基本説明
東京を舞台にした１８の短編（芥川、林芙美子、三島由紀夫など）を収録。池田みち子、稲葉真弓は初英訳。
Translated from the Japanese, Compiled, and with an Introduction by Lawrence Rogers.
Full Description
This anthology of translated short stories by Japanese writers captures the city of Tokyo through most of the twentieth century - a period of war, bombing, urbanization, and modernization, in short, constant change that has altered and continues to alter the very geography of the city. The eighteen stories, varying from literary sketches to popular fiction, picture everyday life in different parts of the city - in its nightclubs, department stores, bars, homes, and working-class neighborhoods. For the tourist, armchair traveler, or long-time resident, this book is a literary excursion into Tokyo illuminated by the evocative, and often ironic, words of its writers. These expertly translated stories range from reflections on deaths in his family by Akutagawa Ryunosuke, the venerated master of the short story, written just before his own suicide; to a story of an all-too-brief affair in the old part of Tokyo by Hayashi Fumiko; and, to an unsettling tale of high politics and possible blackmail by the ever-popular Mishima Yukio. This volume also introduces the work of Ikeda Michiko and Inaba Mayumi, who have never been translated into English before.
Lawrence Rogers's introduction leads us on an intimate meditative stroll through the city's various districts - from the marble and mahogany of the business district to the skid row of San'ya - describing each in delightful vignettes. As an introduction to Tokyo and to the literary imaginations it has inspired, this engaging book will reveal something new about the nature of Japan's capital to all who wander through its pages.
Contents
List of Maps Preface Introduction Lawrence Rogers Central Tokyo Mire Kajii Motojiro Terrifying Tokyo Yumeno Kyjsaku The Image Takeda Rintaro Fountains in the Rain Mishima Yukio Meeting Again Mukoda Kuniko Jacob's Tokyo Ladder Hino Keizo Shitamachi The Death Register Akutagawa Ryunosuke Kid Ume, the Silver Cat Kawabata Yasunari The First Day of the Fair Takeda Rintaro Elegy Sata Ineko The Old Part of Town Hayashi Fumiko Fireworks Mishima Yukio Azuma Bridge Nagai Kafu An Unclaimed Body Ikeda Michiko West of the Palace From behind the Study Door Natsume Soseki Firefly Tavern Saegusa Kazuko Sparrows Irokawa Takehiro The South End Morning Comes Twice a Day Inaba Mayumi Glossary Suggested Reading Acknowledgments of Permissions
