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()(Translated by Eileen Kato^@Titulo original : ÁÄó [Yotte sooroo]^@History is like the weather, with epic storms occurring only once in a hundred years. For Japan, the storm of the nineteenth century came in 1853, when a fleet of American ships, led by Commodore Matthew Perry, arrived in Edo Bay, demanding that the country open its ports after two hundred and fifty years of self-imposed isolation. For the next fifteen years, Japan was beset by panic, oppression, rebellion, and, finally, civil war. The short stories presented here depict four feudal lords --or, in some cases, their retainers-- who lived through that storm, and about their very different approaches to the tumultuous period when Japan was on the brink of modernization. LDrunk as a LordL is the exhilarating life story of a poet-turned-daimyo, who, although he is a man of culture, is also a brazen alcoholic with a vicious bite when it comes to debate. Outwardly a LloyalistL of the emperor, his undying debt of gratitude to the Tokugawa --the third and final military house to rule Japan-- puts him in a compromising position : move with the trend of the times, or go against it.^@The second story, LThe Fox-Horse,L tells of the brilliant lord of Satsuma, his tragic death, and the envious younger brother who seeks to take his place. In a show of Lcarrying onL his elder brotherLs legacy, the younger one marches to Kyoto --and later to Edo-- at the head of a great army to push for reform. Without his brotherLs intellect, foresight, or understanding of national affairs, however, he ends up making an ass of himself.^@LDateLs Black ShipL is the captivating account of a lantern repairman from the dregs of castle-town society who is hired by the daimyo --a man obsessed with Western novelties-- to construct a full-scale replica of one of PerryLs black ships, and the extraordinary ordeals he faces in doing so.^@LThe Ghost of Saga,L the fourth and final story, focuses on a bizarre old lord who is so gung ho about arming his domain in the Western style that he sidesteps the law and becomes involved in smuggling. Taking advantage of Nagasaki, the only port in Japan where such activities would have been possible in those days, he stockpiles an unimaginable array of weapons, all under a shroud of complete secrecy. Author Ryotaro Shiba enters history through its main characters, and therby makes it come alive on the page. His works are historical to the extent that they are based on actual people and events, but fictional in that the personalities of his cast and the scenes he portrays are largely the work of his vivid imagination.^@The historical fiction of Ryotaro Shiba (1923-1996) is hugely popular in Japan. Born in Osaka, Shiba studied Mongolian at Osaka University of Foreign Languages. He worked for a time as a newspaper reporter, and began writing historical novels in the mid-1950s. His work is much loved for the insights it gives into the lives of people who lived in turbulent times of history. ShibaLs novels have been made into several internationally acclaimed films, including the Lgay samuraiLfilm LGohatto (taboo)L, directed by Nagisa Oshima and starring Beat Takeshi.^@Freelance translator and essayist Eileen Kato was born in Ireland in 1932, and received Masters of Arts degrees in French Studies from the National University of Ireland and in Japanese Studies from Columbia University. Among her translations are several Noh plays and an earlier translation of Ryotaro Shiba, LThe Heart Remembers Home (Japan Echo, 1980)L. She lives in Tokyo.^@DRUNK AS A LORD@THE FOX-HORSE@DATELS BLACK SHIP@THE GHOST OF SAGA) |
BASE de DATOS, Biblioteca del Centro Cultural de la Embajada de Japon
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