Donald Keene Bücher

Der Umfang der japanischen Literatur in all ihrer großen Vielfalt wird in dieser Anthologie präsentiert. Jedes Genre und jeder Stil, von den gefeierten No-Spielen bis zur Poesie und den Romanen des siebzehnten Jahrhunderts, findet in diesem Buch seinen Platz. Eine Einführung von Donald Keene stellt die Auswahl in ihren historischen Kontext, sodass die Leser das Buch sowohl als Literatur als auch als Führer zur Kulturgeschichte Japans genießen können. Die Auswahlen umfassen das „Man’yoshu“ aus der Antike; das „Kokinshu“, das „Tosa Diary“ von Ki No Tsurayuki, „Yugao“ aus „Die Geschichte von Genji“ von Murasaki Shikibu und das „Kissenbuch“ von Sei Shonagon aus der Heian-Zeit; „Die Geschichte von Heike“ aus der Kamakura-Zeit; den Plan der No-Bühne, „Vögel des Kummers“ von Seami Motokiyo und „Drei Dichter in Minase“ aus der Muromachi-Zeit; sowie Auszüge von Basho, einschließlich „Der schmale Weg nach Oku“, „Die Liebes-Suizide von Sonezaki“ von Chikamatsu Monzaemon und Waka und Haiku der Tokugawa-Zeit.

Ein Schriftsteller entschließt sich, drei Notizhefte, die ihm zugespielt worden sind, zu veröffentlichen. Es sind die hinterlassenen Aufzeichnungen eines genialen jungen Mannes, eines Comiczeichners, der schonungslos von seinem verpfuschten Leben berichtet: Frauen, Trunksucht, Drogen, Irrsinn – tatsächlich in vielem das Leben des Autors Osamu Dazai. Die packenden Skizzen einer conditio inhumana haben seit Erscheinen des Buches 1948 Generationen japanischer Leser fasziniert. Dazai selbst ist ein Idol.

One of the three seminal works of Japanese literature—a beautiful collection of poems and tales that offers an unparalleled insight into ancient Japan Along with the Tale of Genji and One Hundred Poets, One Poem Each, the Tales of Ise is considered one of the three most important works of Japanese literature. A poem-tale collection from the early Heian period, it contains many stories of amorous adventures, faithful friendship, and travels in exile, framing the exquisite poems at the work's heart. The Tales of Ise has influenced waka, Noh, tales, and diaries since the time it was written, and is still the source of endless inspiration in novels, poetry, manga, and cartoons. This volume has been translated by Peter MacMillan and includes a preface by the renowned Japanologist Donald Keene. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

"I sometimes think that if, as the result of an accident, I were to lose my knowledge of Japanese, there would not be much left for me. Japanese, which at first had no connection with my ancestors, my literary tastes, or my awareness of myself as a person, has become the central element of my life." In this eloquent and wholly absorbing memoir, the renowned scholar Donald Keene shares more than half a century of his extraordinary adventures as a student of Japan. Keene begins with an account of his bittersweet childhood in New York; then he describes his initial encounters with Asia and Europe and the way in which World War II complicated that experience. He captures the sights, scents, and sounds of Japan as they first enveloped him, and talks of the unique travels and well-known intellectuals who later shaped the contours of his academic career. Keene traces the movement of his passions with delicacy and subtlety, deftly weaving his love for Japan into a larger narrative about identity and home and the circumstances that led a Westerner to find solace in a country on the opposite side of the world. Chronicles of My Life is not only a fascinating tale of two cultures colliding, but also a thrilling account of the emotions and experiences that connect us all, regardless of our individual origins.

A biography of Japanese tanka master Ishikawa Takuboku, who pioneered an unmistakably modern poetic style.

Filled with rich description and luxurious beauty, these ten tales of loss and longing from one of Japan's greatest writers show the pull between duty and desire, ecstasy and death- a mother lost in mourning, a moonlit journey to fulfil a wish, a night of infidelity, a young lieutenant who ends his life.

The attack on Pearl Harbor, which precipitated the Greater East Asia War and its initial triumphs, aroused pride and a host of other emotions among the Japanese people. Yet the single year in which Japanese forces occupied territory from Alaska to Indonesia was followed by three years of terrible defeat. Nevertheless, until the shattering end of the war, many Japanese continued to believe in the invincibility of their country. But in the diaries of well-known writers--including Nagai Kafu, Takami Jun, Yamada Futaru, and Hirabayashi Taiko--and the scholar Watanabe Kazuo, varying doubts were vividly, though privately, expressed.Donald Keene, renowned scholar of Japan, selects from these diaries, some written by authors he knew well. Their revelations were sometimes poignant, sometimes shocking to Keene. Ito Sei's fervent patriotism and even claims of racial superiority stand in stark contrast to the soft-spoken, kindly man Keene knew. Weaving archival materials with personal recollections and the intimate accounts themselves, Keene reproduces the passions aroused during the war and the sharply contrasting reactions in the year following Japan's surrender. Whether detailed or fragmentary, these entries communicate the reality of false victory and all-too-real defeat.

Donald Keene combines informative works on two forms of classical Japanese theater into a single volume. The No text looks at all aspects of this traditional theater form including its history, its stage and props, the use of music and dance in its performances, the plays as literature, and the aesthetics of No. Also discussed are Kyogen, the comic farces that are typically interspersed with the solemn No dramas.

This is the extraordinary story of how Japan was dramatically transformed during the long reign of Emperor Meiji, from an isolated island nation to one of the five great powers of the world, poised as a rival in Asia to Russia and the European colonial powers.

Modern Japanese Literature is Donald Keene’s critically acclaimed companion volume to his landmark Anthology of Japanese Literature. Now considered the standard canon of modern Japanese writing translated into English, Modern Japanese Literature includes concise introductions to the writers, as well as a historical introduction by Professor Keene. Includes: Growing Up by Ichiyo, a lyrical story of pre-adolescence in the 90s; Natsume’s story of Botchan, an illustarred and ineffectual Huck Finn; Nagai’s The Sumida River; Kokomitsu’s Kafkaesque Time; Kawabata’s The Mole; Firefly Hunt; a glimpse into Tanizaki’s masterpiece Thin Snow; and the postwar work of such writers as Dazai and Mishima.

This is a collection of journals written by Japanese men and women--from samurai and other government officials to novelists and poets--who journeyed to America, Europe, and China between 1860 and 1920. The diaries faithfully record personal views of the countries and their cultures and sentiments that range from delight to disillusionment. At once an intimate account of the travellers' lives and a testimony to the greater struggles and advances of their cultures, Donald Keene's eloquent translation and commentary invites the reader to partake in the world as each person experienced it.

Novel of present day Japan. Reaction of an upper-class family to the war and the resultant cultural impact.

Donald Keene, a leading interpreter of Japanese literature, offers an engaging introduction to traditional Japanese culture for general readers. As the author, editor, or translator of nearly three dozen works, Keene shares his insights on Japanese aesthetics, poetry, fiction, and theater, based on lectures delivered at prestigious institutions like the New York Public Library and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. His essays require no prior knowledge of Japanese culture, making them accessible while still deeply informative. Keene’s expertise allows him to craft a narrative that is both enjoyable and enlightening, shedding light on enduring aspects of traditional culture, such as the appreciation of "perishability." This concept manifests in various facets of Japanese life, from wooden temples to a preference for worn pottery and the fleeting beauty of cherry blossoms, which bloom for just three days. Quoting the fourteenth-century monk Kenko, who noted the preciousness of life's uncertainty, Keene illustrates how Japan's rich artistic and social traditions can resonate with readers from different backgrounds. This work is sure to captivate anyone interested in Japanese literature and culture.

For the first time in English, Osamu Dazai's comic prequel to No Longer Human

Twenty Plays of the No Theatre (UNESCO Collection of Representative Japanese Series)

This is the first of a multivolume history of modern Japanese literature. Volume one is devoted to the study of fiction, and contains complete studies of all the important Japanese writers since the Meiji restoration in 1868, both those widely read in the West and other lesser known writers.

Yoshimasa był prawdopodobnie najgorszym szogunem w historii Japonii, niezdolnym do sprawowania władzy, zdominowanym przez żonę i nieznającym się na sprawach państwowych. Mimo to, jak pokazuje Donald Keene, jego wpływ na życie kulturalne Japonii był ogromny. Yoshimasa jest pamiętany głównie jako budowniczy Świątyni Srebrnego Pawilonu i przywódca w czasie wojny Onin (1467-1477), która osłabiła władzę szogunów. Porzuciwszy politykę, skupił się na poszukiwaniu piękna. Po rezygnacji ze stanowiska szoguna i osiedleniu się w Srebrnym Pawilonie, jego estetyczny smak wpłynął na gusty Japończyków, prowadząc do rozkwitu teatru no, sztuki japońskich ogrodów oraz narodzin ceremonii herbacianej. W jego czasach zyskały na znaczeniu również sztuka układania kwiatów, malarstwo tuszowe oraz architektura shoinzukuri. Keene, dzięki swojej wszechstronnej erudycji i wciągającemu stylowi pisania, tworzy fascynującą opowieść o wyrafinowanym estecie, którego gust miał kluczowe znaczenie w kształtowaniu współczesnego świata. Biografia ta stanowi nieoceniony przewodnik dla tych, którzy interesują się rozwojem japońskiego stylu.

豊かな水と緑に満ちた山並み連なる美しい国、日本。来日間もない若き日の著者が、瑞々しい感覚で、日本とはどのような国かを論じ、母国の人々に紹介する。近代化による大変貌にもかかわらず依然として変わらない日本人の本質を見つめ、著しい美的趣向、豊かな感受性、比類のない多様性など日本文化の特性を刳り出す。日本への愛情溢れる日本論。