Sakae Kubo: Difference between revisions
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==The Land of Volcanic Ash== |
==The Land of Volcanic Ash== |
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''The Land of Volcanic Ash'' was Kubo Sakae's most prized works was written in 1937. It was translated into English by [[David Goodman]] in December 1993.<ref name="Cornell Univ East Asia Program"/> This play |
''The Land of Volcanic Ash'' was Kubo Sakae's most prized works was written in 1937. It was translated into English by [[David Goodman]] in December 1993.<ref name="Cornell Univ East Asia Program"/> This play takes place in Hokkaido from late 1935 to the autumn of 1936 in the city of [[Obihiro]] and also the village of [[Otofuke]] and describes the life of an agricultural community. Because of this area's dynamic climate, crops were devastated and villages went hungry. There was various opinions in Kubo's style in this play and [[Murayama Tomoyoshi]] who had directed this play in 1961-62 believed that Kubo's obscure sense of socialism was nearly impossible to understand which had made it interesting and still continued to inspire audiences.<ref name=A>{{cite book|last1=Goodman|first1=David|title=The Land of Volcanic Ash|date=December 1993|publisher=Cornell University East Asia Papers, No. 40|isbn=978-0939657834|page=9|accessdate=2 June 2015}}</ref> Kubo had tried to present a play that was scientifically accurate, but also something that would change people's opinions on social issues. This play accurately portrayed the agricultural decline in Japan during the same period of time. Because of the crop failures in Japan in the years 1931-35, causing a great depression in Japan's economy,<ref name=A>{{cite book|last1=Goodman|first1=David|title=The Land of Volcanic Ash|date=December 1993|publisher=Cornell University East Asia Papers, No. 40|isbn=978-0939657834|page=11|accessdate=2 June 2015}}</ref> This play shows the hardships that society dealt with. |
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==The Death of Kubo== |
==The Death of Kubo== |
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Revision as of 23:29, 15 June 2015
Sakae Kubo | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | December 28, 1900 Sapporo, Hokkaido |
| Died | March 15, 1958 (aged 57) |
| Occupation | playwright, translator |
| Language | Japanese and German |
| Nationality | Japan |
| Alma mater | Tokyo Imperial University |
| Genre | Shingeki |
| Notable works | The Land of Volcanic Ash |
Sakae Kubo (久保 栄, Kubo Sakae, December 28, 1900 – March 15, 1958) was a Japanese playwright and director. Kubo studied and translated German literature at Tokyo Imperial University and then soon he became the disciple of another famous playwright and theatre director, Kaoru Osanai.[1] From his mentor, Kubo had adopted Shingeki theater, a new type of drama that developed in Japan in the early 20th century under the influence of Western-style theater. To honor the death of his teacher, Kubo began to write one of his most famous works, which was The Land of Volcanic Ash: A Play in Two Parts, translated by David Goodman. This play was most recognized for its focus on socialism that was depicted in pre-war Japan. It is seen as realist drama, for it describes the struggles of a reform-minded intellectual in the Hokkaido countryside which took place during the Soviet famine of 1932–33.[2]
Early life
Kubo was the second son if seven children in his family, born to his father Hyotaro Kubo. The Kubo family had migrated to Hokkaido in 1898 because they had to assist in their family's brick foundry business.[3] Once Kubo was old enough to start his education, he was placed into care from his father's youngest brother and spent his first three years of grade school in Tokyo. Later, Sakae was reunited with his family of birth and resided back in Hokkaido, but quickly returned back to Tokyo for High school. Sakae's father wished for him to become a doctor, but he refused and dropped out of High School in Tokyo in 1919.[4] Instead of studying the physical sciences, he began publishing poetry in Hototogisu and Mizugame, which were two leading magazines for poetry during this time.[4] Shortly after dropping out of high school, Sakae moved back to Hokkaido to practice oil painting and study Japanese literature.[4]
Literary career
In April 1923, Sakae had entered the German department at Tokyo Imperial University where he translated works of German drama and finished with a thesis titled "The Historical Plays of Georg Kaiser." During the course of his college career, he translated over thirty German plays, including works from Frank Wedekind and Gerhart Hauptmann [5] After joining the literary department of the Tsukiji Little Theatre in March 1926, he met Kaoru Osanai, the founder of this new theater. After Kubo and became interested in Osanai's new Japanese modern drama, also known as Shingeki style, he soon began to write The Land of Volcanic Ash. This was one of Kubo's most well known works and was dedicated to his mentor, Osanai. Unfortunately, Osanai died shortly after on December 25, 1928 at the age of 47, causing the Tsukiji theater group to split into literary and political camps.[5] Kubo had become the leader of that very political group, who all had engaged in Marxist views and worked under a variety of left-wing troupes. This unnamed group shortly became the Shinkyo Troupe in 1934, which was founded by Kubo after creating the new troupe's new philosophy, "Our realism captures the innermost truths of man and society...they develop toward a higher stage of unity. Without reducing them to stereotypes and without vulgarization, we clarify them in therms of the typical form of conflict and formulate them with artistry and style" [6] After Kubo had finally finished writing The Land of Volcanic Ash, the government had found this play to be problematic, for it showed highly accurate detail of the agricultural conditions of Hokkaido in the mid 1930's. Since Japan was shortly pushed into war with China, the government arrested members of the Shinkyo troupe. in 1940, Kubo was arrested alongside the other group members, and they were imprisoned for their plays, which violated the government's censorship laws.
The Land of Volcanic Ash
The Land of Volcanic Ash was Kubo Sakae's most prized works was written in 1937. It was translated into English by David Goodman in December 1993.[2] This play takes place in Hokkaido from late 1935 to the autumn of 1936 in the city of Obihiro and also the village of Otofuke and describes the life of an agricultural community. Because of this area's dynamic climate, crops were devastated and villages went hungry. There was various opinions in Kubo's style in this play and Murayama Tomoyoshi who had directed this play in 1961-62 believed that Kubo's obscure sense of socialism was nearly impossible to understand which had made it interesting and still continued to inspire audiences.[4] Kubo had tried to present a play that was scientifically accurate, but also something that would change people's opinions on social issues. This play accurately portrayed the agricultural decline in Japan during the same period of time. Because of the crop failures in Japan in the years 1931-35, causing a great depression in Japan's economy,[4] This play shows the hardships that society dealt with.
The Death of Kubo
Ever since Kubo had strayed away from his father's wishes for him to become a doctor and instead, pursued the literary life, he began to experienced nervous breakdowns which had became an issue throughout Kubo's life. There wasn't a valid reason for his anxiety attacks, but it was only noted that he felt unyielding pressure for becoming both a successful writer and fulfilling his father's dream of becoming a scientist.[7] Because of this event, Kubo continued to suffer from chronic states of depression over the course of his literary career and was then hospitalized in 1953 as his psychological illness became worse. With no further recovery, Kubo Sakae had committed suicide on the morning of March 15, 1958.[8] Kubo's death had made an impact in Japanese theater and society because it had regenerated the Shingeki movement. It also rewarded him with one of his motives to overthrow Communism in Japan after the mass arrest of Communists in Japan several years prior of the same date of his suicide.[8]
Major Works
Kubo Sakae's writing style was influenced from German literature. He had translated over 30 plays from various renowned German authors.
- The Land of Volcanic Ash: A Play in Two Parts (1937)
- Ringoen nikki (林檎園日記, Apple Orchard Diary, 1947)
- Nihon no kisho (日本の気象, Weather in Japan, 1953)
- Noborigama (1933)
- Goryokaku kessho (五稜郭血書, Blood Petition from Goryokaku Castle, 1933)
Notes
- ^ Kennedy, Dennis (2010). The Oxford Companion to Theatre and Performance (1st ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199574193.
- ^ a b Goodman, David (December 1993). Land of Volcanic Ash: A Play in Two Parts (Cornell University East Asia Papers, No. 40). Cornell Univ East Asia Program. ISBN 978-0939657834.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ Goodman, David (December 1993). The Land of Volcanic Ash. Cornell University East Asia Papers, No. 40. p. 5. ISBN 978-0939657834.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ a b c d e Goodman, David (December 1993). The Land of Volcanic Ash. Cornell University East Asia Papers, No. 40. p. 6. ISBN 978-0939657834.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) Cite error: The named reference "A" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page). - ^ a b Goodman, David (December 1993). The Land of Volcanic Ash. Cornell University East Asia Papers, No. 40. p. 7. ISBN 978-0939657834.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ Sugai, Yukio (1979). Kindai nihon engeki ronsoshi. Miraisha. pp. 210–211.
- ^ Goodman, David (December 1993). The Land of Volcanic Ash. Cornell University East Asia Papers, No. 40. p. 6. ISBN 978-0939657834.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ a b Goodman, David (December 1993). The Land of Volcanic Ash. Cornell University East Asia Papers, No. 40. p. 10. ISBN 978-0939657834.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help)
References
- Gillespie, John. "The Journal of Asian Studies". JSTOR. Association for Asian Studies. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
- Powell, Brian. "Journal of Japanese Studies". JSTOR. The Society for Japanese Studies. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
- Rimer, Mori, Poulton, J. Thomas, Mitsuya, M. Cody (18 Mar, 2014). The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Drama. Columbia University Press. p. 737. ISBN 9780231128308.