Izumi Kyoka Literary Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 2 (1974) award
Hideo Nakai
なかい ひでお
Nakai Hideo
Aliases:
塔晶夫 / 碧川潭 / 緑川弓雄 / 黒鳥館主人 / 流薔園園丁 / 月蝕領主 / ハネギウス一世
Pen Names:
Tōshōfu (pen name)（Used as the byline for the original publication of '虚無への供物' (Offering to the Void).）,
Midorikawa Fukashi (pen name)（Used for earlier contributions to the magazine 'ADONIS'.）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1922-09-17 （Tabata (Takinogawa), Tokyo, Japan）
- Died
- 1993-12-10 （Hino, Tokyo, Japan (hospital)） age 71
- Nationality
- Japan
- Languages
- Japanese
- Residence History
- Tabata / Takinogawa, Tokyo, Japan → Nishi-Ogikubo, Tokyo, Japan → Kita-Karuizawa (mountain villa 'Ryusouen'), Japan
Career
- Occupations
- tanka editor, novelist, poet, editor
- Active Years
- 1946-1993
- Affiliations
- Nihon Tanka-sha (Japan Tanka Company), Kadokawa Shoten, Kodansha (publisher relationship)
- Influenced By
- Jūran Hisao, Kyūsaku Yumeno, Mutaro Oguri, Edogawa Rampo
- Influenced
- Kunio Tsukamoto, Shūji Terayama, Fujiko Ishikawa, Ken Kasugai
- Nominations
- Edogawa Rampo Prize (Runner-up) 1962
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tokyo Higher Normal School (attached school; now Tsukuba University Affiliated Schools) | — | — | — | 〜1940 | Japan |
| Prefectural High School (old system) | — | — | — | 1940年代（進学・学徒出陣の時期を含む） | Japan |
| University of Tokyo (Faculty of Letters, Department of Linguistics) | Faculty of Letters | Department of Linguistics | — | 1946-1949（復学後中退） | Japan |
Tokyo Higher Normal School (attached school; now Tsukuba University Affiliated Schools)
Period:
〜1940
Year of Graduation:
1940
Country:
Japan
Completed secondary education under the prewar system.
Prefectural High School (old system)
Period:
1940年代（進学・学徒出陣の時期を含む）
Country:
Japan
Entered after one-year ronin; mobilized as a student during wartime.
University of Tokyo (Faculty of Letters, Department of Linguistics)
Faculty of Letters
/ Department of Linguistics
Period:
1946-1949（復学後中退）
Country:
Japan
Returned to university but dropped out and then joined editorial work at tanka publications.
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Izumi Kyōka Literary Prize | Nightmare Dominoes | — | Izumi Kyōka Prize Committee | Winner |
Izumi Kyōka Literary Prize
1974
Work:
Nightmare Dominoes
Organization:
Izumi Kyōka Prize Committee
Result:
Winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Offering to the Void
1964 Novel (anti-mystery / fantastic fiction)A novel published in 1964 under the pen name Tōshōfu. Regarded as a masterpiece of anti-mystery, it is counted among the 'three great strange books' of Japanese detective fiction. Noted for its mannerist style, blurring of reality and fiction, and decadent aesthetic.
nihilismnihilistic worldviewblurring of dream and realityaestheticism / decadence
Trump Tales
1980 Linked short stories (mannerist fantasy)A collection of linked short stories structured as a set of 54 pieces modeled on a deck of playing cards. Noted for its ornate, mannerist narration and recurring motifs that build a dreamlike world.
playing-card motifsrepetition and serial structurehallucinatory / dreamlike world
Nightmare Dominoes
1973 Short story collection (fantastic / detective elements)A collection of interlinked short stories characterized by decadent narration and meticulous realistic detail that cumulatively depict fantastical collapse. This work received the Izumi Kyōka Literary Prize in 1974.
dreams and nightmarescollapse / decayaesthetic decadence
Days of Gold and Mud
1984 Linked short stories (fantastic with autobiographical elements)A linked-story collection examining the conflict between self and era. Merges socially engaged themes with fantastic techniques, opening new literary ground.
individual vs. eracoexistence of reality and fantasy
Whisper of the Blackbird
1974 Short story collection (fantasy)A short-story collection themed around roses and blackbirds. Demonstrates his blend of aestheticism and unease.
rosesblackbirdsaestheticism
Bibliography
- Offering to the Void
- Unknown Flag
- Museum of Fantasia
- Nightmare Dominoes
- Whisper of the Blackbird
- To the Gun Shop
- Night of the Dolls
- Communications from Beyond
- March of the Pallid Ones
- Adam of Light
- The Mother-of-Pearl Box
- Trump Tales
- Offering to the Rose
- The Night-Flying Woman
- Days of Gold and Mud
- The Nameless Forest
- Twilight Boy
- Another's Dream
- Yomotsuhegai (unfinished / posthumous)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- mannerismaestheticism / decadent styleanti-mystery techniquemeticulous descriptive detail
- Recurring Motifs
- rosesblackbirdslunar eclipsedollsrare books
Health
-
heart attack1973 入院Hospitalized and required recovery period
-
arrhythmia1975年頃より断続的にIntermittent condition affecting daily life and requiring management
-
liver failure (cause of death)1993年（死去）Died of liver failure on 10 December 1993
Legacy
Hideo Nakai established a distinct position in postwar Japanese fantastic literature and anti-mystery. His signature work 'Offering to the Void' is regarded as one of the 'three great strange books' of Japanese detective fiction. As a tanka editor he discovered many talents, and his decadent, mannerist style influenced later writers.
Academic Societies
- Society of Fantastic Literature
In Popular Culture
- 'Offering to the Void' is repeatedly cited as one of the 'three great strange books' of Japanese detective fiction.
Trivia
- His father was botanist Takenoshin Nakai (emeritus professor, University of Tokyo), continuing a family line of botanists.
- He worked as an editor of tanka magazines and discovered many young talents such as Kunio Tsukamoto and Shūji Terayama.
- He studied computer programming in the early days of computing and served as the computing-editing lead for a Shogakukan encyclopedia project.
- He stated that the pen name 'Tōshōfu' was derived playfully from a phrase in French.