Academic literature on the topic 'Hyaku monogatari'

碩士
東吳大學
日本語文學系
104
This thesis selects two of Natsuhiko Kyogoku's works, Kousetsu Hyaku Monogatari and Zoku Kousetsu Hyaku Monogatari, as texts for analysis, and sets out to explore two aspects of these works. The first is to clarify how and with what purpose “kyogen,” a theatrical form, is being used. The next is to investigate into how classical Japanese literature is interpreted and integrated in modern writings. In the former studies mentioning these two works, the focus usually lies more on the author's Hyakki Yagyou series. Consiquently, the mention of these two works, also known as Hyaku Monogatari series, is often intended merely for comparison purpose. Although these two series indeed have some chronicle connections, each has its own unique writing style worth to be explored. Therefore, the idea of trying to point out the fact that Hyaku Monogatari series has plenty of themes and writing techniques yet to be explored and discussed becomes the starting point of this thesis. Within the selected two works are 13 short stories each connected to the others. This thesis approaches these texts from the following three aspects: first, by point, to analyze the building of each characters, and second, by line, to clarify how each plot line interacts with the others, while finally, by surface, to grasp the overall structure of each stories. Following the above three steps comes the investigation of specific stories which serve as the framework for the whole series, in an attempt to reveal how the author uses “kyogen” in his works. As for the discussion on his interpretation of classical Japanese literature, the comparison to Ehon Hyaku Monogatari Momoyama Sanjin Yawa, which the author actually quotes in Hyaku Monogatari series, is taken into consideration. In conclusion, this thesis points out that while all the analyzed stories are set in the Edo period, the social phenomena and conditions described in these works are not confined to the Edo period, but having a certain universal quality. The characters in the stories using “kyogen” to deal with these phenomena or conditions may serve as hints for modern society to deal with similar issues. Meanwhile, the seamless integration of the classical Japanese literature and modern novel also provides a new possibility for the writing style of modern literature.

The world of Japanese literature spans a vast number of genres and media, so much that while it makes sense that English speaking academia is unaware of many prolific and influential authors and works, it might be surprising that some of those same people and publications are not well studied in their original language. Even though this is common among many languages, older Japanese texts have the added challenge of a variant grammar structure and writing style that forces scholars to be aware of the differences in the classical variation of the language. To that end, the author named Aoki Rosui may not be a household name within many circles of Japanese literary study. Still, extensive study of the horror stories known as kaidan and hyaku monogatari as well as Edo period Japanese literature as a whole is incomplete without knowing of his life and his contribution entitled Otogi hyaku monogatari. By gaining a rudimentary knowledge of the man behind this collection of ghost tales, as well as the people who exerted a significant influence on him, his reasons and methods taken in writing his collection of stories can be explored. At the same time, the classification of certain types of media into conventions known as genres is a very ambiguous field. Working through a variety of genres, both specific to Japan and general, will reveal the sheer variety that the kaidan category allows the author to explore. Preceding the annotated translation of a selection of Otogi hyaku monogatari will be a brief introduction and analysis of each of the stories that have been selected, using various references as support for the types of mythological and historical icons contained within them. Finally, I will present how I went about translating the preface and five stories with a brief discussion on translation methods before presenting the English version of the Japanese text.