Yasushi Inoue

Yasushi Inoue (井上靖) was a Japanese writer of novels, short stories, poetry and essays, noted for his historical and autobiographical fiction. His most acclaimed works include The Bullfight (Tōgyū, 1949), The Roof Tile of Tempyō (Tenpyō no iraka, 1957) and Tun-huang (Tonkō, 1959).

Biography
Inoue was born into a family of physicians in Asahikawa, Hokkaido in 1907, and later raised in Yugashima, Izu, Shizuoka Prefecture. He was born in Hokkaido but is from Shizuoka Prefecture. In his essay "Hometown Izu", he wrote, "I was born in Asahikawa, Hokkaido, but in the yearbooks and directories, most of my birthplace is Shizuoka Prefecture. When I write it myself, I write it separately from Asahikawa as my place of birth and Shizuoka Prefecture as my birthplace...". In My History of Self-Formation, he wrote, "It seems safe to assume that Izu, where I spent my childhood, was my true hometown, and that everything that would form the basis of my person was created here."

During his high school years, he was an active practitioner of judo. He first studied law and literature at Kyushu University and later changed to philosophy at Kyoto University, where he graduated in 1936 with a degree in aesthetics and a thesis on Paul Valéry. After winning the Chiba Kameo Prize for his early work Ryūten, Inoue started working for the Mainichi Shimbun. In 1937, he was drafted into the Sino-Japanese War, but soon returned due to illness and resumed his occupation at the Mainichi Shimbun. His military service in northern China brought forth his interest in Chinese history.

After the end of the Pacific War, Inoue won critical acclaim with his 1949 novellas The Hunting Gun (Ryōjū) and The Bullfight, the latter earning him the Akutagawa Prize. In the following years, he published several novels and short stories in a variety of genres: contemporary love stories, stories addressing social and political aspects of post-war Japan like Kuroi Ushio, historical novels set in accurately depicted settings like the 1957 The Roof Tile of Tempyō and the 1959 Tun-huang (Tonkō), and works with an autobiographical background like the 1975 Chronicle of My Mother (Waga haha no ki), which documented his mother's deterioration into senility.

Inoue was elected a member of the Japan Art Academy in 1964 and received the Order of Culture in 1976. He died in Tokyo in 1991 at the age of 83. He had a deep knowledge of shrines, temples, and Japanese history, and served as a supervisor and editorial committee member at several publishing companies.

Selected works

 * 1937: Ryūten (流転) story
 * 1949: The Hunting Gun (猟銃, Ryōjū) novella
 * 1949: The Bullfight (闘牛, Tōgyū) novella
 * 1950: Kuroi Ushio (黯い潮) novel
 * 1950: Shi to koi to nami (死と恋と波と) short story collection
 * 1951: Life of a Counterfeiter (ある偽作家の生涯, Aru gisakka no shōgai) short story collection
 * 1953: Asunaro monogatari (あすなろ物語) novel
 * 1956: Hyōheki (氷壁) novel
 * 1957: The Roof Tile of Tempyō (天平の甍, Tenpyō no iraka) novel
 * 1958: Kitaguni (北国) poetry collection
 * 1959: Lou-Lan (楼蘭, Ro-ran) short story collection
 * 1959: Tun-huang (敦煌, Tonkō) novel
 * 1960: Yodo dono no nikki (淀どの日記) novel
 * 1962: Chikūkai (地中海) poetry collection
 * 1963: Wind and Waves (風濤, Fūtō) novel
 * 1967: Kaseki (化石) novel
 * 1967: Unga (運河) poetry collection
 * 1968: Oroshiyakoku suimutan (おろしや国酔夢譚) novel
 * 1969: Journey Beyond Samarkand (西域物語, Seiiki monogatari) novel
 * 1971: Kisetsu (季節) poetry collection
 * 1975: Chronicle of My Mother (わが母の記, Waga haha no ki) novel
 * 1976: Enseiro (遠征路) poetry collection
 * 1979: Zen shishū (全詩集) poetry collection
 * 1981: Hongakubō ibun (本覺坊遺文) novel
 * 1989: Confucius (孔子, Kōshi) novel

Awards

 * 1936: Chiba Kameo Prize for Ryūten
 * 1950: Akutagawa Prize for The Bullfight
 * 1957: Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award for The Roof Tile of Tempyo
 * 1959: Mainichi Press Prize for Tun-huang
 * 1959: Japan Art Academy Award for Hyōheki
 * 1961: Noma Literary Prize for Yodo dono no nikki
 * 1963: Yomiuri Prize for Wind and Waves
 * 1969: Japanese Literature Grand Prix for Oroshiyakoku suimutan
 * 1976: Order of Culture
 * 1980: Kikuchi Kan Prize
 * 1984: Asahi Prize
 * 1989: Noma Literary Prize for Confucius

Adaptations (selected)

 * Films
 * 1954: Kuroi Ushio, directed by Sō Yamamura
 * 1955: Asunaro monogatari, directed by Hiromichi Horikawa
 * 1961: Ryōjū, directed by Heinosuke Gosho
 * 1972: Kaseki, directed by Masaki Kobayashi
 * 1989: Sen no Rikyū: Honkakubō ibun, directed by Kei Kumai
 * 2012: Waga no haha no ki, directed by Masato Harada

Inoue's works have also repeatedly been adapted for television and the stage.