Ryūnosuke Akutagawa

Rebecca Suter (University of Sydney)

Ed. by Roy Anthony Starrs, University of Otago
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 10.2.2: Japanese Writing and Culture.
Vol. editors: Mats Arne Karlsson (University of Sydney), Roy Anthony Starrs (University of Otago)

Dates

Born 1 Mar 1892
Died 24 Jul 1927
Activity 1914-1927

Places

Born in Japan
Active in Japan

Activities

Primary

Story-writer

Resources

Akutagawa's Works

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Akutagawa Ryūnosuke is one of the most renowned figures of prewar Japanese literature; his fiction and nonfiction are emblematic of the intellectual milieu of the Taishō (1912-1926) period, particularly its constant oscillation between cosmopolitanism and the rediscovery of national traditions.

Like many of his contemporaries, Akutagawa formed his identity as a writer across cultures. Born near the foreign settlement of Irifunechō in 1892, the son of Niihara Toshizō, a milk-shop owner, after the death of his mother in 1902 the young Ryūnosuke was adopted by his uncle, Akutagawa Michiaki. The Akutagawa family, though living among foreigners and being in constant contact with the thriving international culture of the area, was rather conservative in their artistic and literary taste.

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1425 words

Citation: Suter, Rebecca. "Ryūnosuke Akutagawa". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 27 December 2010 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=12633, accessed 23 November 2024.]