Japanese Literary Awards

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Kigi Takataro

きぎ たかたろう

Kigi Takataro

Aliases: 林 髞
Pen Names: Hayashi Kyūsaku（Pen name taken from a family ancestor; used for early translations and poetry.）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1897-05-06 （Yamanashi Prefecture, Nishiyamanashi District, Yamashiro Village (now Kōfu City), Japan）
Died
1969-10-31 （Chūō, Tokyo, Japan (died at St. Luke's International Hospital)） age 72
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Kōfu, Yamanashi, Japan → Chūō, Tokyo, Japan → Leningrad (study abroad, USSR)

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Poet, Physiologist, Physician, Professor, Translator
Active Years
1915-1969
Affiliations
Keio University (Faculty of Medicine, faculty), Hayashi Research Institute (director), Society for the Promotion of Scientific Knowledge (councilor)
Memberships
Japan Detective Writers Club (later Japan Mystery Writers Association), Society for the Promotion of Scientific Knowledge, Mita Bungaku (editorial board)
Influenced By
Ivan Pavlov, Fukusi Kōjirō

Education

Keio University
Faculty of Medicine / Department of Medicine
Degree: 医学士
Period: 1918-1924
Year of Graduation: 1924
Country: Japan
Entered preparatory medical course in 1918; active in literary circles and journals during study.
Keio University
Faculty of Medicine / Department of Physiology
Degree: 博士（医学）
Period: 1924-1928
Year of Graduation: 1928
Country: Japan
Doctoral thesis: 'On the propagation of nerve stimulation currents'.

Awards

Naoki Prize (Naoki Sanjūgo Award)
1937
Work: Jinsei no Ahō (Life's Fool)
Organization: Naoki Prize Selection Committee
Result: 受賞
Detective Writers Club Award — Short Story
1948
Work: Shingetsu (short story)
Category: 短編
Organization: Detective Writers Club
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Mōmaku Myakushishō (Retinal Phosphenes)

1934 Detective short story

Debut detective short story that incorporates medical themes of vision and perception.

visionmedicinedetective

Jinsei no Ahō (Life's Fool)

1936 Long detective novel

A long detective novel exemplifying his theory of detective fiction; awarded the Naoki Prize (1937).

logical reasoninghuman psychologyethics

Bungaku Shōjo (The Literary Girl)

1937 Short story

A short story about a young woman's passion for literature.

youthliteraturedesire

Orisu

1938 Detective novel

A detective novel featuring Dr. Shiga; notable for weaving medical knowledge into the plot.

medicinecrimedetection

Eien no Joshū (The Eternal Female Prisoner)

Short/Novella

A psychologically driven piece concerning a female defendant/prisoner; part of his shorter works.

prisonfemale psychologyatonement

Bibliography

  • Jinsei no Ahō (Life's Fool)
  • Mōmaku Myakushishō (Retinal Phosphenes)
  • Orisu
  • Bungaku Shōjo (The Literary Girl)
  • Moonlight and Moths (poetry collection)
  • The Book to Become Smarter
  • Zunō (The Brain)

Translations by Author

  • Translated Ivan P. Pavlov, 'Conditioned Reflexes: Lectures on the Functioning of the Cerebral Hemispheres'
  • Translated Michael Innes, 'The Rector's Death'
  • Translated Herbert Breen, 'You Can Quit Smoking'

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Detective style emphasizing logical reasoningEssays and fiction that incorporate physiological and scientific viewpointsCalm psychological depiction with experimental expression
Recurring Motifs
conditioned reflex/physiological motifsvision and sensory issuesintelligence and diet (head-brain bread theory)

Health

  • Myocardial infarction
    1969年4月〜1969年10月（入院〜死去）
    Hospitalized from April 1969; died of a myocardial infarction on October 31, 1969.

Legacy

A physiologist and novelist who played an important role in Japanese detective fiction. He argued for the artistic merit of detective stories and won the Naoki Prize; after the war he promoted and studied detective fiction and nurtured new writers. He was also controversial for his views on diet ("brain bread" and anti-rice claims).

Academic Societies

  • Society for the Promotion of Scientific Knowledge
  • Japan Detective Writers Club (Japan Mystery Writers Association)
  • Keio University Mystery Fiction Study Group (advisor)

Quotes

  • Eating rice makes you stupid
    Source: The Book to Become Smarter (and related works/remarks on diet and intelligence) (1960)

Trivia

  • He studied conditioned-reflex research under Ivan Pavlov and was active as a physiologist.
  • Won the 4th Naoki Prize in 1937 for 'Jinsei no Ahō'.
  • Served as the 3rd chairman of the Japan Detective Writers Club (later Japan Mystery Writers Association) after the war.
  • Around 1960 he promoted 'brain bread' and publicly criticized rice as a staple, attracting controversy.
  • His eldest son is Shin'ichirō Hayashi (Hayashi Shunichirō), a psychiatrist/doctor of medicine.
  • A complete works edition (6 volumes) was published posthumously by Asahi Shimbun Publishing in 1970.