Ineko Sata
Encyclopedia
was a Japanese
communist
and feminist
author
of proletarian literature
.
to young parents (her father 18, her mother 15), the family moved to Tokyo
when Sata was a child. Her first job was in a caramel factory, before working in restaurants where she befriended writers, including Ryūnosuke Akutagawa
. In 1922 her poems were published for the first time in Shi to jinsei ("Poetry and life").
Working at the Koroku cafe-bar in Hongo
, near Tokyo University, she met Nakano Shigeharu who would remain a lifelong friend. Along with Nakano, left-wing writers Hori Tatsuo
and Tsurujirō Kubokawa ran the progressive literary magazine Roba (Donkey). Nakano inspired Sata to write her first published novella, Kyarameru koba kara (From the Caramel Factory) in 1928. Then, after a failed first marriage, she married Kubokawa.
Sata became increasing concerned with issues related to workers. In 1929, she spoke out against the treatment of women workers in cigarette factories. In 1931, she defended the striking workers of the Tokyo Muslin Factory. As a member of the Proletarian Literature Movement, she wrote a series of novels on the lives of ordinary working men and women. These included Kyoseikikoku (Compulsory Extradition), about the rights of migrant Korean workers and Kambu joko no namida (Tears of a Forewoman).
In 1932 she joined the outlawed Japan Communist Party (JCP). She became close to JCP leaders Kenji Miyamoto
and Takiji Kobayashi, the latter tortured to death by police in 1933. In 1935 she was arrested and spent two months in prison.
These experiences became the basis for her novel, Kurenai (Scarlet), in 1936. Her strong-willed political opinions, often highly unorthodox from an official party point of view, led her to become estranged from the Party. Sata was one of the first Communists in Japan to reject Stalinism
. Pressured by the imperial authorities, she had to suffer the humiliation of the tenkō
process (literally, a change of direction) a term used to describe a formal rejection of affiliation with the JCP. Conflicting conditions at this time placed Sata under profound stress and she attempted suicide.
While the late 1930s saw increasing government censorship and a decline in the Proletarian Literature Movement Sata continued to write: in 1938, she produced Juju shinryoku (Fresh Green of Trees) and in 1940 Suashi no musume (A Barefoot Girl).
With the end of the war in 1945 Sata's writing re-emerged. Changes in her personal attitudes led her to divorce her husband the same year. In 1946 she rejoined the JCP, although, as before, she would often voiced vehement criticism of the direction of the party. Her wartime experiences were the subject of Watashi no Tōkyō Chizu (My Tokyo Map), written between 1946 and 1948. In 1954 she wrote Kikai no naka no seishun (Youth among the Machines). Her collected works were issued in 15 volumes in 1958-59. She would write Onna no yado ("Women's Lodgings") in 1963 and Omoki nagarani (On a Heavy Tide) in 1968-69.
In 1964, Sata had rejoined the Japan Communist Party after yet another expulsion. She was one of the founders of the new Women's Democratic Clubher activities in the organization, judged divisive from the perspective of the party mainstream, led to another expulsion from the JCP.
Sata was awarded the Noma Prize
in 1972 for her book Juei (The Shade of Trees), which deals with the relationships between Chinese and Japanese people in Nagasaki after the dropping of the atomic bomb. In 1973, she was offered the Geijutuin Onshisho (Imperial Art Academy Prize) for her life's work, but she refused the award as she regarded it as a nationalist congratulation prize. She accepted the Kawabata Prize for short stories in 1977.
In 1983, she received the Asahi Prize
for the entire body of her work. She gave an acceptance speech which expressed regret for her contributions to the war effort.
Her long-time colleague Nakano Shigeharu died in 1979. Her book about him, Natsu no Shiori - Nakano Shigeharu o okuru (Memories of Summer - a Farewell to Shigeharu Nakano) was awarded the Mainichi Art Award in 1983.
Most of Sata's work was translated into Russian in the Sixties and Seventies. Two short stories from the prize-winning collection Toki ni tatsu (Standing Still in Time) have been translated into English. The 1986 story Chisai yama to tsubaki no ki (Camellia Blossoms on the Little Mountain) appeared in Japanese Literature Today, the English magazine issued by the Japan PEN
Club. A recent English translation is "Water" (Mizu), appearing in Stories from the East, The East Publications, 1997. A partial translation of Watashi no Tōkyō chizu (My Tokyo Map) appears in Tokyo Stories: A Literary Stroll, University of California Press, 2002, Lawrence Rogers, editor.
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
communist
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
and feminist
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
of proletarian literature
Proletarian literature
Proletarian literature refers to the literature created by working-class writers for the class-conscious proletariat, published by the communist parties. It was a literature without literary pretensions....
.
Biography
Born in poverty in NagasakiNagasaki
is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Nagasaki was founded by the Portuguese in the second half of the 16th century on the site of a small fishing village, formerly part of Nishisonogi District...
to young parents (her father 18, her mother 15), the family moved to Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
when Sata was a child. Her first job was in a caramel factory, before working in restaurants where she befriended writers, including Ryūnosuke Akutagawa
Ryunosuke Akutagawa
was a Japanese writer active in the Taishō period in Japan. He is regarded as the "Father of the Japanese short story". He committed suicide at age of 35 through an overdose of barbital.-Early life:...
. In 1922 her poems were published for the first time in Shi to jinsei ("Poetry and life").
Working at the Koroku cafe-bar in Hongo
Hongo
Hongō is a district of Tokyo located in Bunkyō-ku, due north of the Tokyo Imperial Palace and west of Ueno. Hongō was a ward of the former city of Tokyo until 1947, when it merged with another ward, Koishikawa, to form the modern Bunkyō....
, near Tokyo University, she met Nakano Shigeharu who would remain a lifelong friend. Along with Nakano, left-wing writers Hori Tatsuo
Hori Tatsuo
was a writer, poet, and translator in Showa period Japan.-Early life:Hori was born in Tokyo, and was a graduate of Tokyo Imperial University. While still a student, he contributed translations of modern French poets to a literary journal called Roba, which was sponsored by poet Murō Saisei...
and Tsurujirō Kubokawa ran the progressive literary magazine Roba (Donkey). Nakano inspired Sata to write her first published novella, Kyarameru koba kara (From the Caramel Factory) in 1928. Then, after a failed first marriage, she married Kubokawa.
Sata became increasing concerned with issues related to workers. In 1929, she spoke out against the treatment of women workers in cigarette factories. In 1931, she defended the striking workers of the Tokyo Muslin Factory. As a member of the Proletarian Literature Movement, she wrote a series of novels on the lives of ordinary working men and women. These included Kyoseikikoku (Compulsory Extradition), about the rights of migrant Korean workers and Kambu joko no namida (Tears of a Forewoman).
In 1932 she joined the outlawed Japan Communist Party (JCP). She became close to JCP leaders Kenji Miyamoto
Kenji Miyamoto (politician)
was a Japanese politician who led the Japanese Communist Party from 1958 until 1977.- Early life :Kenji Miyamoto was born in Japan in 1908. He was originally from Yamaguchi Prefecture....
and Takiji Kobayashi, the latter tortured to death by police in 1933. In 1935 she was arrested and spent two months in prison.
These experiences became the basis for her novel, Kurenai (Scarlet), in 1936. Her strong-willed political opinions, often highly unorthodox from an official party point of view, led her to become estranged from the Party. Sata was one of the first Communists in Japan to reject Stalinism
Stalinism
Stalinism refers to the ideology that Joseph Stalin conceived and implemented in the Soviet Union, and is generally considered a branch of Marxist–Leninist ideology but considered by some historians to be a significant deviation from this philosophy...
. Pressured by the imperial authorities, she had to suffer the humiliation of the tenkō
Tenko
Tenko may refer to:*Tenko , a BBC television drama*Princess Tenko, a Japanese magician, upon whom the cartoon Tenko and the Guardians of the Magic was based...
process (literally, a change of direction) a term used to describe a formal rejection of affiliation with the JCP. Conflicting conditions at this time placed Sata under profound stress and she attempted suicide.
While the late 1930s saw increasing government censorship and a decline in the Proletarian Literature Movement Sata continued to write: in 1938, she produced Juju shinryoku (Fresh Green of Trees) and in 1940 Suashi no musume (A Barefoot Girl).
With the end of the war in 1945 Sata's writing re-emerged. Changes in her personal attitudes led her to divorce her husband the same year. In 1946 she rejoined the JCP, although, as before, she would often voiced vehement criticism of the direction of the party. Her wartime experiences were the subject of Watashi no Tōkyō Chizu (My Tokyo Map), written between 1946 and 1948. In 1954 she wrote Kikai no naka no seishun (Youth among the Machines). Her collected works were issued in 15 volumes in 1958-59. She would write Onna no yado ("Women's Lodgings") in 1963 and Omoki nagarani (On a Heavy Tide) in 1968-69.
In 1964, Sata had rejoined the Japan Communist Party after yet another expulsion. She was one of the founders of the new Women's Democratic Clubher activities in the organization, judged divisive from the perspective of the party mainstream, led to another expulsion from the JCP.
Sata was awarded the Noma Prize
Noma Prize
The Noma Prizes were established by Shoichi Noma, or in his honor. More than one award is conventionally identified as the Noma Prize.Noma was the former head of Kodansha, the Japanese publishing and bookselling company...
in 1972 for her book Juei (The Shade of Trees), which deals with the relationships between Chinese and Japanese people in Nagasaki after the dropping of the atomic bomb. In 1973, she was offered the Geijutuin Onshisho (Imperial Art Academy Prize) for her life's work, but she refused the award as she regarded it as a nationalist congratulation prize. She accepted the Kawabata Prize for short stories in 1977.
In 1983, she received the Asahi Prize
Asahi Prize
The Asahi Prize is a prize awarded by the Japanese newspaper the Asahi shimbun for achievement in scholarship or the arts that has made a contribution to culture or society. It was established in 1929. Many recipients of this prize have later been honoured with a Nobel Prize...
for the entire body of her work. She gave an acceptance speech which expressed regret for her contributions to the war effort.
Her long-time colleague Nakano Shigeharu died in 1979. Her book about him, Natsu no Shiori - Nakano Shigeharu o okuru (Memories of Summer - a Farewell to Shigeharu Nakano) was awarded the Mainichi Art Award in 1983.
Most of Sata's work was translated into Russian in the Sixties and Seventies. Two short stories from the prize-winning collection Toki ni tatsu (Standing Still in Time) have been translated into English. The 1986 story Chisai yama to tsubaki no ki (Camellia Blossoms on the Little Mountain) appeared in Japanese Literature Today, the English magazine issued by the Japan PEN
International PEN
PEN International , the worldwide association of writers, was founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere....
Club. A recent English translation is "Water" (Mizu), appearing in Stories from the East, The East Publications, 1997. A partial translation of Watashi no Tōkyō chizu (My Tokyo Map) appears in Tokyo Stories: A Literary Stroll, University of California Press, 2002, Lawrence Rogers, editor.