Art Encouragement Newcomer Award of the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
1 appearances
-
Edition 55 (2005) award
Masahiko Nishi
にし まさひこ
Nishi Masahiko
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1955-01-27 （Okayama Prefecture, Japan）
- Nationality
- Japan
- Languages
- Japanese, English, Polish, Yiddish
- Residence History
- Okayama Prefecture → Hyogo Prefecture → Kumamoto (Kumamoto University) → Kyoto (Ritsumeikan University)
Career
- Occupations
- Literary scholar, Translator, University professor
- Active Years
- 1980-
- Affiliations
- Kumamoto University (Associate Professor), Ritsumeikan University, Faculty of Letters (Professor), Ritsumeikan University Graduate School of Advanced Studies (Professor / Specially Appointed Professor)
- Memberships
- Japanese Association for Comparative Literature (President 2015-2019)
- Influenced By
- Lafcadio Hearn, Kenji Miyazawa, Witold Gombrowicz
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Tokyo, College of Arts and Sciences (French) | College of Arts and Sciences | Department of French | BA | 1973-1977 | Japan |
| University of Tokyo Graduate School, Humanities | Graduate School of Humanities | Comparative Literature and Culture | — | — | Japan |
| Studied in Poland | — | — | — | — | Poland |
University of Tokyo, College of Arts and Sciences (French)
College of Arts and Sciences
/ Department of French
Degree:
BA
Period:
1973-1977
Year of Graduation:
1977
Country:
Japan
University of Tokyo Graduate School, Humanities
Graduate School of Humanities
/ Comparative Literature and Culture
Country:
Japan
Left doctoral program without completing degree
Studied in Poland
Country:
Poland
Studied abroad in Poland
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Kumamoto Nichinichi Newspaper Literary Prize | Lafcadio Hearn's Ear | — | Kumamoto Nichinichi Shimbun | winner |
| 1998 | Japanese Association for Comparative Literature Prize | Forest Guerrilla: Kenji Miyazawa | — | Japanese Association for Comparative Literature | winner |
| 2005 | Art Encouragement Prize (Newcomer) | Pleasure of the Ear | — | Agency for Cultural Affairs (selection) | winner |
| 2019 | Yomiuri Literary Prize | Pilgrimage to the Colonies: Transborder Japanese Literature | — | The Yomiuri Shimbun | winner |
Kumamoto Nichinichi Newspaper Literary Prize
1994
Work:
Lafcadio Hearn's Ear
Organization:
Kumamoto Nichinichi Shimbun
Result:
winner
Japanese Association for Comparative Literature Prize
1998
Work:
Forest Guerrilla: Kenji Miyazawa
Organization:
Japanese Association for Comparative Literature
Result:
winner
Art Encouragement Prize (Newcomer)
2005
Work:
Pleasure of the Ear
Organization:
Agency for Cultural Affairs (selection)
Result:
winner
Yomiuri Literary Prize
2019
Work:
Pilgrimage to the Colonies: Transborder Japanese Literature
Organization:
The Yomiuri Shimbun
Result:
winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Lafcadio Hearn's Ear
1993 Literary criticismA study analyzing the relationship between Lafcadio Hearn's works and narration, focusing on Hearn and the women around him.
Lafcadio HearnGender and narrationTranslation and reception
Forest Guerrilla: Kenji Miyazawa
1997 Literary criticismA comparative-literary reading of Kenji Miyazawa's works and context from a 'guerrilla' perspective.
Kenji MiyazawaComparative literatureTransborder qualities
Pleasure of the Ear: Lafcadio Hearn and the Women
2004 Literary criticismAn essay collection discussing female figures in Hearn's works and the relationship between hearing/speaking acts.
FeminismEthics of narrationReception history
Pilgrimage to the Colonies: Transborder Japanese Literature
2018 Comparative literature / Literary studiesExamines the transborder nature of Japanese-language literature and the literary phenomena arising from contact with colonies and borderlands.
TransborderColonial studiesJapanese-language literature
Bibliography
- Desire in Individualization: Introduction to Witold Gombrowicz
- Masochism and the Police
- Lafcadio Hearn's Ear
- Yiddish: Mobile Literature I
- Forest Guerrilla: Kenji Miyazawa
- Beginnings of Creole
- Pleasure of the Ear: Lafcadio Hearn and the Women
- Extraterritorial: Mobile Literature II
- Terminal Life: Landscapes of the End-of-life
- Unease about Ogai
- Bilingual Dreams and Melancholy
- Pilgrimage to the Colonies: Transborder Japanese Literature
- Literature of Voice: From Events to Human Speech
- The Dead Among the Living: Archaeology of the Holocaust
Adaptations
- Papa Is in a Bad Mood (co-authored book; film adaptation)
Translations by Author
- Imaginary Numbers (Stanisław Lem, co-translation)
- Trans-Atlantic (Witold Gombrowicz, translation)
- History of Polish Literature (co-translation)
- The Painted Bird (Jerzy Kosinski, translation)
- Tevye the Milkman (Sholem Aleichem, translation)
- Impure Blood: Selected Works of Isaac Bashevis Singer (co-translation)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Comparative-literary interpretationEssayistic critical styleEmphasis on historical and cultural context
- Recurring Motifs
- Crossing borders and mobilityLanguage and translationPeriphery and center
Legacy
Highly regarded for work in comparative literature and mobile literature that elucidates the transborder nature of Japanese-language literature, as well as for translations and teaching that introduced Polish and Yiddish literatures to Japan.
Academic Societies
- Japanese Association for Comparative Literature
Archives
- Ritsumeikan University Archives (possible holdings related to Nishi)
In Popular Culture
- The co-authored book 'Papa Is in a Bad Mood' was adapted into a film, providing a connection to popular culture.
Trivia
- Was married to poet Hiromi Ito; they co-authored works and later divorced.
- 'Papa Is in a Bad Mood' (co-authored) was adapted into a film.
- Known for translations and studies of Polish and Yiddish literature.