J. Martin Holman
Encyclopedia
James Martin Holman, Jr. (born 1957, Louisville, Kentucky
) is a literary translator, professor, puppeteer, and puppet theater director. He received a BA in Japanese
from Brigham Young University
and did graduate work in Japanese literature at the University of California, Berkeley
.
Holman lived in Japan for more than ten years as a missionary, graduate student, professor of Japanese literature, and resident director of two study centers: the Japan Center for Michigan Universities
(JCMU) in Hikone and the Associated Kyoto Program Center (AKP) at Doshisha University
in Kyoto
. He was the first non-Japanese to train and perform in Japan as a traditional puppeteer in the style of puppetry commonly known as Bunraku
or ningyō jōruri, making his stage debut in 1994 with the 170-year-old Tonda Traditional Bunraku Puppet Troupe
in Shiga Prefecture
. He is the founding director of the Bunraku Bay Puppet Troupe
, based in Columbia, Missouri
, which performs traditional Japanese puppet theater in the United States.
Holman has also published many translations of modern Japanese and Korean literature, including The Old Capital
(1987), Palm-of-the-Hand Stories
(1988), and The Dancing Girl of Izu
(1998), by Nobel Prize-winning Japanese author Yasunari Kawabata
; The Book of Masks (1989) and Shadows of Sound (1990), by Korea
n writer Hwang Sun-wŏn
; and The House of Twilight by Korean author Yun Heung-gil
. Holman has taught Japanese language, literature, and theater and Korean literature at colleges and universities in Japan
, the United States
, and Canada
.
He currently teaches Japanese language, Japanese & Korean Literature, and Japanese theater and serves as Assistant Teaching Professor and Coordinator of the Japanese Studies Program at the University of Missouri
.
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
) is a literary translator, professor, puppeteer, and puppet theater director. He received a BA in Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
from Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
and did graduate work in Japanese literature at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
.
Holman lived in Japan for more than ten years as a missionary, graduate student, professor of Japanese literature, and resident director of two study centers: the Japan Center for Michigan Universities
Japan Center for Michigan Universities
The , a study center operated by a consortium of the fifteen public universities in the State of Michigan and the government of Shiga Prefecture in Japan, is located on the shore of Lake Biwa, in the city of Hikone...
(JCMU) in Hikone and the Associated Kyoto Program Center (AKP) at Doshisha University
Doshisha University
, or is a prestigious private university in Kyoto, Japan. The university has approximately 27,000 students on three campuses, in faculties of theology, letters, law, commerce, economics, policy, and engineering...
in Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
. He was the first non-Japanese to train and perform in Japan as a traditional puppeteer in the style of puppetry commonly known as Bunraku
Bunraku
, also known as Ningyō jōruri , is a form of traditional Japanese puppet theater, founded in Osaka in 1684.Three kinds of performers take part in a bunraku performance:* Ningyōtsukai or Ningyōzukai—puppeteers* Tayū—the chanters* Shamisen players...
or ningyō jōruri, making his stage debut in 1994 with the 170-year-old Tonda Traditional Bunraku Puppet Troupe
Tonda Traditional Bunraku Puppet Troupe
, founded in the 1830s, is one of the most active groups performing traditional ningyō jōruri or Bunraku puppetry in Japan, and has been officially designated an Intangible Cultural Treasure...
in Shiga Prefecture
Shiga Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan, which forms part of the Kansai region on Honshu Island. The capital is the city of Ōtsu.- History :Shiga was known as Ōmi Province or Gōshū before the prefectural system was established...
. He is the founding director of the Bunraku Bay Puppet Troupe
Bunraku Bay Puppet Troupe
Bunraku Bay Puppet Troupe is an American puppet troupe that performs the traditional Japanese puppet drama commonly known as ningyō jōruri or Bunraku. Based in Columbia, Missouri, the Troupe is directed by J...
, based in Columbia, Missouri
Columbia, Missouri
Columbia is the fifth-largest city in Missouri, and the largest city in Mid-Missouri. With a population of 108,500 as of the 2010 Census, it is the principal municipality of the Columbia Metropolitan Area, a region of 164,283 residents. The city serves as the county seat of Boone County and as the...
, which performs traditional Japanese puppet theater in the United States.
Holman has also published many translations of modern Japanese and Korean literature, including The Old Capital
The Old Capital
The Old Capital is a novel by Yasunari Kawabata originally published in 1962. It was first translated into English in 1987 by J. Martin Holman...
(1987), Palm-of-the-Hand Stories
Palm-of-the-Hand Stories
is the name Japanese author Yasunari Kawabata gave to more than 140 short stories he wrote over his long career, the earliest published in the 1920 and the last appearing posthumously in 1972...
(1988), and The Dancing Girl of Izu
The Dancing Girl of Izu
"The Dancing Girl of Izu" or , published in 1926, was the first work of literature by Japanese author Yasunari Kawabata to achieve great popular and critical acclaim. Kawabata would win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1968...
(1998), by Nobel Prize-winning Japanese author Yasunari Kawabata
Yasunari Kawabata
was a Japanese short story writer and novelist whose spare, lyrical, subtly-shaded prose works won him the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1968, the first Japanese author to receive the award...
; The Book of Masks (1989) and Shadows of Sound (1990), by Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
n writer Hwang Sun-wŏn
Hwang Sun-won
Hwang Sun-wŏn was a Korean short story writer, novelist, and poet. He was born while Korea was under Japanese colonial rule in Taedong, South Pyongan, in modern-day North Korea; however, following the division of Korea he lived in the South, becoming a professor at Kyunghee University.Although he...
; and The House of Twilight by Korean author Yun Heung-gil
Yun Heung-gil
Yun Heung-gil is a South Korean novelist known for his treatment of conflicts between the individual and society. He received his degree in Korean literature from Wongwang University in 1973. In 1977 he won the Korean Literature Writers Award.Yun's career can be divided into three phases...
. Holman has taught Japanese language, literature, and theater and Korean literature at colleges and universities in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
He currently teaches Japanese language, Japanese & Korean Literature, and Japanese theater and serves as Assistant Teaching Professor and Coordinator of the Japanese Studies Program at the University of Missouri
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
.
Works translated
- Hwang Sun-won. Shadows of Sound. Mercury House, 1989. ISBN 0916515656
- Hwang Sun-won. Book of Masks.
- Kawabata Yasunari. The Old Capital. North Point, 1987. ISBN 0865472785
- Kawabata Yasunari. Palm-of-the-Hand Stories. North Point, 1988. ISBN 0865473250 Repr. by Farrar, Straus and Giroux, ISBN 0374530491
- Kawabata Yasunari. The Dancing Girl of Izu and Other Stories. Counterpoint, 1997. ISBN 1887178147
- Yun Heung-gil. The House of Twilight.