Kaien Newcomer Literary Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 3 (1984) award
Kyoji Kobayashi
こばやし きょうじ
Kobayashi Kyoji
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1957-11-09 （Nishinomiya, Hyōgo, Japan）
- Nationality
- Japan
- Languages
- Japanese
- Residence History
- Nishinomiya, Hyōgo, Japan → Tokyo, Japan
Career
- Occupations
- Novelist, Haiku poet, University professor
- Active Years
- 1984-
- Affiliations
- Senshu University
- Memberships
- Member of PEN Japan, Founding member, JALInet (Japan Literature Net)
- Influenced By
- Yasutaka Tsutsui, Akira Hori, Yūji Usui, Aki Sato
- Nominations
- 94th Akutagawa Prize nominee ("Shosetsuden")
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Tokyo | Faculty of Letters | Department of Aesthetics and Art Studies | 文学士 | — | Japan |
University of Tokyo
Faculty of Letters
/ Department of Aesthetics and Art Studies
Degree:
文学士
Country:
Japan
Member of the University of Tokyo Student Haiku Society while enrolled
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Kaien Newcomer's Literary Prize | Telephone Man | — | Kaien | 受賞 |
| 1998 | Mishima Yukio Prize | Kabuki Day | — | Mishima Yukio Prize Selection Committee | 受賞 |
Kaien Newcomer's Literary Prize
1984
Work:
Telephone Man
Organization:
Kaien
Result:
受賞
Mishima Yukio Prize
1998
Work:
Kabuki Day
Organization:
Mishima Yukio Prize Selection Committee
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Mishima Yukio Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 11 (1998) award
Works
Major Works
Telephone Man
1985 NovelDebut work; a collection of short stories depicting urban loneliness and strange events with humor. Notable for metafictional devices and wit.
LonelinessHumorMetafiction
The Fall of Zeus Garden
1987 NovelA novel that combines mythic motifs with contemporary distortions. Centers on the decline of the titular 'Zeus Garden' and contains elements of social satire.
MythDeclineSocial satire
Kabuki Day
1998 NovelAn experimental novel that blurs the boundary between narrative and theatre, using kabuki and stage representation as motifs. Explores multiplicity of expression and shifting identity; winner of the 1998 Mishima Yukio Prize.
KabukiTheatricalityIdentity
Father
1999 NovelA semi-autobiographical novel focused on family and the figure of the father. Themes include memory, legacy, and confronting the past.
FamilyMemoryFather–son relationship
Udagawa Shinjū
2004 NovelA work that reimagines the classical theme of lovers' double suicide (shinjū) in a contemporary setting, contrasting traditional motifs with aspects of modern society.
Love and deathReinterpretation of classicsRituals
Bibliography
- Telephone Man
- Shosetsuden / Jun'ai-den
- The Fall of Zeus Garden
- Peninsula Notes / Archipelago Notes
- On the Wilderness
- Mr. Nightmare's Casebook
- Nostalgia in a Bottle
- The Counterattack of Japan
- She from the Bathroom Window
- Short Stories
- Collection of Wicked Tales
- Kabuki Day
- Father
- Nobunaga of the Neck
- When Monster Fruits Ripen
- Marked by the Dripping
- Udagawa Shinjū
- Japanese Liao Zhai Tales
- New Interpretation of Yotsuya Kaidan
- Azabu Ghost Stories
- Practical Youth Haiku Course
- Haiku as a Game
- Spring Song: Early Haiku of Kyoji Kobayashi
- Drunken Diary
- The Joy of Haiku
- The Sarumino Club: Fierce Battles of a One-Person Haiku Circle
- Tanka Paradise
- Diary of a Tea Connoisseur: A Rude Introduction to Tea Ceremony
- Invitation to Evil: Enjoying Bakumatsu/Monzaemon Kabuki
- Kabuki Savant
- Invitation to Shinjū: The Splendid World of Love-and-Death
- This Haiku is Amazing!
- These Are the Masterful Haiku!
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Metafictional humorWitty, ironic narrationHaiku-inspired concision
- Recurring Motifs
- Kabuki/theatrical motifsShinjū (double suicide), love and deathFamily and fatherhood
Legacy
A writer known for metafictional humor and writings on haiku. Debuted with the Kaien Newcomer's Literary Prize and won the Mishima Yukio Prize in 1998; he also serves as a professor at Senshu University.
Academic Societies
- PEN Japan
Archives
- National Diet Library (authority record)
- VIAF (Virtual International Authority File)
- ISNI (International Standard Name Identifier)
In Popular Culture
- Television appearances (e.g. 'Kagaku Jugyou / Youkoso Senpai', variety shows)
Trivia
- His father, Toshio Kobayashi, served as an executive vice president at Kobe Steel.
- Graduated from the University of Tokyo, Faculty of Letters (Department of Aesthetics and Art Studies).
- Debuted in 1984 after winning the 3rd Kaien Newcomer's Literary Prize for 'Telephone Man'.
- Won the 11th Mishima Yukio Prize in 1998 for 'Kabuki Day'.
- Appointed professor at Senshu University in 2004.
- Co-founded JALInet with Yasutaka Tsutsui, Akira Hori, Yūji Usui and Aki Sato.