Kōbō Abe
Kōbō Abe | |
---|---|
Tokyo Imperial University | |
Genre | Absurdist fiction, surrealism |
Literary movement | Modernism |
Notable works | The Woman in the Dunes The Face of Another The Box Man |
Notable awards | Akutagawa Prize Yomiuri Prize Tanizaki Prize |
Spouse | Abe Machi |
Children | Abe Neri |
Kōbō Abe (安部 公房, Abe Kōbō), pen name of Kimifusa Abe (安部 公房, Abe Kimifusa, March 7, 1924 – January 22, 1993), was a
Biography
Abe was born on March 7, 1924
Abe returned to Tokyo briefly in April 1940 to study at
In 1945 Abe married Machi Yamada, an artist and stage director, and the couple saw successes within their fields in similar time frames.[7] Initially, they lived in an old barracks within a bombed-out area of the city center. Abe sold pickles and charcoal on the street to pay their bills. The couple joined a number of artistic study groups, such as Yoru no Kai (Group of the Night or The Night Society) and Nihon Bungaku Gakko (Japanese Literary School). Their daughter, Abe Neri, was born in 1954.[8]
As the postwar period progressed, Abe's stance as an intellectual pacifist led to his joining the
The Soviet invasion of Hungary in 1956 disgusted Abe. He attempted to leave the Communist Party, but resignations from the party were not accepted at the time. In 1960, he participated in the
His experiences in Manchuria were also deeply influential on his writing, imprinting terrors and fever dreams that became surrealist hallmarks of his works. In his recollections of Mukden, these markers are evident: "The fact is, it may not have been trash in the center of the marsh at all; it may have been crows. I do have a memory of thousands of crows flying up from the swamp at dusk, as if the surface of the swamp were being lifted up into the air."[7] The trash of the marsh was a truth of life, as were the crows, yet Abe's recollections of them tie them distinctively. Further experiences with the swamp centered around its use as a staking ground for condemned criminals with "[their] heads—now food for crows—appearing suddenly out of the darkness and disappearing again, terrified and attracted to us." These ideas are present in much of Abe's work.
Career
Abe was first published as a poet in 1947 with
In the 1960s, he collaborated with Japanese director
In 1971, he founded the Abe Studio, an acting studio in Tokyo.[7] Until the end of the decade, he trained performers and directed plays. The decision to found the studio came two years after he first directed his own work in 1969, a production of The Man Who Turned Into A Stick. The production's sets were designed by Abe's wife, and Hisashi Igawa starred. Abe had become dissatisfied with ability of the theatre to materialize the abstract, reducing it to a passive medium. Until 1979, he wrote, directed, and produced 14 plays at the Abe Studio. He also published two novels, Box Man (1973) and Secret Rendezvous (1977), alongside a series of essays, musical scores, and photographic exhibits.[7] The Seibu Theater, an avant-garde theater in the new department store Parco, was allegedly established in 1973 specifically for Abe, though many other artists were given the chance to use it. The Abe Studio production of The Glasses of Love Are Rose Colored (1973) opened there. Later, the entirety of the Seibu Museum was used to present one of Abe's photographic works, An Exhibition of Images: I.[7]
The Abe Studio provided a foil for much of the contemporary scene in Japanese theater, contrasting with the Haiyuza's conventional productions, opting to focus on dramatic, as opposed to physical, expression. It was a safe space for young performers, whom Abe would often recruit from the Toho Gakuen College in Chofu City, on the outskirts of Tokyo, where he taught. The average age of the performers in the studio was about 27 throughout the decade, as members left and fresh faces were brought in. Abe "deftly" handled issues arising from difference in stage experience.[7]
In 1977 Abe was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.[15]
Awards
Among the honors Abe received were the Akutagawa Prize in 1951 for The Crime of S. Karuma,[16] the Yomiuri Prize in 1962 for The Woman in the Dunes, and the Tanizaki Prize in 1967 for the play Friends. Kenzaburō Ōe credited Abe and other modern Japanese authors for "[creating] the way to the Nobel Prize", which he himself won.[17][18] Abe was mentioned multiple times as a possible recipient, but his early death precluded that possibility.[7]
Bibliography
Novels
Year | Japanese Title | English Title | Translations available | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1948 | 終りし道の標に Owarishi michi no shirube ni |
At the Guidepost at the End of the Road | ||
1954 | 飢餓同盟 Kiga doumei |
Starving Unions | ||
1957 | けものたちは故郷をめざす Kemono tachi wa kokyou wo mezasu |
Beasts Head for Home | Richard F. Calichman | |
1959 | 第四間氷期 Dai-Yon Kampyōki |
Inter Ice Age 4 | E. Dale Saunders | [1] Illustrated by Abe Machi |
1960 | 石の眼 Ishi no me |
Stony Eyes | ||
1962 | 砂の女 Suna no onna |
The Woman in the Dunes
|
E. Dale Saunders | Adapted into an international film[1]
|
1964 | 他人の顔 Tanin no kao |
The Face of Another | E. Dale Saunders | Adapted into a film by the same title[1] |
1964 | 榎本武揚 Enomoto Takeaki |
Takeaki Enomoto | Commissioned conversion to a play by theatrical company Kumo and directed by Hiroshi Akutagawa
Mixed reviews: Keene preferred the novel to the play, while Oe considered it "genuinely new."[7] | |
1966 | 人間そっくり Ningen sokkuri |
The Double of Human Being | ||
1967 | 燃えつきた地図 Moetsukita chizu |
The Ruined Map
|
E. Dale Saunders | [1] |
1973 | 箱男 Hako otoko |
The Box Man | E. Dale Saunders | [1] |
1977 | 密会 Mikkai |
Secret Rendezvous | Juliet Winters Carpenter, 1979 | [1] |
1984 | 方舟さくら丸 Hakobune sakura maru |
The Ark Sakura | Juliet Winters Carpenter, 1988 | [1] |
1991 | カンガルー・ノート Kangaruu noto |
Kangaroo Notebook
|
Maryellen Toman Mori | |
1994 | 飛ぶ男 Tobu otoko |
The Flying Man | Incomplete |
Collected short stories
Year | Japanese Title | English Title | Translations available | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1949 | 唖むすめ Oshimusume |
"The Deaf Girl" | Andrew Horvat | Collected in Four Stories by Kobo Abe |
1949 | デンドロカカリヤ Dendorokakariya |
"Dendrocacalia" | Juliet Winters Carpenter | Collected in Beyond the Curve |
1949 | 夢の逃亡 Yume no toubou |
"The Dream Escape" | ||
1950 | 赤い繭 Akai mayu |
"The Red Cocoon" | Lane Dunlop | Collected in A Late chrysanthemum: Twenty-One Stories from the Japanese |
1950 | 洪水 Kouzui |
"The Flood" | Lane Dunlop | Collected in A Late chrysanthemum: Twenty-One Stories from the Japanese |
1951 | 魔法のチョーク Mahou no chouku |
"The Magic Chalk" | Alison Kibrick | Collected in The Showa Anthology: Modern Japanese Short Stories |
1951 | 壁―S・カルマ氏の犯罪 Kabe―S・Karuma shi no hanzai |
The Wall ― The Crime of S. Karma | Juliet Winters Carpenter | Winner of the Akutagawa Prize
Excerpt collected in Beyond the Curve |
1951 | 闖入者 Chinnyusha |
"Intruders" | Juliet Winters Carpenter | Collected in Beyond the Curve |
1951 | 詩人の生涯 Shijin no Shougai |
"The Life of a Poet" | Juliet Winters Carpenter | Collected in Beyond the Curve |
1951 | 飢えた皮膚 Ueta hihu |
"The Starving Skin" | ||
1952 | ノアの方舟 Noa no hakobune |
"Noah's Ark" | Juliet Winters Carpenter | Collected in Beyond the Curve |
1952 | 水中都市 Suichu toshi |
"The Underwater City" | ||
1954 | 犬 Inu |
"The Dog" | Andrew Horvat | Collected in Four Stories by Kobo Abe |
1954 | 変形の記録 Henkei no kiroku |
"Record of a Transformation" | Juliet Winters Carpenter | Collected in Beyond the Curve |
1950 | 棒 Bou |
"The Stick" | Lane Dunlop | Collected in A Late chrysanthemum: Twenty-One Stories from the Japanese |
1956 | R62号の発明 R62 gou no hatumei |
"Inventions by No. R62" | ||
1957 | 誘惑者 Yuwakusha |
"Beguiled" | Juliet Winters Carpenter | Collected in Beyond the Curve |
1957 | 夢の兵士 Yume no heishi |
"The Dream Soldier" | First translation, 1973 by Andrew Horvat Second translation, 1991 by Juliet Winters Carpenter |
First translation collected in Four Stories by Kobo Abe Second translation collected in Beyond the Curve |
1957 | 鉛の卵 Namari no tamago |
"The Egg of Pb" | ||
1958 | 使者 Shisha |
"The Special Envoy" | Juliet Winters Carpenter | Collected in Beyond the Curve |
1960 | 賭け Kake |
"The Bet" | Juliet Winters Carpenter | Collected in Beyond the Curve |
1961 | 無関係な死 Mukankei na shi |
"An Irrelevant Death" | Juliet Winters Carpenter | Collected in Beyond the Curve |
1966 | カーブの向う Kabu no mukou |
"Beyond the Curve" | Juliet Winters Carpenter | First collection published in English[1] |
1964 | 時の崖 Toki no gake |
"The Cliff of Time" | Andrew Horvat | Collected in Four Stories by Kobo Abe |
19?? | ? | "Hand" | Ted Mack | Appears in Columbia: A Journal of Literature and Art, No. 27 (Winter 1996–97), pp. 50–57[19] |
Plays
Year | Japanese Title | English Title | Translations available | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
時間の崖 Jikan no gake |
The Cliff of Time | Donald Keene | Collected in The Man Who Turned Into A Stick: Three Related Plays | |
スーツケース Sūtsukēsu |
Suitcase | Donald Keene | Collected in The Man Who Turned Into A Stick: Three Related Plays | |
1955 | 制服 Seifuku |
Uniforms | ||
1955 | どれい狩り Dorei gari |
Slave Hunting | ||
1955 | 快速船 Kaisoku sen |
The Speedy Ship | ||
1957[20] | 棒になった男 Bou ni natta otoko |
The Man Who Turned Into A Stick | Donald Keene | Collected in The Man Who Turned Into A Stick: Three Related Plays
The 1969 production was the first time Abe directed his own work. His wife designed the set.[7] |
1958 | 幽霊はここにいる Yuurei wa koko ni iru |
The Ghost Is Here | Donald Keene | Collected in Three Plays by Kōbō Abe
Award-winning production by Koreya Senda Well received in East Germany[7] |
1965 | おまえにも罪がある Omae nimo tsumi ga aru |
You, Too, Are Guilty | Ted T. Takaya | Collected in Modern Japanese Drama: An Anthology |
1967 | 友達 Tomodachi |
Friends | Donald Keene | Performed in English in Honolulu[1] Akutagawa Award winner 1967 Adapted into a film in 1988, directed by Kjell-Åke Andersson[7] |
1967 | 榎本武揚 Enomoto Takeaki |
Takeaki Enomoto | Alt. translation: Enomoto Buyo[7]
Directed by the son of Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, "father of the Japanese short story"[7] | |
1971 | 未必の故意 Mihitsu no koi |
Involuntary Homicide | Donald Keene | Collected in Three Plays by Kōbō Abe |
1971 | ガイド・ブック Gaido bukku |
Guide Book | ||
1973 | 愛の眼鏡は色ガラス Ai no megane wa iro garasu |
Loving Glasses Are Colored Ones | ||
1974 | 緑色のストッキング Midori iro no sutokkingu |
Green Stockings | Donald Keene | Collected in Three Plays by Kōbō Abe |
1975 | ウエー(新どれい狩り) Uē (Shin dorei gari) |
Ue (Slave Hunting, New Version), The Animal Hunter | James R. Brandon | |
1976 | 案内人GUIDE BOOK II Annai nin |
The Guide Man, GUIDE BOOK II | ||
1977 | 水中都市GUIDE BOOK III Suichu toshi |
The Underwater City, GUIDE BOOK III | ||
1978 | S・カルマ氏の犯罪 S・Karuma shi no hanzai |
The Crime of S. Karuma | ||
1979 | 仔象は死んだ Kozou wa shinda |
An Elephant Calf Is Dead |
Essays
Year | Japanese Title | English Title | Translations available | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1944 | 詩と詩人 (意識と無意識) Shi to shijin [Ishiki to muishiki] |
Poetry and Poets (Consciousness and the Unconscious) | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1954 | 文学における理論と実践 Bungaku ni okeru riron to jissen |
Theory and Practice in Literature | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1955 | 猛獣の心に計算機の手を:文学とは何か Mōjū no kokoro ni keisanki no te wo: Bungaku to ha nanika |
The Hand of a Calculator with the Heart of a Beast: What Is Literature? | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1957 | アメリカ発見 Amerika hakken |
Discovering America | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1960 | 映像は言語の壁を破壊するか Eizō ha gengo no kabe wo hakai suru ka |
Does the Visual Image Destroy the Walls of Language? | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1960 | 芸術の革命:芸術運動の理論 Geijutsu no kakumei: Geijutsu undō no riron |
Artistic Revolution: Theory of the Art Movement | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1965 | 現代における教育の可能性:人間存在の本質に触れて Gendai ni okeru kyōiku no kanōsei: Ningen sonzai no honshitsu ni furete |
Possibilities for Education Today: On the Essence of Human Existence | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1966 | 隣人を超えるもの Rinjin wo koeru mono |
Beyond the Neighbor | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1968 | ミリタリールック Miritarī rukku |
The Military Look | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1968 | 異端のパスポート Itan no pasupōto |
Passport of Heresy | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1968 | 内なる辺境 Uchi naru henkyō |
The Frontier Within | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1969 | 続:内なる辺境 Zoku: Uchi naru henkyō |
The Frontier Within, Part II | Richard F. Calichman | Collected in The Frontier Within: Essays by Abe Kōbō |
1975 | 笑う月 Warau tsuki |
The Laughing Moon | ||
1981 | 桜は異端諮問間の紋章
Sakura wa itan shinmonkan no monshō |
The Dark Side of the Cherry Blossoms | Donald Keene | Published in The Washington Post,[21] The Guardian, and The Asahi Shinbun[3] |
Poetry
Year | Japanese Title | English Title | Translations available | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1947 | 無名詩集 Mumei shishu |
Poems of an Unknown Poet | ||
1978 | 人さらい Hito sarai |
Kidnap |
References
- ^ ]
- ^ ISBN 978-0-231-11144-7.
- ^ OCLC 261174053.
- ^ New York Times.[dead link]
- ^ Timothy Iles, Abe Kobo: an Exploration of his Prose, Drama, and Theatre, EPAP, 2000.
- ISBN 0837902258.
- ^ ISBN 9780834803541.
- ^ "HORAGAI: Abe Kobo". www.horagai.com. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
- ISBN 978-3-89129-822-0.
- OCLC 1041937833.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link - OCLC 1041937833.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link - OCLC 1041937833.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link - ^ Nathan, John (2008). Living Carelessly in Tokyo and Elsewhere: A Memoir. Simon and Schuster.
- ISBN 978-1-873410-90-5.
- ^ "Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter A" (PDF). American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved March 18, 2011.
- ISBN 031240266X.
- ^ Sterngold, James (October 14, 1994). "Nobel in Literature Goes to Kenzaburo Oe of Japan". The New York Times.
- ^ Streitfeld, David (October 14, 1994). "Japanese Writer Oe Wins Nobel". The Washington Post.
- JSTOR 41807316.
- ISBN 0-07-079169-4.
- ^ Abe, Kobo (November 1981). "The Dark Side of the Cherry Blossoms". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
External links
- Kobo Abe at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- Kobo Abe at the Internet Book List
- Kobo Abe at the Internet Book Database of Fiction
- Kōbō Abe at IMDb
- Kōbō Abe at Library of Congress, with 108 library catalogue records
- Abe Kobo at ibiblio.org
- LitWeb.net: Kobo Abe Biography at the Wayback Machine (archived September 22, 2007)
- The Modern Word: Kobo Abe at the Wayback Machine (archived October 9, 2014)
- Interview with Goro Masaki about Japanese Science Fiction, large part devoted to Kobo Abe's work at the Wayback Machine (archived March 10, 2007)
- Kōbō Abe's grave