Read Japanese Literature

Dec 01 2024 40 ep. 42 mins 154

Read Japanese Literature Podcast artwork

A podcast about Japanese literature and some of its best works

New episodes more-or-less monthly

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LGBTQ+ Stories from Japan, Part 2

Dec 01 2024 57 mins

RJL is excited to bring you this two-parter about LGBTQ+ stories from Japan. Part two covers Taisho Japan (when women finally enter the stage) through through contemporary LGBTQ+ writing, especially the life and work of Nobuko Yoshiya, Edogawa Ranpo, Yukio Mishima, and Li Kotomi. We also spend a little time on the role of queer manga.Part one covered some of the earliest writing in

LGBTQ+ Stories from Japan, Part 1

Oct 30 2024 54 mins

RJL is excited to bring you this two-parter about LGBTQ+ stories from Japan. Part one covers some of the earliest writing in Japanese through the end of the Meiji Period in 1912.Part two (coming soon) covers Taisho Japan (when women finally enter the stage) through some of Japan's contemporary queer writers.This episode is rated mature. CW for the two-part series: historical accoun

Japanese Crime and Mystery Writing

Sep 13 2024 53 mins

Today, we’re talking about crime and mystery novels from Japan. We’ll start with the development of the crime and mystery genre in the English-speaking world. We’ll move on to Japanese crime and mystery writing—how it was inspired by Anglo-American crime and mystery writing and how it evolved in its own way. And we’ll end with the life and work of writer Seishi Yokomizo,

Atomic Bomb Literature

Aug 17 2024 59 mins

This episode is marked mature.In this episode, we take a look at Japanese writing about the American bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki that killed as many as 215,000 people in August 1945. We’ll start with the history of the atomic bomb, its use, and its effects on the hibakusha who survived. Then we’ll take a look at atomic bomb literature itself. Our focus text is "Masks of

Zainichi Literature—Koreans Writing in Japan

Jun 03 2024 55 mins

In this episode, we take a look at the history of Koreans writing in Japan. We’ll start with the history of Koreans in Japan, including anti-Korean prejudice before and after WWII. We’ll move on to Zainichi Korean writing. And we’ll finish with a look at Kazuki Kaneshiro’s Go, translated into English by Takami Nieda.Notes and sources on the episode page. Transcript availabl

The End of the World! Japanese Apocalypse, Part 3

Apr 29 2024 56 mins

In part three of this episode, we’ll finish our story of Japanese apocalyptic and dystopian fiction. First, stories from the mid-90s and 20-aughts. Then, stories from after the March 2011 Triple Disasters. We’ll end with a look at the life and work of author Yoko Tawada who has written several apocalyptic stories, including one of the most important works of post-3/11 apocalypt

The End of the World! Japanese Apocalypse, Part 2

Apr 15 2024 50 mins

In part two of this three part episode, we're looking at the apocalyptic and dystopian fiction of Japan. We'll begin with the evolution of the idea of "the end of the world" in Japan, especially after Japan started importing American and European science fiction. We'll move on to Japanese apocalyptic stories, especially between 1945 and the 1970s and then during the 1970s and 1980s

The End of the World! Japanese Apocalypse, Part 1

Apr 01 2024 40 mins

In part one of this three part episode, we're looking at apocalyptic and dystopian fiction as genres. Their origins in Western and Central Asia. Their evolution in Western Europe. And a history of English-language apocalyptic and dystopian storytelling that will provide us with context and a basis for comparison when we turn to Japanese stories in part two.Notes and sources on the

Misogyny and Yukio Mishima, Part 2

Feb 22 2024 39 mins

In part two of this two-part episode on misogyny in Japanese literature, we're talking about the life and work of Yukio Mishima, especially by way of his I-Novel, Confessions of a Mask.Check out part one for400 years of attitudes about women in JapanWoman in modern Japanese literature, especially in the work of some of its most important writersNotes and sources on the episode page

Misogyny and Yukio Mishima, Part 1

Feb 16 2024 46 mins

In part one of this two-part episode, we're talking about misogyny in Japanese literature. 400 years of attitudes about women in JapanWoman in modern Japanese literature, especially in the work of some of its most important writersCheck out part two (coming soon) for the life and work of Yukio Mishima, especially by way of his I-Novel, Confessions of a Mask.Notes and sources on the