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Nobuko Yoshiya

よしや のぶこ

Yoshiya Nobuko

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1896-01-12 （Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture, Japan）
Died
1973-07-11 （Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan） age 77
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Niigata City → Mooka (Moka), Tochigi → Tochigi City (formerly Tochigi Town), Tochigi → Tokyo (including Shimo-Ochiai) → Hase, Kamakura, Kanagawa

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Journalist, Writer
Active Years
1916-1973
Influenced By
Inazo Nitobe
Influenced
Saeko Himuro, Fumi Yoshinaga, Later writers of shōjo fiction and manga

Education

Tochigi Girls' High School (now Tochigi Prefectural Tochigi Girls' High School)
Period: 入学・卒業年は不詳
Country: Japan
Final education: Tochigi Girls' High School (now Tochigi Prefectural Tochigi Girls' High School)

Awards

Japan Women's Literary Prize
1952
Work: Onibi
Organization: Japan Women's Literary Association
Result: 受賞
Kikuchi Kan Prize
1967
Organization: Kikuchi Kan Prize Committee
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Hana Monogatari (Flower Stories)

1916 Shōjo fiction (girls' fiction)

Hana Monogatari was serialized beginning in 1916 and became a hugely popular series among schoolgirls; it exemplifies Yoshiya's sentimental, shōjo-oriented storytelling about friendship and youthful emotion.

youthfemale friendshippure/lilting romancecoming of age
Adaptations
  • [Film] Otome Series No.1: Hana Monogatari (Fukujusō) / 川手二郎 (1935)

Two Maidens in the Attic

1917 I-novel; shōjo fiction

A semi-autobiographical work that directly depicts female same-sex affection; notable for its frankness at the time and its I-novel characteristics.

lesbian desireautobiographical (I-novel)female intimacy

To the Ends of the Earth

1919 Novel; shōjo fiction

Regarded as one of her first full-length novels that brought her to the literary scene; it drew attention for its characterization and narrative structure.

growthfamilysetback and renewal

A Husband's Chastity

1937 Domestic novel

A domestic novel that provoked debate upon publication for examining the notion of a man's 'chastity' and raising questions about family and gender ethics.

family ethicsgender relationssocial controversy
Adaptations
  • [Film] A Husband's Chastity / 山本嘉次郎 (1937)

Onibi (Will-o'-the-wisp)

1952 Domestic / contemporary novel

Published in 1952, Onibi is one of her notable later works; it won the 4th Japan Women's Literary Prize.

familyhuman relationshipsmelancholy
Adaptations
  • [Film] Onibi / 千葉泰樹 (1956)

The Ataka Family

1952 Domestic novel

A novel centring on a character with intellectual disability; serialized in the Mainichi Shimbun and later adapted for film and television.

portrayal of disabilityfamilysocial inclusion
Adaptations
  • [Film] The Ataka Family / 久松静児 (1952)

Ladies of the Tokugawa

1966 Historical novel

A postwar historical novel series that helped spark interest in the Ōoku (women of the shogunate) and forms a central part of her historical works focusing on women's history.

women's historyEdo periodpower and women

The Heike of Women

1971 Historical novel

A later large-scale historical work that focuses on women from historical narratives, continuing her interest in women's history.

historic womenpower and fatefemale perspectives

Bibliography

  • Red Dreams
  • Two Maidens in the Attic
  • To the Ends of the Earth
  • Hana Monogatari (Flower Stories)
  • To the Ends of the Sea
  • A Husband's Chastity
  • The Ataka Family
  • Onibi
  • Ladies of the Tokugawa
  • The Heike of Women

Adaptations

  • Numerous works have been adapted into films, stage plays, radio dramas and television series

Translations by Author

  • Shōjo Zette (retelling, original: Marguerite)
  • The Little Girl Without a Home (retelling, original: Malot)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
pure, sentimental toneelements of Christian idealismpopular/accessible narrative style
Recurring Motifs
female friendship / sisterhooddomestic conflict and familywomen in history

Health

  • Sigmoid colon cancer
    1973年（晩年）
    Died in 1973 at age 77

Legacy

Nobuko Yoshiya enjoyed great popular success in shōjo and domestic fiction and influenced later writers and aspects of shōjo culture. Her wartime reportage drew criticism, but recent reprints and feminist scholarship have promoted a re-evaluation. A memorial museum in Kamakura preserves her house and collections.

Museums

  • Nobuko Yoshiya Memorial Museum Hase, Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan Opened in 1974

Archives

  • Collections at Nobuko Yoshiya Memorial Museum, Kamakura

In Popular Culture

  • Influenced contemporary works such as Fumi Yoshinaga's Ōoku and other shōjo-derived media

Quotes

  • “Education is first of all to learn to be a good person.” (Quotation from Inazo Nitobe's speech that impressed Yoshiya)
    Source: Speech by Inazo Nitobe (attended by Yoshiya while at Tochigi Girls' High School) (1908)

Trivia

  • Lived with her partner Monma Chiyo for over 50 years; adopted Chiyo as her legal daughter in 1957.
  • In 1935 she ranked as the top-earning female writer in an income-tax listing.
  • Owned racehorses (for example, Ichi Monji) and was active as a racehorse owner.