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Japanese Literary Theories

An Anthology

Edited and translated by Irina Holca - Edited by Yasusuke Ōura - Translated by Erin L. Brightwell; Andre de Haag; Irina Holca; Gregory Khezrnejat; Clarence I-Zhuen Lee; Takeshi Morisato; Roman Pașca and Yoshitaka Yamamoto - Contributions by Yoshiki Hidaka; Hiroshi Iijima; Masahiro Iwamatsu; Manabu Kawada; Akira Kikuchi; Naoko Kitamura Iwamatsu; Akihiro Kubo; Tomoyuki Nagata; Tomoe Nakamura; Atsuko Nishikawa; Yasusuke Ōura; Shō Saitō and Kayo Sasao

Japanese Literary Theories: An Anthology is the English translation of the 2017 volume edited by Yasusuke Ōura (Nihon Bungaku Riron: Ansorojii), which grew from a unique collaboration between scholars of Western literatures and scholars of modern Japanese literature. Its eight thematic chapters on various aspects of literary theory each contain excerpts from representative texts by Japanese intellectuals, discussed against the background of Japan’s ongoing negotiations with foreign ideas. The anthology offers a comprehensive image of the development of Japanese literary theories, from the beginning of the Meiji period in 1868 and up to the present day. The translation of this anthology, another collaborative project, brings to the English-speaking reader heretofore untranslated pieces by Japanese critics, scholars, and creative writers, providing a point of entry into a variety of intellectual discourses from modern and contemporary Japan. It enriches the repertoire of literary theories available in English, while shedding light on the ways in which literature and literary theory travel back and forth within various linguistic spheres, serving as central loci of intellectual negotiation.

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Lexington Books
Pages: 244 • Trim: 6⅜ x 9⅜
978-1-66696-313-7 • Hardback • October 2024 • $115.00 • (£88.00)
978-1-66696-314-4 • eBook • October 2024 • $50.00 • (£38.00)
Subjects: Literary Criticism / Asian / Japanese, Social Science / Ethnic Studies / Asian Studies, Literary Criticism / Comparative Literature

Irina Holca, editor of the English translation, is associate professor of modern and contemporary Japanese literature at Tokyo University of Foreign Studies/

Yasusuke Ōura, editor of the Japanese anthology, is a specialist in literary theory and professor emeritus at Kyoto University.

Introduction

Irina Holca

Chapter 1: Theories of The Novel

Yasusuke Ōura and Tomoe Nakamura/ Tr. Gregory Khezrnejat

Chapter 2: Theories of Description

Akihiro Kubo and Tomoe Nakamura/ Tr. Erin L. Brightwell and Irina Holca

Chapter 3: Theories of Narrative

Manabu Kawada, Kayo Sasao, and Atsuko Nishikawa/ Tr. Yoshitaka Yamamoto and Roman Pașca

Chapter 4: Theories of Poetic Language

Masahiro Iwamatsu, Shō Saitō, and Tomoe Nakamura/ Tr. Yoshitaka Yamamoto

Chapter 5: Theories of Fiction

Hiroshi Iijima, Naoko Kitamura Iwamatsu, and Yoshiki Hidaka/ Tr. Gregory Khezrnejat and Takeshi Morisato

Chapter 6: Theories of The Reader

Masahiro Iwamatsu, Akira Kikuchi, and Kayo Sasao/ Tr. Clarence I-Zhuen Lee and Roman Pașca

Chapter 7: Theories of Origin, Theories of Emergence

Akira Kikuchi, Akihiro Kubo, and Atsuko Nishikawa/ Tr. Andre de Haag and Clarence I-Zhuen Lee

Chapter 8: What is Literature?

Yasusuke Ōura and Tomoyuki Nagata/ Tr. Takeshi Morisato

“Japanese Literary Theories: An Anthology brings a diverse selection of modern Japanese literary-theoretical texts, including overlooked works rarely explored beyond Japan, to an English-speaking audience. By combining excerpts and informative introductions, this book fills a major void in our understanding of literary theory and thought in modern Japan. Chapters organized around literary concepts such as description and poetic language present to us a sustained reflection and discussion in a non-Western literary tradition and prompt us to rethink key literary concepts critically. I recommend this volume to scholars and graduate students in modern Japanese literature and comparative literature.”


— Shion Kono, Sophia University


Japanese Literary Theories

An Anthology

Cover Image
Hardback
eBook
Summary
Summary
  • Japanese Literary Theories: An Anthology is the English translation of the 2017 volume edited by Yasusuke Ōura (Nihon Bungaku Riron: Ansorojii), which grew from a unique collaboration between scholars of Western literatures and scholars of modern Japanese literature. Its eight thematic chapters on various aspects of literary theory each contain excerpts from representative texts by Japanese intellectuals, discussed against the background of Japan’s ongoing negotiations with foreign ideas. The anthology offers a comprehensive image of the development of Japanese literary theories, from the beginning of the Meiji period in 1868 and up to the present day. The translation of this anthology, another collaborative project, brings to the English-speaking reader heretofore untranslated pieces by Japanese critics, scholars, and creative writers, providing a point of entry into a variety of intellectual discourses from modern and contemporary Japan. It enriches the repertoire of literary theories available in English, while shedding light on the ways in which literature and literary theory travel back and forth within various linguistic spheres, serving as central loci of intellectual negotiation.

Details
Details
  • Lexington Books
    Pages: 244 • Trim: 6⅜ x 9⅜
    978-1-66696-313-7 • Hardback • October 2024 • $115.00 • (£88.00)
    978-1-66696-314-4 • eBook • October 2024 • $50.00 • (£38.00)
    Subjects: Literary Criticism / Asian / Japanese, Social Science / Ethnic Studies / Asian Studies, Literary Criticism / Comparative Literature
Author
Author
  • Irina Holca, editor of the English translation, is associate professor of modern and contemporary Japanese literature at Tokyo University of Foreign Studies/

    Yasusuke Ōura, editor of the Japanese anthology, is a specialist in literary theory and professor emeritus at Kyoto University.

Table of Contents
Table of Contents
  • Introduction

    Irina Holca

    Chapter 1: Theories of The Novel

    Yasusuke Ōura and Tomoe Nakamura/ Tr. Gregory Khezrnejat

    Chapter 2: Theories of Description

    Akihiro Kubo and Tomoe Nakamura/ Tr. Erin L. Brightwell and Irina Holca

    Chapter 3: Theories of Narrative

    Manabu Kawada, Kayo Sasao, and Atsuko Nishikawa/ Tr. Yoshitaka Yamamoto and Roman Pașca

    Chapter 4: Theories of Poetic Language

    Masahiro Iwamatsu, Shō Saitō, and Tomoe Nakamura/ Tr. Yoshitaka Yamamoto

    Chapter 5: Theories of Fiction

    Hiroshi Iijima, Naoko Kitamura Iwamatsu, and Yoshiki Hidaka/ Tr. Gregory Khezrnejat and Takeshi Morisato

    Chapter 6: Theories of The Reader

    Masahiro Iwamatsu, Akira Kikuchi, and Kayo Sasao/ Tr. Clarence I-Zhuen Lee and Roman Pașca

    Chapter 7: Theories of Origin, Theories of Emergence

    Akira Kikuchi, Akihiro Kubo, and Atsuko Nishikawa/ Tr. Andre de Haag and Clarence I-Zhuen Lee

    Chapter 8: What is Literature?

    Yasusuke Ōura and Tomoyuki Nagata/ Tr. Takeshi Morisato

Reviews
Reviews
  • “Japanese Literary Theories: An Anthology brings a diverse selection of modern Japanese literary-theoretical texts, including overlooked works rarely explored beyond Japan, to an English-speaking audience. By combining excerpts and informative introductions, this book fills a major void in our understanding of literary theory and thought in modern Japan. Chapters organized around literary concepts such as description and poetic language present to us a sustained reflection and discussion in a non-Western literary tradition and prompt us to rethink key literary concepts critically. I recommend this volume to scholars and graduate students in modern Japanese literature and comparative literature.”


    — Shion Kono, Sophia University


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