Japanese Language and Literature



About the department

The Department of Japanese Language and Literature offers classes in three major areas of study: classical Japanese literature, modern Japanese literature and Japanese linguistics.
The study of classical Japanese Literature focuses particularly on the outstanding pieces of literature written from the 8th to the middle of the 19th century. Among them, the Tale of Genji, widely considered to be the oldest novel in the world and written in the early 11th century by Lady Murasaki, had a significant influence on the Japanese literature of later times. In the class of “Reading the Tale of Genji”, students are expected to read the original Japanese text. Through the process, the students deepen their understanding of the historical background, ancient customs and practices, and Japanese thoughts and sensibilities. Such knowledge, which provides basic background information, will help prepare students to understand Japanese literature throughout the centuries.
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The study of Japanese Modern Literature deals with literature in the period from the middle of the 19th century to the contemporary period. For example, “Outline of Modern Japanese Literature” covers literature from 1920 to the present; the Showa and Heisei Eras. Literary selections from this period, including novels by Yasunari Kawabata, Yukio Mishima, Kenzaburo Oe, Haruki Murakami and other major writers, are studied with regard to their political, economic and social background, and also by utilizing various visual reference materials such as movies.
In the study of Japanese linguistics, history, grammar, and other aspects of Japanese language are specially focused upon. For example, in “Japanese Linguistics,” lectures are given on how the Japanese language has developed historically, what kind of language it has become, and where it stands in the world from the linguistic perspectives of phonetics, accents, characters, and notations.
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There are also classes that examine Japanese linguistics and literature from worldwide linguistic perspectives. “Comparative Linguistics” examines the structural differences between Japanese and the English, Spanish, Chinese, and Korean languages, in order to consider the characteristics of the Japanese language. Or, “Comparative Literature” studies the Japanese literature in comparison with literatures of foreign languages with Christian cultural backgrounds.

“Self-Structured Exercise of Japanese Literature” is a unique class which awards credits to students who submit reports about their own research on selected themes in relation to Japanese literature. For example, students may visits museums, watch movies or go to theaters and submit reports based on their own experience. Students favor such classes, which respect their independence and own design of the course structure.

Most of the classes in the Department of Japanese Language and Literature require the students to have considerable Japanese proficiency. Students, however, can improve their level of Japanese by challenging classes taught in Japanese. The department wishes to offer students whose native language is not Japanese the opportunity to improve their Japanese, to learn Japanese literature analytically, and to re-discover Japan through these classes.

Classes in Japanese Language and Literacture specially recommended for international students

Kabuki & Haiku
In the General Education Curriculum there are several classes that may be particularly interesting for international students who wish to study Japanese culture, literature and language. For example, Regional Culture Ia and Ib focus on Kabuki, which is a traditional Japanese performing art of drama and dancing.

Kabuki had its origin in the early 17th century, which was the early period of the Edo Era, and was established as a popular performing art in the 19th century. A female dancer named Izumo no Okuni is said to have initiated the avant-garde dance performance, which later was called Kabuki. Gradually however, female performers were replaced by young boys and later by adult men. Even the characters of women were played by men, as we see today. Stories of Kabuki plays were often comic, or absurd, and actors wore gaudy dresses and heavy makeup, which were much applauded by people in the Edo Era. At the same time, there were also Kabuki plays which tried to realistically dramatize common people’s lives and emotions. Today, in Kabuki plays, many of the 300 year-old costumes, language dialects, and customs of the Edo Era are still preserved, and strong relevance to contemporary Japanese culture can be observed.

Other courses of interest include Studies of Japanese Culture, which offer opportunities for foreign students to learn about Haiku, a form of Japanese traditional poetry, and to practice creation of their own. Haiku is an extremely short poem with only 17 syllables, within which kigo, a word that symbolically expresses the season, should be included. Haiku poetry helped Japanese people acquire succinct expression of a rich sense of seasons. There are, still existing, many excellent Haiku poems that were created in the Edo Era, as well as in the 19th century. In these classes, through appreciation of those classic Haiku, with the focus on the season words, students can deepen their understanding of the nature and climate of Japan, and the life and beliefs of its people. Students are also expected to write critiques or to create Haiku poems themselves. Exchanging reviews among students will also help them understand Japanese culture through their own experience.
Kabuki & Haiku

Faculty

Shinji Konno

Shinji Konno
Title
Professor

Field of Specialization
Japanese language studies

1. History of Japanese: Pursuing how to describe the history of Japanese language, with the Muromachi period and the Meiji period as the main fields.
2. Research on Japanese writing system: Japanese writing shifted from the time when people exclusively used Kanji to the time when people mix Kanji with Kana. I am trying to understand Japanese language through its writing system.

Takahiro Saeki

Takahiro Saeki
Title
Professor

Field of Specialization
Early modern Japanese literature

I specialize in the Japanese modern period novel, especially Kiseki Ejima’s the Ukiyo Zoushi such as Hachimonjiya-bon. I have considered the tastes and artistic/literary value of the Ukiyo Zoushi from such viewpoints as the appreciation of Saikaku by following authors, the relationship between the Ukiyo Zoushi and Hanashibon, other genres like Yomihon and the drama, and the actual incidents, models, and rumors that appeared in the works. I am also interested in horror novels and Ueda Akinari in the early modern period.

Naoko Suzuki

Naoko Suzuki
Title
Professor

Field of Specialization
Japanese modern and contemporary literature, gender studies

Gender politics, nationalism and representation in Japanese modern literature;
I’ve published on post-war novelists like Shimao Toshio and menbers of “Daisan no Shinjin”, as well as Okinawan novelists including Oshiro Tatsuhiro. My areas of interest include World-War-Ⅱ, post-war politics and the family.
I’m also interested in women’s literature and gender studies, especially the gender politics in language, body, food etc..

Makiko Tawa

Makiko Tawa
Title
Professor

Field of Specialization
History of Japanese language

I am interested in the changes of vocabulary and meaning of Japanese. Among them, I am particularly interested in adverbs whose meanings and functions change drastically, and I am continuing my research on it. Also in recent years, I focus not only on the changes and history of meaning and function at one word level but also on the historical change trend at the vocabulary and part-of-speech level.

Yukiko Fujii

Movie
Yukiko Fujii
Title
Professor

Field of Specialization
Japanese literature of the Heian period, Narrative literature (Monogatari).

I focus on Monogatari of Heian-Muromachi period, including Tale of Genji. In recent years, my research theme has been the study of the positioning of stories after Tale of Genji in history of literature.

Hideyuki Fujisawa

Hideyuki Fujisawa
Title
Professor

Field of Specialization
Modern Japanese literature

I specialize in Japanese modern literature, especially in the literature of Meiji period. Kyoka Izumi, Shimazaki Toson and Kitamura Tokoku are the authors I study about. I do research on Kyoka Izumi's illusion novel, Shimazaki Toson's poetry from Wakana-shu to Rakubai-shu, Kitamura Tokoku's poetry and critical essay – I mostly focus on Romanticism literature of Meiji period. I am also interested in postwar literature in Showa and literature in Heisei.

Atsuko Himeno

Atsuko Himeno
Title
Associate Professor

Field of Specialization
Japanese medieval literature, Song literature

Study of medieval singing songs centered onKangin-shu.