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Hiroki Azuma

あずま ひろき

Azuma Hiroki

Pen Names: hazuma（Handle used on social media and his website）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1971-05-09 （Mitaka, Tokyo, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese, English
Religion
Non-religious (has said he believes in a concept of 'God')
Residence History
Mitaka, Tokyo, Japan → Aoba Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan → Tokyo, Japan (residence / activity base)

Career

Occupations
critic, philosopher, writer, editor, university professor, entrepreneur
Active Years
1993-
Affiliations
The University of Tokyo, GLOCOM (Center for Global Communications, International University of Japan), Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI), Tokyo Institute of Technology (Visiting / Special Appointment), Waseda University (visiting professor / professor), Genron Co., Ltd. (founder), ZEN University (Faculty of Intelligence and Information Society — professor)
Memberships
Japan SF Writers Club (former member; left in 2014), Mystery Writers of Japan
Influenced By
Jacques Derrida, Félix Guattari, Mikhail Bakhtin, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Karatani Kōjin, Hannah Arendt, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Richard Rorty, Ludwig Wittgenstein
Influenced
Sayawaka, Uno Tsunehiro, Masaya Chiba, Koichiro Kokubun, Ryōsuke Nishida, Kensuke Suzuki

Education

Tsukuba University Komaba High School (Attached School)
Degree: 高等学校卒業
Period: 1987-1990
Year of Graduation: 1990
Country: Japan
The University of Tokyo — College of Arts and Sciences
College of Arts and Sciences / History and Philosophy of Science
Degree: 学士
Period: 1990-1994
Year of Graduation: 1994
Country: Japan
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo
Program in Interdisciplinary Cultural Studies / Interdisciplinary Cultural Studies (doctoral program)
Degree: 博士（学術）
Period: 1994-1999
Year of Graduation: 1999
Country: Japan
Doctoral thesis: 'Ontological, Postal: Late Jacques Derrida's Thought and Psychoanalysis'

Awards

Suntory Academic Award (Thought & History)
1999
Work: Ontological, Postal: On Jacques Derrida
Category: 思想・歴史
Organization: Suntory Foundation
Result: 受賞
Mishima Yukio Prize
2010
Work: Quantum Families
Organization: Mishima Yukio Prize Committee
Result: 受賞
Kinokuniya 'Jinbun' Award (Grand Prize)
2015
Work: Weak Ties
Organization: Kinokuniya Bookstore
Result: 受賞（大賞）
Booklog Grand Prize (Humanities)
2017
Work: Genron 0 — Philosophy of the Tourist
Category: 人文書部門
Organization: Booklog
Result: 受賞
Mainichi Publishing Culture Award (71st)
2017
Work: Genron 0 — Philosophy of the Tourist
Organization: Mainichi Newspapers
Result: 受賞
Azusakai Publishing Culture Award (Special Prize)
2020
Work: Genron Co., Ltd. (publishing activities)
Organization: Azusakai Publishing Association
Result: 特別賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Ontological, Postal: On Jacques Derrida

1998 Philosophy / Contemporary thought

A close study of Jacques Derrida's later thought (based on his doctoral thesis), introducing concepts such as the 'postal' and 'misdelivery' and reinterpreting deconstruction and transcendence.

deconstructiontranscendencemisdeliverypostal space

Postal Anxieties

1999 Essay / Criticism collection

A collection of early essays covering Derrida studies, postmodernism, and intersections with subculture.

postmodernismsubculturecriticism

The Animalization of the Postmodern — Japan Seen from Otaku

2001 Social thought / Cultural studies

Using otaku culture as analytical material, this work discusses contemporary subjectivity and consumption with concepts such as 'animalization' and 'database consumption'.

animalizationdatabase consumptionotaku cultureinformation society
Translations
  • Otaku: Japan's Database Animals (English translation / related essays)

Quantum Families

2009 Novel (Science Fiction)

A long-form SF novel dealing with parallel worlds and possible-worlds theory; it presents philosophical problems narratively and connects criticism/philosophy with fiction.

parallel worldspossible-worlds theoryfamily

General Will 2.0 — Rousseau, Freud, Google

2011 Political thought / Social theory

A re-reading of Rousseau's general will in light of contemporary technologies (SNS, search engines), arguing for 'animalistic' publicness and pity-based forms of collective action.

general willpublicnessRousseauinformation society
Translations
  • General Will 2.0: Rousseau, Freud, Google

Weak Ties — A Journey to Find Search Words

2014 Essay / Thought

An essay using the 'tourist' metaphor to argue for changing one's environment, embracing contingency, and the importance of 'weak ties' in life.

touristcontingencyweak tiesphilosophy of life

Genron 0 — Philosophy of the Tourist

2017 Philosophy / Essay

A concise philosophical essay consolidating ideas since 'Weak Ties', discussing tourist-like thinking and its relation to contemporary society.

touristpractice of thoughtpublicness
Translations
  • Philosophy of the Tourist (English edition / related publications)

Philosophy of Correctability

2023 Philosophy

A philosophical study of error, correction, and the possibility of revision in thought, grounded in recent intellectual and social experiences.

correctabilityethics of knowledgecommunity

Bibliography

  • Ontological, Postal: On Jacques Derrida
  • Postal Anxieties
  • The Animalization of the Postmodern — Japan Seen from Otaku
  • Quantum Families
  • General Will 2.0 — Rousseau, Freud, Google
  • Weak Ties — A Journey to Find Search Words
  • Genron 0 — Philosophy of the Tourist
  • Philosophy of Correctability
  • Closer to the World
  • The Birth of Game-like Realism

Adaptations

  • Fractale (TV anime — original story concept)

Translations of Works

  • Otaku: Japan's Database Animals
  • General Will 2.0: Rousseau, Freud, Google
  • Philosophy of the Tourist

Style & Themes

Literary Style
conceptual, analytical prosemix of philosophical essay and criticisminterdisciplinary (humanities + sciences) approach
Recurring Motifs
misdeliverypostal / postal spaceanimalizationdatabase consumptiontouristweak ties

Legacy

One of the leading voices in contemporary Japanese criticism and thought. He introduced influential conceptual frameworks for otaku culture and the information society, and through Genron's publishing and event activities expanded spaces for criticism, shaping a generation of younger researchers and critics.

Academic Societies

  • Society for Representational Culture
  • Japan SF Writers Club (former affiliation)

Archives

  • Hiroki Azuma archives (hirokiazuma.com and related archives)
  • Genron (publisher) archives
  • Hajou Genron (former media) archives

In Popular Culture

  • Consolidation and re-evaluation of otaku culture studies (influencing both academia and media)
  • Popularization of cultural debates around bishōjo games and light novels
  • Promotion of debates on publicness and social media in the internet age

Quotes

  • Philosophy is a kind of tourism.
    Source: Weak Ties — (introduction) (2014)
  • He has said he does not believe in occult or mystical experiences, but that he 'believes in God' (in a conceptual sense).
    Source: Interview / public remarks (summary) (2011)

Trivia

  • Enjoys white wine.
  • Married to novelist Sanae Hoshio (Hoshio Sanae).
  • Has a daughter named Shione (publicly reported).
  • Was a member of the Japan SF Writers Club but left in 2014.
  • Uses the handle 'hazuma' on Twitter / social media.