Oya Soichi Nonfiction Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 2 (1971) award
Isaiah Ben-Dasan
イザヤ・ベンダサン
Izaya Bendasan
Aliases:
山本七平
Pen Names:
Isaiah Ben-Dasan（Pen name used by Shichihei Yamamoto (a pseudonymous author identity)）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- Yamamoto-dori, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan (birthplace attributed to the pen name)
- Nationality
- Japan
- Languages
- Japanese
- Religion
- Judaism (ascribed to the pen name)
- Residence History
- Yamamoto-dori, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan (ascribed to the pen name)
Career
- Occupations
- Writer, Essayist, Editor (ascribed to the pen name)
- Active Years
- 1970-
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Oya Soichi Nonfiction Award | The Japanese and the Jews | — | Oya Soichi Nonfiction Award | winner |
Oya Soichi Nonfiction Award
Work:
The Japanese and the Jews
Organization:
Oya Soichi Nonfiction Award
Result:
winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
The Japanese and the Jews
1970 Non-fictionA comparative study that discusses Japanese culture, religion and national character via contrasts with Jews. It became a bestseller and sparked controversy and criticism over the author's identity and content.
Japanese identityJewish identitycomparative culture
Translations
- English edition translated from the Japanese edition (the Japanese text was translated into English)
Bibliography
- The Japanese and the Jews
- The Japanese and the Chinese
- Japanese Believers
- Japanese Merchants
- About Japanese Religion
Translations of Works
- The Japanese and the Jews (English translation)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- essayisticcomparative cultural analysis
- Recurring Motifs
- comparisons of national characterrelation between religion and culture
Legacy
The Japanese and the Jews became a bestseller, triggering controversy and criticism over the pseudonymous authorship. It helped spark a trend of comparative 'Japanese and X' books and fostered skepticism about works published under foreign-sounding names, leaving a lasting effect on Japan's publishing culture and discourse.
In Popular Culture
- Parodies and references such as Yoshinori Shimizu's 'Soba to Kishimen' (a parody)
Quotes
-
"I do not hold the copyright, so in the concept of authorship under copyright law I am not the author."
Source: Shichihei Yamamoto, Jitsugyo no Nihon, No.1899, 1977 (1977)
Trivia
- Isaiah Ben-Dasan is regarded as a pen name used by Shichihei Yamamoto.
- The Japanese and the Jews became a major bestseller with reported combined sales exceeding three million copies (figures vary by source).
- There is speculation about the origin of the pen name (e.g., a folk etymology), but its true origin is unclear.