Tokuda Shūsei

Tokuda Shūsei (born Dec. 23, 1871, Kanazawa, Japan—died Nov. 18, 1943, Tokyo) was a novelist who, with Masamune Hakuchō, Tayama Katai, and Shimazaki Tōson, was one of the “four pillars” of naturalism.

Shūsei left Kanazawa in 1894 to become a disciple of Ozaki Kōyō, then the leader of the literary world. Shūsei’s talents were not suited to Kōyō’s lush romantic style, and he was slow to gain recognition. But when, after the Russo-Japanese War (1904–05), the tide of literary taste began to turn toward realistic, objective description, Shūsei came into his own. His direct, terse style, seemingly drab by earlier standards, was the perfect vehicle for his sharp, unsentimental portrayal of people living economically and emotionally depressed lives. Arajotai (1907; “The New Household”), recounting the life of the wife of a small businessman, brought him his first public recognition. Ashiato (1910; “Footprints”), about the passivity of his own wife’s early life, and Kabi (1911; “Mold”), describing the circumstances of their marriage, continue the theme of inertia and general hopelessness, as does Tadare (1914; “Festering”). Arakure (1915; “The Tough One”) presents a particularly fine portrait of a strong-willed woman. A more mellow tone appeared in Kasō jimbutsu (1935–38; “A Disguised Man”), the story of his love affair with a young would-be writer, and Shukuzu (1941–46; “Miniature”), the life of an aging geisha as she recounts it to her patron. His sharp observation and firm character delineation produced some of the most memorable portraits in Japanese literature.