka Tasaka]])
* 1938: ''Robō no ishi'' (dir. Tomotaka Tasaka)
* 1952: ''[[Nami (film)|Nami]]'' (dir. [[Noboru Nakamura]])
* 1955: ''Onna no isshō'' (dir. Noboru Nakamura)
* 1955: ''Robō no ishi'' (dir. Kenkichi Hara)
* 1962: ''Nami'' (dir. [[Tadashi Imai]])
* 1964: ''A Pebble by the Wayside'' a.k.a. ''Wayside Pebble'' (''Robō no ishi'', dir. [[Miyoji Ieki]])
* 1993: ''Shinjitsu ichiro'' (dir. [[Kon Ichikawa]])

==References==
{{Reflist}}


==External links==
==External links==
* {{cite web|url=https://apjjf.org/2014/11/34/Yamamoto-Yuzo/4170/article.html |title=Infanticide 嬰児殺し |website=The Asia-Pacific-Journal |access-date=5 July 2022}}
*[http://www.mitaka.jpn.org/yuzo/ Yamamoto Yūzō Memorial Museum] (in Japanese only)
* {{cite web|url=http://www.mitaka.jpn.org/yuzo/ |title=山本有三記念館 (Mitaka City Yūzō Yamamoto Memorial Museum) |website=公益財団法人三鷹市スポーツと文化財団 (Mitaka City Sports and Culture Foundation) |language=ja |access-date=5 July 2022}}

{{Authority control}}


{{Japan-writer-stub}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yamamoto, Yuzo}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yamamoto, Yuzo}}
[[Category:1887 births]]
[[Category:1887 births]]
[[Category:1974 deaths]]
[[Category:1974 deaths]]
[[Category:University of Tokyo alumni]]
[[Category:Japanese writers]]
[[Category:Japanese writers]]
[[Category:Members of the House of Peers (Japan)]]

[[Category:Members of the House of Councillors (Japan)]]

[[Category:Writers from Tochigi Prefecture]]
[[ja:山本有三]]
[[Category:Politicians from Tochigi Prefecture]]

Latest revision as of 09:35, 27 May 2024

Yūzō Yamamoto
At his house Mitaka, summer 1938
Born
山本 有三

(1887-07-27)27 July 1887
Tochigi City, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan
Died11 January 1974(1974-01-11) (aged 86)
Yugawara, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan
NationalityJapanese
Occupation(s)Novelist and playwright

Yūzō Yamamoto (山本 有三, Yamamoto Yūzō, 27 July 1887 - 11 January 1974) was a Japanese novelist and playwright.[1][2][3] His real name was written as "山本 勇造" but pronounced the same as his pen name.

Biography

[edit]

Yamamoto was born to a family of kimono makers in Tochigi City, Tochigi Prefecture.[1] After finishing high school, he started an apprenticeship and later worked in the family business, before eventually entering the German literature department at Tokyo Imperial University.[1] While still a student, he contributed to the literary magazine Shinshicho.[3] He debuted as a playwright with The Crown of Life (1920) and gained a reputation for his solidly crafted plays, notably Sakazaki, Lord Dewa (1920) and Dōshi no hitobito (lit. "Comrades", 1923).[1][2] A recurring theme were social injustices, suffered by women in particular,[4] while the contemporary settings of his early plays later gave way to historical ones.[3] In 1926 he turned to novels, known for their clarity of expression and dramatic composition,[5] and also wrote children's books.[2] Together with Kan Kikuchi and Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, he helped establish the Japanese Writers Association (Nihon Bungeika Kyōkai).[2] In addition to his own writings, Yamamoto translated the works of European dramatists into Japanese, including August Strindberg and Arthur Schnitzler.[4]

Yamamoto opposed the use of enigmatic expressions in written Japanese and advocated the limited use of furigana.[3][6] During World War II, he openly criticized Japan's wartime military government for its censorship policies[2] (which had stopped the serialisation of his novel Robō no ishi, lit. "A stone by the wayside").[7][8] On the other hand, Yamamoto was involved in establishing a guide issued by the government which gave instructions on how to write children's stories,[9] and later joined the Patriotic Association for Japanese Literature (1942–1945).

Between 1947 and 1953, Yamamoto served in the National Diet as a member of the House of Councillors.[1] In 1965, he was awarded the prestigious Order of Culture.[1][3] He died in Yugawara, Kanagawa Prefecture, in 1974,[1] leaving his last serialised work Dakuryū (lit. "Muddy stream") unfinished.[3]

Legacy

[edit]
Photo of Yūzō Yamamoto by Tadahiko Hayashi, 1954

Yamamoto's works have been translated into English, French, German and other languages. His play The Sad Tale of a Woman, the Story of Chink Okichi served as the basis for the 1940 play Die Judith von Shimoda by Bertolt Brecht and Hella Wuolijoki.[10] His works have also repeatedly been adapted for film and television.

In 1996, Yamamoto's house in Mitaka, Tokyo, which had been expropriated during the occupation period following World War II, was converted into the Mitaka City Yūzō Yamamoto Memorial Museum.[11] A museum dedicated to his memory was also opened in his hometown Tochigi.[12]

Works (selected)

[edit]
  • 1920: Crown of Life (生命の冠, Inochi no kanmuri) stage play
  • 1920: Infanticide (嬰児殺し, Eijigoroshi) stage play
  • 1921: Sakazaki, Lord Dewa (坂崎出羽守, Sakazaki Dewa no Kami) stage play
  • 1923: Dōshi no hitobito (同志の人々) stage play
  • 1926: Nami (波) novel
  • 1929: The Sad Tale of a Woman, the Story of Chink Okichi (Nyonin Aishi, Tojin Okichi monogatari) stage play
  • 1933: Onna no isshō (女の一生) novel
  • 1935: Shinjitsu ichiro (真実一路) novel
  • 1937: Robō no ishi (路傍の石) novel
  • 1938: Sensō to futari no fujin (戦争と二人の夫人)

Film and television adaptations (selected)

[edit]
  • 1936: Seimei no kanmuri (dir. Tomu Uchida)
  • 1937: Shinjitsu ichiro: Chichi no maki/Haha no maki (dir. Tomotaka Tasaka)
  • 1938: Robō no ishi (dir. Tomotaka Tasaka)
  • 1952: Nami (dir. Noboru Nakamura)
  • 1955: Onna no isshō (dir. Noboru Nakamura)
  • 1955: Robō no ishi (dir. Kenkichi Hara)
  • 1962: Nami (dir. Tadashi Imai)
  • 1964: A Pebble by the Wayside a.k.a. Wayside Pebble (Robō no ishi, dir. Miyoji Ieki)
  • 1993: Shinjitsu ichiro (dir. Kon Ichikawa)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g "山本有三 紹介 (Introducing Yūzō Yamamoto)". 公益財団法人三鷹市スポーツと文化財団 (Mitaka City Sports and Culture Foundation) (in Japanese). Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e Miller, J. Scott (2010). The A to Z of Modern Japanese Literature and Theater. Scarecrow Press. p. 142. ISBN 9781461731887.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "山本 有三 (Yamamoto Yūzō)". Kotobank (in Japanese). Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  4. ^ a b Fosdick, Carolyn E.; Edades, Jean G., eds. (1956). Drama of the East and West: A Critical Anthology of Plays, with Special Sections on Oriental and Philippine Drama. The University of Michigan. p. 74.
  5. ^ Jaroslav Průšek; Zbigniew Słupski, eds. (1978). Dictionary of Oriental Literatures: East Asia. Charles E. Tuttle Company. p. 206.
  6. ^ Unger, J. Marshall (1996). Literacy and Script Reform in Occupation Japan: Reading Between the Lines. Oxford University Press. p. 26. ISBN 9780195356380.
  7. ^ "路傍の石 (Robō no ishi)". Kotobank (in Japanese). Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  8. ^ Walthall, Anne; Frühstück, Sabine, eds. (2017). Child's Play: Multi-Sensory Histories of Children and Childhood in Japan. University of California Press. p. 109. ISBN 9780520296275.
  9. ^ Hutchinson, Rachael, ed. (2013). Negotiating Censorship in Modern Japan. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9781135069810.
  10. ^ "Wie neu ist dieses Brecht-Stück wirklich?". Welt.de (in German). 8 September 2008. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  11. ^ "三鷹市山本有三記念館 (Yuzo Yamamoto Memorial Museum, Mitaka City)". 公益財団法人三鷹市スポーツと文化財団 (Mitaka City Sports and Culture Foundation) (in Japanese). Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  12. ^ "山本有三ふるさと記念館 (Yuzo Yamamoto Furusato Memorial Hall)". 公益財団法人三鷹市スポーツと文化財団 (Tochigi City Tourist Association) (in Japanese). Retrieved 5 July 2022.
[edit]
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