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So Sakon

そう さこん

Sō Sakon

Pen Names: So Sakon（Pen name used in postwar poetry; derived from a personal exclamation that inspired the name.）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1919-05-01 （Tobata Town, Onga District, Fukuoka, Japan (now Tobata Ward, Kitakyushu)）
Died
2006-06-20 （Tokyo, Japan (hospital)） age 87
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Tobata, Fukuoka — birthplace and childhood → Tokyo — student years and professional activity → Ichikawa, Chiba — later-life residence (honorary citizen)

Career

Occupations
Poet, Critic, Translator, French literature scholar, Lyricist, University professor
Active Years
1940-2006
Affiliations
Hosei University (Professor Emeritus), Showa Women's University (Professor), Contributor to the literary magazine 'Dōjidai'
Influenced By
French Symbolist poetry, Shinpei Kusano

Education

First Higher School (old system)
Country: Japan
Tokyo Imperial University (University of Tokyo)
Department of Philosophy / Department of Philosophy
Period: 1942 -
Country: Japan
Entered in 1942. Exact graduation year not clearly stated in provided sources.

Awards

Fujimura Memorial Rekitei Prize (6th)
1968
Work: Long poem collection 'Moeru Haha' (Burning Mother)
Organization: Rekitei / Fujimura Memorial
Result: 受賞
Poetry Museum Prize (10th)
1994
Work: Poetry collection 'Wisteria Flowers'
Organization: Poetry Museum
Result: 受賞
Kenji Prize (11th)
1996
Work: The Mystery of Kenji Miyazawa
Organization: Kenji Prize Committee
Result: 受賞
Cikada Prize
2004
Organization: Sweden (Cikada Prize Organization)
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Black Glasses

1959 Poetry collection

Debut poetry collection containing early symbolist-influenced poems.

selfgazememory

Long Poem: Burning Mother

1967 Poetry collection (long poem)

A long poem centered on the author's experience of losing his mother in the Tokyo air raids; themes of guilt, atonement, and maternal love.

motherguiltwar experience

Wisteria Flowers

1994 Poetry collection

One of his late collections; poems reflecting nature and an interest in ancient Japan.

natureJomonnostalgia

Jōmon

1978 Poetry collection

A collection reflecting his attachment to Jōmon culture, showing an aesthetic view of Jōmon pottery and figurines.

Jōmonantiquityart appreciation

Bibliography

  • Black Glasses (1959)
  • Kappa (1964)
  • Long Poem: Burning Mother (1967)
  • Jōmon (1978)
  • Wisteria Flowers (1994)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Symbolist and metaphorical expressions influenced by French symbolismLyrical and confessional voice
Recurring Motifs
motherfireJōmon / ancient artifactsnaturewar and memory

Health

  • Hospitalization
    2006年春 - 2006年6月
    Died in June 2006 in a Tokyo hospital

Legacy

One of postwar Japan's notable poets, translators and critics. Known for poems rooted in wartime experience and interest in Jōmon culture; commemorated in Ichikawa and Kitakyushu with exhibits and memorials.

Museums

  • Ichikawa City Literary Museum (So Sakon display) Ichikawa, Chiba, Japan Opened in 2013
  • Kitakyushu City Literature Museum (donated So Sakon materials) Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Japan
  • Tobata Library So Sakon Memorial Room Tobata Ward, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Japan Opened in 2014

Archives

  • Donation of books and some manuscripts to Ichikawa City
  • Donation of many materials to Kitakyushu City

In Popular Culture

  • Wrote lyrics for many school and community songs that became established locally.
  • On-line interest in unique onomatopoeic expressions in some school song lyrics (e.g. 'yun-yun').

Quotes

  • That's it — damn it!
    Source: Phrase cited as the origin of his pen name (self-exhortation after the war) (1967)

Trivia

  • Real name: Koga Teruichi.
  • Wrote lyrics for many school songs.
  • Collected Jōmon pottery and figurines and valued them from an artistic perspective.