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So Kurokawa

くろかわ そう

Kurokawa Sō

Aliases: 北澤 恒
Pen Names: So Kurokawa（Pen name used for intellectual criticism and fiction）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1961-06-15 （Kyoto, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese

Career

Occupations
philosophical critic, novelist
Active Years
1985-
Affiliations
Editing Group SURE, Editorial committee, Shisō no Kagaku
Influenced By
Shunsuke Tsurumi
Nominations
1999 — Nominated for the 21st Noma Literary Newcomer Award for 'Wakuchū no Me', 2001 — Nominated for the 14th Mishima Yukio Prize for 'Modoroki', 2001 — Nominated for the 124th Akutagawa Prize for 'Modoroki', 2002 — Nominated for the 127th Akutagawa Prize for 'Icarus Forest', 2005 — Nominated for the 18th Mishima Yukio Prize for 'Bright Night', 2008 — Nominated for the 21st Mishima Yukio Prize for 'A Day of the Seagull', 2013 — Nominated for the 26th Mishima Yukio Prize for 'The Assassins'

Education

Doshisha University
Faculty of Letters
Country: Japan

Awards

Noma Literary Newcomer Award
1999
Work: The Eye of Jakuchū
Organization: Noma Cultural Foundation
Result: nominated
Mishima Yukio Prize
2001
Work: Modoroki
Result: nominated
Akutagawa Prize
2001
Work: Modoroki
Result: nominated
Akutagawa Prize
2002
Work: Icarus Forest
Result: nominated
Mishima Yukio Prize
2005
Work: Bright Night
Result: nominated
Mishima Yukio Prize
2008
Work: A Day of the Seagull
Result: nominated
Yomiuri Literature Prize
2009
Work: A Day of the Seagull
Organization: Yomiuri Shimbun
Result: winner
Kyoto Minazuki Grand Prize
2009
Work: Bright Night
Result: winner
Mishima Yukio Prize
2013
Work: The Assassins
Result: nominated
Ito Sei Literary Prize
2014
Work: Borders [Complete Edition]
Category: 評論部門
Result: winner
Mainichi Publishing Culture Prize
2015
Work: Kyoto
Organization: Mainichi Newspapers
Result: winner
Osaragi Jirō Prize
2019
Work: Shunsuke Tsurumi: A Biography
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Eye of Jakuchū

1999 novel

A collection of two mid-length stories ('The Chicken's Eye' and 'The Cat's Eye') inspired by the painter Ito Jakuchū; Kurokawa's fiction debut.

artrepresentationindividual and history

Iwo Jima

2000 novel

A work themed on Iwo Jima, dealing with war and memory.

warmemoryhistory

Modoroki

2001 novel

Originally published in Shincho magazine; a short novel exploring inner turmoil and relationships.

interior lifehuman relationships

Icarus Forest

2002 novel

Published in Shincho; uses the image of a forest to address contemporary issues.

metaphorcontemporary society

Bright Night

2005 novel

A novel that depicts the boundary between inner life and the external world; later published in paperback with commentary.

inner world and the worldexistence

A Day of the Seagull

2008 novel

A 2008 novel about the relationship between city and individual; recipient of the Yomiuri Literature Prize.

cityindividual

The Assassins

2013 novel

A work portraying figures on the margins of politics and history.

politicshistorymargins

Borders [Complete Edition]

2013 criticism

An essay collection examining borders, communities, and language; winner of the Ito Sei Literary Prize (criticism) in 2014.

borderslanguagecommunity

Shunsuke Tsurumi: A Biography

2018 biography

A careful biography of the intellectual Shunsuke Tsurumi; recipient of the Osaragi Jirō Prize.

biographyintellectual history

Kyoto

2014 essays / non-fiction

An essay collection focused on Kyoto; winner of the Mainichi Publishing Culture Prize.

cityculture

Through the Dark Woods

2020 novel

Published in 2020; a long novel about an inner journey and the intersection of self and world.

interiorjourney

The Soul of This Planet

2024 novel / essays

A recent work that interrogates worldviews and ethics.

worldethics

Bibliography

  • <Uzaki Ryūdo Group> Genesis
  • Hot Dreams, Cold Dreams
  • On the Cutting Edge
  • The Temperature of Water
  • Reality Curve — Between ‘No War’ and ‘Postwar’
  • Borders / Borders [Complete Edition]
  • A Neat Appearance: A Biography of Isaku Nishimura
  • The Eye of Jakuchū
  • Iwo Jima
  • Modoroki
  • Icarus Forest
  • Bright Night
  • A Day of the Seagull
  • Someday, What Had Happened in This World
  • The Assassins
  • Kyoto
  • From the Rocks
  • Through the Dark Woods
  • Vienna Suburbs
  • I Know About Her
  • Shunsuke Tsurumi: A Biography
  • The Traveling Boy
  • How to Portray the World in Literature
  • Where 'Japanese' Literature Was Born: Crossroads of the Far East in the 20th Century

Style & Themes

Literary Style
critical, analytical proselogical narrative that weaves history and intellectual discourse
Recurring Motifs
history and memoryborders / boundariesart and representationthe border between inner life and the world

Legacy

A writer and critic active in both intellectual criticism and fiction. Known for essays on history, language and borders and novels exploring interiority; recipient of multiple literary awards.

Trivia

  • Birth name is Kitazawa Tsune (variously written 北澤/北沢).
  • His father is the critic Kitazawa Tsunehiko.
  • His sister Kitazawa Machiko is the organizer of Editing Group SURE (page not created).
  • Writer Hata Tsunehira is his uncle; playwright Hata Tadahiko is a cousin.
  • Debuted as a novelist in 1999 with 'Wakuchū no Me', a two-piece mid-length work inspired by Ito Jakuchū.