Япония: цивилизация, культура, язык 2024

ЯПОНИЯ: цивилизация, культура, язык 2024 184 referred to “novels, plays, poems, and songs”, particularly sentimental novels such as those by Ozaki Kōyō. Min’yūsha capitalized on the decline of sentimental novels and the rise of “historical discourse”, asserting that “hard literature” was inherently more progressive than “soft literature”. In response, Tōkoku, alongside Mori Ōgai and Uchida Roan, staunchly opposed this dichotomy between “hard literature” and “soft literature”, advocating instead for a more holistic and inclusive understanding of literary value and significance. The foundations of Kitamura Tōkoku’s literary value and his social position lie in his innovative fusion of Eastern and Western pantheistic and mystical ontologies. This synthesis endowed Japanese literature with a metaphysical dimension that resisted the disenchantment brought by modernity. Inspired by the Freedom and People’s Rights Movement, Tōkoku harbored a fervent desire for the modern liberation of human nature, leading him to audaciously challenge feudal ethics and customs. In his work “Meiji Bungaku Kanken” 2 , he critiqued contemporary society, observing that “The revolution of the Meiji Restoration shattered the old customs in the political sphere ,” a widely acknowledged fact. He noted that “samurai and commoners became a unified nation”, marking the essence of the revolution. Through his contributions to Jogaku Zasshi 3 , Tōkoku delved into the intricacies of human inner life, asserting the importance of various demands and their inherent authority. This exploration provided a profound existential foundation for literature. As he articulated in the same essay, “ Literature 2 勝本清一郎、北村透谷全集、第二巻、『明治文學管見』、 146 頁、岩 波書店、 1912. 3 Jogaku Zasshi was a women's magazine published in Tokyo, Japan, during the Meiji era between July 1885 and February 1904.