Yasushi Inoue
Yasushi Inoue (井上靖, Inoue Yasushi, May 6, 1907 – January 29, 1991) was a Japanese writer of poetry, essays, short fiction, and novels. Born in Asahikawa, Hokkaido in 1907, Inoue was raised in Shizuoka Prefecture.
Yasushi Inoue | |
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| Born | Yasushi Inoue May 6, 1907 Asahikawa, Hokkaido, Japan |
| Died | January 29, 1991 (aged 83) Tokyo, Japan |
| Occupation |
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| Nationality | Japanese |
| Alma mater | Kyoto University |
| Period | 1930–1991 |
| Spouse | Fumiko Adachi (m. 1935) |
| Children | Shuichi Inoue (son) |
Biography
Inoue studied at both Kyushu University and Kyoto University. He balanced his studies with a career as college judoka, even participating at the prestigious Nanatei league, but he left the martial art in order to focus on his literary career.
He is famous for his serious historical fiction of ancient Japan and the Asian continent, including Wind and Waves, Tun-huang, and Confucius, but his work also included semi-autobiographical novels and short fiction of great humor, pathos, and wisdom like Shirobamba and Asunaro Monogatari, which depicted the setting of the author's own life — Japan of the early to mid twentieth century — in revealing perspective.
Inoue, who is one of Japan's most prolific writers today, started relatively late as a novelist. He was forty-two when he published in 1949 his first works, the two novelettes Ryoju and The Bullfight, which the following year won for him the top literary prize in Japan, the Akutagawa Prize. His longer The Roof Tile of Tempyo deals both with art and ancient China; Lou-Lan and The Flood are short historical novels of China. Whether he is writing full novels, novelettes, or short-stories, however, Inoue's penchant for detailed, exhaustive research and historical accuracy give his stories a flavor of authenticity. Even the characters in his stories can often be traced back to historical individuals. In the spring of 1964, Inoue went to the United States to start his research on what he personally believes will be his magnum opus, a multi-volume treatment of first, second, and third generation Japanese abroad, particularly in the United States.
—Leon Picon, from the introduction to The Counterfeiter, published in 1965
Prizes
- 1936 Chiba Kameo Prize --- Ruten,流転
- 1950 Akutagawa Prize --- Tōgyu,闘牛
- 1957 Ministry of Education Prize for Literature --- The Roof Tile of Tempyo,天平の甍
- 1959 Mainichi Press Prize --- Tun-huang,敦煌
- 1963 Yomiuri Prize --- Fūtō,風濤
Works
Novels
| Year | Japanese Title | Title of English Translation |
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| 1937 | 流転 Ruten~ |
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| 1950 | その人の名は云えない Sono hito no na ha ienai |
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| 1950 | 黯い潮 Kuroi shio |
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| 1951 | 白い牙 Shiroi kiba |
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| 1951 | 戦国無頼 Sengoku burai |
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| 1952 | 青衣の人 Seii no hito |
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| 1952 | 暗い平原 Kurai heigen |
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| 1953 | あすなろ物語 Asunaro monogatari |
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| 1953 | 昨日と明日の間 Kinō to asu no aida |
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| 1953 | 風林火山 Fūrin Kazan |
The Samurai Banner of Furin Kazan |
| 1954 | あした来る人 Ashita kuru hito |
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| 1955 | 淀どの日記 Yodo-dono nikki |
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| 1955 | 満ちてくる潮 Michite kuru shio |
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| 1955 | 黒い蝶 Kuroi chō |
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| 1956 | 射程 Shatei |
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| 1956 | 氷壁 Hyōheki |
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| 1957 | 天平の甍 Tenpyō no iraka |
Roof Tile of Tempyo |
| 1957 | 海峡 Kaikyō |
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| 1959 | 敦煌 Tonkō |
Tun-huang |
| 1959 | ある落日 Aru rakujitsu |
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| 1959 | 蒼き狼 Aoki ōkami |
The Blue Wolf |
| 1959 | 渦 Uzu |
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| 1960 | しろばんば Shirobanba |
Shirobamba |
| 1961 | 崖 Gake |
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| 1961 | 憂愁平野 Yushū heiya |
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| 1962 | 城砦 Jōsai |
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| 1963 | 楊貴妃伝 Yō Kihi den |
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| 1963 | 風濤 Fūtō |
Wind and Waves |
| 1964 | 夏草冬濤 Natsukusa fuyunami |
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| 1964 | 後白河院 Goshirakawa-in |
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| 1966 | おろしや国酔夢譚 Orosha-koku suimutan |
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| 1965 | 化石 Kaseki |
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| 1967 | 夜の声 Yoru no koe |
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| 1966 | わだつみ Wadatsumi |
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| 1968 | 西域物語 Seiiki monogatari |
Journey Beyond Samarkand |
| 1968 | 額田女王 Nukada no Ōkimi |
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| 1968 | 北の海 Kita no umi |
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| 1970 | 欅の木 Keyaki no ki |
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| 1970 | 四角な船 Shikaku na fune |
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| 1971 | 星と祭 Hoshi to matsuri |
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| 1972 | 幼き日のこと Osanaki hi no koto |
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| 1977 | 流沙 Ryūsa |
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| 1981 | 本覺坊遺文 Hongakubō ibun |
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| 1989 | 孔子 Kōshi |
Confucius |
Short stories
| Year | Japanese Title | Title of English Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1949 | 猟銃 Ryōjū |
The Hunting Gun |
| 1950 | 闘牛 Tōgyū |
The Bullfight |
| 1950 | 死と恋と波と Shi to koi to nami to |
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| 1950 | 雷雨 Raiu |
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| 1950 | 比良のシャクナゲ Hira no shakunage |
The Rhododendrons/ The Azaleas of Hira |
| 1951 | ある偽作家の生涯 Aru gisakka no shōgai |
Life of a Counterfeiter |
| Yasushi Inoue. Life of a Counterfeiter and Other Stories. tr. by Michael Emmerich. London: Pushkin Press, 2014, p. vi. | ||
| 1952 | 春の嵐 Haruno arashi |
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| 1952 | 黄色い鞄 Kiiroi kaban |
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| 1952 | 緑の仲間 Midori no nakama |
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| 1952 | 仔犬と香水瓶 Koinu to kōsuibin |
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| 1953 | 風と雲と砦 Kaze to kumo to toride |
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| 1954 | 末裔 Matsuei |
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| 1954 | 花と波濤 Hana to Hatō |
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| 1954 | 異域の人 Iiki no hito |
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| 1954 | 青い照明 Aoi shōmei |
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| 1954 | 風わたる Kaze wataru |
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| 1954 | 愛 Ai |
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| 1954 | 霧の道 Kiri no michi |
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| 1954 | 春の海図 Haruno kaizu |
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| 1954 | 伊那の白梅 Ina no shiraume |
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| 1954 | オリーブ地帯 Oriibu chitai |
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| 1954 | 星よまたたけ Hoshi yo matatake |
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| 1955 | 美也と六人の恋人 Miya to rokunin no koibito |
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| 1955 | 騎手 Kishu |
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| 1955 | 夢見る沼 Yume miru numa |
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| 1956 | その日そんな時刻 Sono hi sonna kisetsu |
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| 1956 | 魔の季節 Ma no kisetsu |
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| 1956 | 野を分ける風 No o wakeru kaze |
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| 1956 | 姨捨 Obasute |
Obasute |
| 1956 | 七人の紳士 Shichinin no shinshi |
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| 1956 | 孤猿 Koen |
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| 1956 | ある愛情 Aru aijō |
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| 1957 | 真田軍記 Sanada gunki |
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| 1957 | 山の湖 Yama no mizuumi |
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| 1957 | 白い炎 Shiroi honō |
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| 1957 | 白い風赤い雲 Shiroi kaze akai kumo |
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| 1957 | こんどは俺の番だ Kondo ha ore no ban da |
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| 1957 | 少年 Shōnen |
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| 1958 | 青いボート Aoi bōto |
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| 1958 | 揺れる耳飾り Yureru mimikazari |
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| 1958 | 満月 Mangetsu |
The Full Moon |
| 1959 | 楼蘭 Rōran |
Lou-lan |
| 1959 | 波濤 Hatō |
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| 1959 | 旅路 Tabiji |
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| 1959 | 朱い門 Akai mon |
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| 1960 | 河口 Kakō |
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| 1960 | 川 Kawa |
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| 1961 | 群舞 Gunbu |
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| 1961 | 白い街道 Shiroi kaidō |
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| 1962 | 半島 Hantō |
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| 1962 | 洪水 Kōzui |
Flood |
| 1964 | 凍れる樹 Kōreru ki |
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| 1964 | 異国の旅 Ikoku no tabi |
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| 1965 | 羅刹女国 Rasetsu Nyokoku |
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| 1965 | 西域小説集 Seiiki shōsetsu shū |
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| 1965 | 燭台 Shokudai |
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| 1966 | 傾ける海 Katamukeru umi |
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| 1968 | 天城の雲 Amagi no kumo |
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| 1969 | 月の光 Tsuki no hikari |
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| 1970 | 崑崙の玉 Konron no gyoku |
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| 1970 | ローマの宿 Rōma no yado |
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| 1972 | 土の絵 Tsuchi no e |
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| 1973 | 火の燃える海 Hi no moeru umi |
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| 1973 | あかね雲 Akane gumo |
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| 1974 | 桃李記 Tōriki |
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| 1975 | わが母の記 Waga haha no ki |
Chronicle of My Mother |
| 1976 | 花壇 Kadan |
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| 1977 | 過ぎ去りし日日 Sugisarisi hibi |
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| 1977 | 盛装 (晴着) Seisō (Haregi) |
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| 1977 | 戦国城砦群 Sengoku jōsai gun |
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| 1977 | 地図にない島 Chizu ni nai shima |
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| 1977 | 兵鼓 Heiko |
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| 1977 | 月光・遠い海 Gekkō・tōi umi |
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| 1977 | 紅花 Benibana |
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| 1977 | 若き怒濤 Wakaki todō |
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| 1980 | 銀のはしご うさぎのピロちゃん物語 Gin no hashigo usagi no birochan monogatari |
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| 1982 | 西行 Saigyō |
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| 1984 | 異国の星 Ikoku no hoshi |
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| 1991 | 石濤 Sekitō |
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| 補陀落渡海記 Fudarakutokai-ki |
Passage to Fudaraku |
Poetry
Essay
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Yasushi Inoue. |
- Yasushi Inoue at J'Lit Books from Japan (in English)
- Synopsis of Lou-Lan (Roran) at JLPP (Japanese Literature Publishing Project) (in English)
- Petri Liukkonen. "Yasushi Inoue". Books and Writers
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