Noma Literary Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 9 (1956) award
Shigeru Tonomura
とのむら しげる
Tonomura Shigeru
Aliases:
外村 茂
Pen Names:
Shigeru Tonomura（Pen name adopted after a misprint of his name in a literary magazine edited by Kawabata Yasunari）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1902-12-23 （Minami-Gokashō (Kandō), Kanzaki District, Shiga Prefecture, Japan）
- Died
- 1961-07-28 （Yushima, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan） age 58
- Nationality
- Japan
- Languages
- Japanese
- Residence History
- Kandō (Gokashō), Shiga Prefecture, Japan → Asagaya, Tokyo, Japan
Career
- Occupations
- Novelist
- Active Years
- 1933-1961
- Affiliations
- Asagaya Literary Village, Contributor/member of the magazine 'Kirin', Co-founder of the literary magazine 'Aozora'
- Influenced By
- Kajii Motojiro, Nakatani Takao
- Influenced
- Ryoichi Tsuji
- Nominations
- Candidate for the 1st Akutagawa Prize (Grass Raft), Preliminary candidate for the 8th Akutagawa Prize (Grass Raft)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shiga Prefectural Zeze Middle School (former) | — | — | — | — | Japan |
| Third Higher School (old system) | — | — | — | — | Japan |
| Tokyo Imperial University (now University of Tokyo) | Faculty of Economics | — | 経済学士 | — | Japan |
Shiga Prefectural Zeze Middle School (former)
Country:
Japan
Third Higher School (old system)
Country:
Japan
Tokyo Imperial University (now University of Tokyo)
Faculty of Economics
Degree:
経済学士
Country:
Japan
He originally intended to study in the Faculty of Letters but, owing to his parents' wishes, entered the Faculty of Economics.
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1938 | Iketani Shinzaburo Prize | Grass Raft | — | — | 受賞 |
| 1956 | Noma Literary Prize | Raft | — | — | 受賞 |
| 1961 | Yomiuri Literary Prize | Channel Marker (Miohyo) | — | — | 受賞 |
Iketani Shinzaburo Prize
1938
Work:
Grass Raft
Result:
受賞
Noma Literary Prize
1956
Work:
Raft
Result:
受賞
Yomiuri Literary Prize
1961
Work:
Channel Marker (Miohyo)
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Yomiuri Literary Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 12 (1960) award
Works
Major Works
The Cormorant's Tale
1933 I-novel (shishosetsu)His debut (1933). A short work portraying aspects of Omi merchants and local life.
Omi merchantsfamilydecline
Grass Raft
1935 I-novel (shishosetsu)Serialized from 1935 and completed in 1938. An extended work portraying the world of Omi merchants; later regarded as the first part of a trilogy with 'Raft' and 'Flower Raft'.
commercial societyfamily business vs individualobjective depiction
Raft
1956 I-novel (shishosetsu)A later long work in the raft trilogy. Published in 1956 and awarded the Noma Literary Prize.
family businesstradition and changehuman relationships
Flower Raft
1957 I-novel (shishosetsu)Published 1957–58 as part of the 'Raft' trilogy, complementing 'Grass Raft' and 'Raft'.
memories of hometowngeneration gap
Scenes of the Setting Sun
1960 I-novel (shishosetsu)Published in 1960. Considered one of the pinnacles of the I-novel form and an important late work.
death and melancholyreminiscence
Channel Marker (Miohyo)
1960 I-novel (shishosetsu)Published in 1960 and awarded the Yomiuri Literary Prize. Deals with personal experiences, family, and illness.
illness and strugglefamily
Bibliography
- The Cormorant's Tale (1933)
- Grass Raft (1935–1938)
- Spring and Autumn (1939)
- Wind and Trees: Selected Short Stories by Shigeru Tonomura (1940)
- Memories of Falling White Flowers: Short Stories (1941)
- Stories of Japanese Battles (1943)
- Soil of Japan (1943)
- Autumn Leaves Light (1947)
- Memories of My Father (1948)
- Melancholy White Lily (1949)
- Early Spring Diary (1949)
- Illusory Phantoms (1949)
- A Spring Night's Dream (1949)
- The Mogami River (1950)
- Red and Black (1953)
- Evening Glow (1954)
- Raft (1954–1956)
- Landscape of a Garden with Rocks (1954/1957)
- Songs of Love (1958)
- Flower Raft (1957–1958)
- Introduction to Shinran: For a New Discovery of Shinran (1959)
- Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter (1959)
- Drunken Dreams (1960)
- Channel Marker (Miohyo) (1960)
- Scenes of the Setting Sun (1960/1961)
- Wet and Wetted (1960–1961)
- Loving the Day (1961, final work)
- Asagaya Diary (1961)
- Evening Glow (reprints, 1961)
- Collected Works of Shigeru Tonomura, 6 vols. (1962)
- Channel Marker / Scenes of the Setting Sun (Shincho Bunko, 1962)
- Channel Marker / Scenes of the Setting Sun (Kodansha Collected Works, 1992)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- I-novel (shishosetsu) techniquesObjective depiction and cool observationDetail-oriented descriptive style
- Recurring Motifs
- Omi merchantsrafts/boatsfamily and declinememories of hometown
Health
-
Maxillary (upper jaw) cancer1957-1961Diagnosed around 1957 and treated until his death in 1961; had a major impact on his later life and creative output.
Legacy
Shigeru Tonomura is regarded as an important writer of the modern Japanese I-novel; his 'Grass Raft' / 'Raft' / 'Flower Raft' trilogy is noted for its objective portrayal of the world of Omi merchants. His birthplace is preserved in Gokashō and houses the Shigeru Tonomura Literature Museum.
Museums
- Gokashō Omi Merchant Residence — Shigeru Tonomura House Gokashō Kando-cho, Higashiōmi, Shiga Prefecture, Japan
Archives
- Shigeru Tonomura Literature Museum (collection in the Tonomura residence)
Trivia
- His real name was Shigeru Tonomura (外村茂). The pen name '外村繁' became established after a misprint in a literary magazine.
- His eldest son, Akira Tonomura (外村晶), was a noted geneticist and professor emeritus at Tokyo Medical and Dental University.
- His birthplace is preserved as the Gokashō Omi Merchant Residence — the Tonomura house — and houses a literature museum.
- He was once a candidate for the first Akutagawa Prize and later received the Iketani Shinzaburo Prize, the Noma Literary Prize, and the Yomiuri Literary Prize.