Introduction
The term includes works written by Japanese in the Japanese and Chinese languages. The present article is mainly concerned with works in the Japanese language.
Japanese literature developed in the Yamato, Heian, Kamakura-Muromachi, Edo and modern periods, named after the seat of the main Japanese administrative center at the time.
Yamato period (from archaic times to the end of the 8th century AD)
Although there was no written literature, a considerable number of ballads, ritual prayers, myths and legends were composed, which were later collected in writing and included in the Kogiki (Relation of Ancient Questions, 712) and the Nippon ki (Book of History of Ancient Japan, 720), early histories of Japan that explain the origin of the people, the formation of the state, and the essence of national politics. The lyric that emerged from the primitive ballads included in these works are compiled in the first major Japanese anthology, Maniosiu (Anthology of innumerable leaves), written by Otomo no Yakamochi after 759 and whose most important poet is Kakimoto Hitomaro.
Heian period (late 8th century to late 12th century)
3. HEIAN PERIOD (END OF THE 8TH CENTURY TO THE END OF THE 12TH CENTURY)
The Kokin-siu (Anthology of Ancient and Modern Poetry, 905) was put together by the poet Ki Tsurayuki who, in the preface, provided the basis for Japanese poetics. Ki Tsurayuki is also known as the author of a nikki, the first example of an important Japanese literary genre:the diary.
Written by the Japanese Murasaki Shikibu in the 11th century, it is considered the capital work of Japanese literature and the first proper novel in history. In this scene from the Asagao chapter, Prince Genji has just returned from a frustrating visit to the palace of his lover, the Princess of Morning Glory. As he talks about his other lovers with his favorite wife Murasaki, he contemplates how his maids play in the snow. The novel is filled with rich portraits of the refined culture of Heian-period Japan, which are mixed with acute visions of the fleetingness of the world.
Early tenth-century literature appears in the form of fairy tales, such as The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, or poem-stories, among them, Ise monogatari (Tales of Ise, c. 980). The main works of Heian literature are Genji monogatari (Tales or History of Genji, c. 1010) by Murasaki Shikibu, the first major novel in world literature, and Makura-no-soshi (The Pillow Book) by Sei Shonagon.
Kamakura-Muromachi period (late 12th century to 16th century)
The first of several imperial poetry anthologies was the Shin kokin-siu (New Collection of Ancient and Modern Poems, 1205) summarized by Fujiwara Teika. The most famous prose work of the period, the Heike monogatari (Taira Clan Tales, c. 1220), was written by an anonymous author. The three-square-meter hut (1212) by the monk Abutsu and Essay on Idleness (1340) by Kenko Yoshida stand out. The most important type of narrative at this time was the "otogizoshi", a collection of accounts by unknown authors.
The fundamental poetic development of the period after the 14th century was the creation of the renga, linked verses written in stanzas repeated by three or more poets. The greatest masters of this art, Sogi, Shohaku and Socho, wrote together the famous Minase sangin (Three Poets in Minase) in 1488.
Edo period (17th century-1868)
In this period of peace and wealth emerged obscene and mundane prose of a character radically different from that of the literature of the preceding period. The most important figure of the period was Ihara Saikaku, whose prose in The Man Who Spent His Life Making Love (1682) was much imitated. In the 19th century Jippensha Ikku (c. 1765-1831) was famous, author of the picaresque work Hizakurige (1802-1822).
The haiku, a 17-syllable verse that reflects the influence of Zen, was perfected in this period. Three poets stand out for their haikus:the Zen mendicant monk Basho, considered the greatest of Japanese poets for his sensitivity and depth; Yosa Buson, whose haikus express his experience as a painter, and Kobayashi Issa. Comic poetry, in a variety of forms, also influenced this period.
Modern Period (1868 to present)
During the modern period Japanese writers were influenced by other literatures, mainly Western ones.
In the 19th century, novels by Kanagaki Robunis, Tokai Sanshi, Tsubuochi Shoyo and Futabei Shimei stand out. Ozaki Koyo, founder of Kenyusha (Society of India's Friends), incorporated Western techniques and was influenced by Higuchi Ichiyo.
In the 20th century, naturalism appears, whose main figure is Shimazaki Toson. Mori Ogai and Natsume Soseki steered clear of the dominant French tradition. Also noteworthy are the author of reports Akutagawa Ryunosuke, Yasunari Kawabata (Nobel Prize in 1968), Junichiro Tanizaki, Yukio Mishima, Abe Kobo and Kenzaburo Oé (Nobel Prize in 1994).
From the end of the 19th century to the present day there is a strong movement in favor of Western-style poetry. Within this genre, excellent poets emerged. Among them, Masaoka Shiki.
Japanese Theater
Theater written and performed in Japan since the 7th century AD. Its evolution gave rise to a wide variety of genres, generally characterized by a profusion of dramatic, musical and choreographic elements, and governed until very recently by very strict norms.
The gigaku theater dances, introduced in Japan in the year 612 AD. from China, were apparently comic in character. In the 8th century they were replaced by the bugaku, a spectacle imported from China, whose dances presented simple situations, but which acquired a ritual character.
The sangaku, an acrobatic spectacle (tumbling, juggling and sword swallowing) became popular in the 8th century.
In the 14th century the Noh Theater genre emerged, and at the end of the 15th century the puppet theater, jôruri, also called bunraku. The great Japanese playwright Chikamatsu Monzaemon was one of the great writers of this genre.
From the 18th century onwards, kabuki became the most popular traditional theater genre. Closer to a show than to the theater itself, its original texts are less important than the interpretation, music, dance and the bright colors of the setting.
Currently, playwrights are addressing the conflict between modern and traditional society. Yukio Mishima had great success with Five Modern Pieces of Noh Theater (1956), in which he presented a modernized version of traditional themes. The Twilight Crane (1949), by Kinoshita Jungi, is also based on old folktales.