Yomiuri Literary Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 16 (1964) award
Akatsuki Kambayashi
かんばやし あかつき
Kambayashi Akatsuki
Pen Names:
Akatsuki Kambayashi（Pen name used while employed at Kaizōsha; derived from the neighborhood where he boarded during Fifth High School.）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1902-10-06 （Shimoda Noguchi, Tanokuchi Village, Hata District, Kochi Prefecture, Japan (now Kuroshio Town)）
- Died
- 1980-08-28 （Hospital in Amanuma, Suginami-ku, Tokyo, Japan） age 77
- Nationality
- Japan
- Languages
- Japanese
- Residence History
- Shimoda Noguchi, Kuroshio (Kochi Prefecture), Japan → Kumamoto (Fifth High School period) → Tokyo (later years)
Career
- Occupations
- Novelist, Essayist
- Active Years
- 1922-1980
- Affiliations
- Kaizōsha (publisher; former employer), Japan Art Academy
- Memberships
- Japan Art Academy
- Influenced By
- Ryūnosuke Akutagawa
- Influenced
- Itō Sei
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fifth High School (old system) | — | — | — | 1921-1924 | Japan |
| Tokyo Imperial University (now University of Tokyo) | Faculty of Letters | Department of English | 学士（文学） | 1924-1927 | Japan |
Fifth High School (old system)
Period:
1921-1924
Year of Graduation:
1924
Country:
Japan
Old-style high school. Published in school journals and began creative writing.
Tokyo Imperial University (now University of Tokyo)
Faculty of Letters
/ Department of English
Degree:
学士（文学）
Period:
1924-1927
Year of Graduation:
1927
Country:
Japan
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | Art Encouragement Prize (Minister of Education's Award) | Spring Slope | — | Agency for Cultural Affairs (Arts Selection Committee) | Winner |
| 1964 | Yomiuri Literary Prize | White Houseboat | — | Yomiuri Shimbun | Winner |
| 1974 | Kawabata Yasunari Literary Award | The Bronze Head | — | Kawabata Yasunari Literary Prize Committee | Winner |
| 1969 | Member of the Japan Art Academy | — | — | Japan Art Academy | Inducted |
Art Encouragement Prize (Minister of Education's Award)
1959
Work:
Spring Slope
Organization:
Agency for Cultural Affairs (Arts Selection Committee)
Result:
Winner
Yomiuri Literary Prize
1964
Work:
White Houseboat
Organization:
Yomiuri Shimbun
Result:
Winner
Kawabata Yasunari Literary Award
1974
Work:
The Bronze Head
Organization:
Kawabata Yasunari Literary Prize Committee
Result:
Winner
Member of the Japan Art Academy
1969
Organization:
Japan Art Academy
Result:
Inducted
Awards & Nominations
Kawabata Yasunari Literary Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 1 (1974) award
Works
Major Works
The Rose Thief
1932 Short storyA short story portraying rural life and the emotions of youth with delicate observation; praised by Yasunari Kawabata.
povertyyouthobservational depiction
At St. John's Hospital
1946 Short stories (sick-wife narratives)A collection rooted in the author's experience of his wife's mental illness; features sensitive portrayals of caregiving and family interiority.
illness of the wifecaregivingfamilylife and death
Adaptations
- [Film] Aya ni Aishiki — Tale of a Sick Wife / 宇野重吉 (1956)
Spring Slope
1958 Short storyA work depicting family and everyday life from an I-novel perspective; recipient of the Art Encouragement Prize (Minister of Education's Award) in 1959.
familyeveryday liferemembrance
White Houseboat
1964 Short story collectionA late-career collection completed through his sister's dictation after his stroke; awarded the Yomiuri Literary Prize in 1964.
agingillnessfamilymemory
The Bronze Head
1973 Short storyOne of his late representative works; published in 1973 and recognized in connection with the first Kawabata Yasunari Literary Award.
solitudenostalgiamemory
Bibliography
- The Rose Thief (Short stories) — Kinseido, 1933
- Rural Correspondence — Sakuhinsha, 1938
- Elegy — Tokei Shobo, 1941
- Record of Wandering — Hakubunkan, 1942
- Thoughts While Writing Novels — Bunrindo, 1942
- Meigetsuki — Hibonkaku, 1943
- The Everlasting Flower — Chiheisha, 1944
- Summer Calendar — Chikuma Shobo, 1945
- Record of Retreat — Togen-sha, 1946
- At St. John's Hospital — Shincho Bunko, 1949
- Tales of a Sick Wife — Koyama Shoten, 1948
- Entrance Exams (Short stories) — Kawade Shinsho, 1955
- Songs of Passing — Dainippon Yubenkaikodansha, 1957
- Spring Slope — Chikuma Shobo, 1958
- On Writing, Books and Travel — Gogatsu Shobo, 1959
- Satirical Poet — Shinchosha, 1963
- White Houseboat — Kodansha, 1964
- Kusamochi — Chikuma Shobo, 1969
- Poems of John Clare — Chikuma Shobo, 1970 (translation)
- The Vermilion Egg — Chikuma Shobo, 1972
- Baayan — Kodansha, 1973
- The Bronze Head — 1973
- In Front of Gokurakuji — Chikuma Shobo, 1976
- Memories of Half-Day School — Shueisha, 1981 (posthumous)
- White Houseboat & The Bronze Head — Kodansha Bungei Bunko, 1990 (posthumous)
Adaptations
- Aya ni Aishiki — Tale of a Sick Wife (film, 1956)
Translations by Author
- Poems of John Clare
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- I-novel perspectiverestrained and precise prosepictorial use of color and imagery
- Recurring Motifs
- sick-wife narrativeshometownpoverty and hardshipdetailed depiction of everyday life
Health
-
cerebral hemorrhage1962年（二度目の発作）以後After a second cerebral hemorrhage in 1962 he became impaired in his right hand, leg and speech; he continued writing via his sister's dictation.
-
cerebral thrombosis (cause of death)1980年（死去）Died in 1980 from a cerebral thrombosis.
Legacy
Akatsuki Kambayashi is regarded as a leading I-novel writer of the postwar era, highly praised for his sick-wife narratives and finely observed depictions of everyday life. He is also known for continuing to create work in later years through the aid of his sister after suffering illness.
Museums
- Ogata Akatsuki-kan (Akatsuki Kambayashi Literary Museum) Saga, Kuroshio Town, Hata District, Kochi Prefecture, Japan (Ogata Akatsuki-kan)
Academic Societies
- Japan Art Academy
Archives
- Collections at Ogata Akatsuki-kan (Akatsuki Kambayashi Literary Museum)
In Popular Culture
- 1956 film 'Aya ni Aishiki — Tale of a Sick Wife'
Quotes
-
He skillfully keeps unsaid what he wishes to say while, conversely, vividly evoking poverty and the unseen emotions of youth — a merit of his honest, observant eye for life.
Source: Yasunari Kawabata, 'Literary Criticism: New Authors' (Yomiuri Shimbun, 1932) (1932) -
I learned most of Japanese literature from the lives of I-novel writers like Kambayashi.
Source: Itō Sei, 'My Literary Life I', Kodansha (1954)
Trivia
- The pen name 'Kambayashi' derives from the neighborhood where he boarded while in Kumamoto.
- While employed at Kaizōsha he used a pen name because employees were forbidden to publish under their real names.
- Known for sick-wife narratives such as 'Tales of a Sick Wife' and 'At St. John's Hospital'.
- After a cerebral hemorrhage in 1962 he continued to produce work through dictation by his sister, Mutsuko Tokuhiro.
- Primarily wrote short stories; there are almost no mid-length or long novels.