Abstract

Those troubles are worthy of a literary prize. Love, insults, financial hardship... The unfortunate everyday lives that troubled these extraordinary geniuses. This collection contains 20 candid and revealing works by authors such as Osamu Dazai, Ango Sakaguchi, and Soseki Natsume. The margins of masterpieces that probably won't be found in textbooks—reading the down-to-earth troubles of great writers will give you the strength to live. ----------------------------------------- When you hear the term "modern literature," what comes to mind? I'm sure it's novels like Soseki Natsume's "Kokoro," Osamu Dazai's "No Longer Human," or Rin Usami's "Oshi, Moyu." But if you think about it carefully, that's strange, isn't it? Because literature can include poetry, fairy tales, dialogues, plays, and sometimes even criticism and commentary, but when we imagine it, we're always drawn to novels. (Excerpt) As I repeatedly read these miscellaneous writings, I am surprised and amused to realize that even great literary figures are not so different from us ordinary people, or rather, they worry, suffer, and rejoice over trivial things. Love, work, changing jobs, marriage, raising children, aging, death...the anxieties never end. I realize that there is plenty of material for literature lying dormant all along, without having to travel to distant places. This also means that even the smallest events that happen in your daily life contain the seeds of literature that may one day be told as masterpieces. When you think about it that way, doesn't everything that happens before your eyes start to sparkle a little? These relatable literary giants teach us that. (Excerpt from the book's "Introduction")

Author’s Information

Yuta Araki was born in Tokyo in 1987. He is an independent researcher. He completed his master's course in Japanese literature at the Graduate School of Letters, Meiji University. In 2015, he received the Excellence Award at the 59th Gunzo New Critic Awards. His books include "For the Future of Eric Hoffer" (Tokyo Shoseki), "Takeo Arishima" (Iwanami Shinsho), and "The Harmfulness of Circles" (Shueisha Shinsho). He also edited "Beginners in Independent Research" (Akashi Shoten). Asako Sumimoto was born in Fukuoka Prefecture in 1989. She is a writer. She completed her master's course in Japanese Language and Literature at the Graduate School of Letters, Waseda University. She writes interviews, dialogues, and criticism mainly for literary magazines. Since the February 2023 issue, she has been in charge of the monthly review of new novels in "Bungakukai".