My Individualism and the Philosophical Foundations of Litera: and the Philosophical Foundations of Literature (Tuttle Classics)

Published here for the first time in English, My Individualism & The Philosophical Foundations of Literature are essays which explore issues close to famed Japanese novelist Soseki Natsume's heart: the philosophical & cultural significance of isolation, belonging & identity associated with rapid technological, industrial & cultural change. Set against the background of the Meiji era, in which Soseki believed modern man was dislocated from Japan's past as well as its future, he defines the role of art & the artist in light of the loneliness & individualism of the modern world.True to his self-conscious style, each essay includes individual biographical anecdotes, inviting their allegorical reading as stories about the fate of Japan. In My Individualism, Soseki gives a rare account of his stay in London from the perspective of twelve years after his return, allowing us to see the profound shift in his thinking about literature that occurred during this time. In The Philosophical Foundations of Literature, we find one of Soseki's principal attempts to provide a cross-cultural framework for the interpretation of literature. Together, the essays reveal Soseki's attempts to create a theory of literature that is characteristically Japanese.Sōseki Natsume (1867-1916) is widely considered the foremost novelist of the Meiji period (1868-1914). After graduating from Tokyo Imperial University in 1893, he taught high school before spending two years in England on a Japanese government scholarship. He returned to lecture in English literature at the university. Numerous nervous disorders forced him to give up teaching in 1908 & he became a full-time writer for the Asahi Shimbun. Today, Sōseki's nine novels still enjoy immense popularity in Japan, & contemporary Japanese writers continue to be affected by his work. Published here for the first time in English, My Individualism and The Philosophical Foundations of Literature are essays which explore issues close to famed Japanese novelist Soseki Natsume's heart: the philosophical and cultural significance of isolation, belonging and identity associated with rapid technological, industrial and cultural change. Set against the background of the Meiji era, in which Soseki believed modern man was dislocated from Japan's past as well as its future, he defines the role of art and the artist in light of the loneliness and individualism of the modern world.

True to his self-conscious style, each essay includes individual biographical anecdotes, inviting their allegorical reading as stories about the fate of Japan. In My Individualism, Soseki gives a rare account of his stay in London from the perspective of twelve years after his return, allowing us to see the profound shift in his thinking about literature that occurred during this time. In The Philosophical Foundations of Literature, we find one of Soseki's principal attempts to provide a cross-cultural framework for the interpretation of literature. Together, the essays reveal Soseki's attempts to create a theory of literature that is characteristically Japanese.
Published here for the first time in English, My Individualism and The Philosophical Foundations of Literature are essays which explore issues close to famed Japanese novelist Soseki Natsume's heart: the philosophical and cultural significance of isolation, belonging and identity associated with rapid technological, industrial and cultural change. Set against the background of the Meiji era, in which Soseki believed modern man was dislocated from Japan's past as well as its future, he defines the role of art and the artist in light of the loneliness and individualism of the modern world. True to his self-conscious style, each essay includes individual biographical anecdotes, inviting their allegorical reading as stories about the fate of Japan. In My Individualism , Soseki gives a rare account of his stay in London from the perspective of twelve years after his return, allowing us to see the profound shift in his thinking about literature that occurred during this time. In The Philosophical Foundations of Literature , we find one of Soseki's principal attempts to provide a cross-cultural framework for the interpretation of literature. Together, the essays reveal Soseki's attempts to create a theory of literature that is characteristically Japanese. In these rare personal essays, Soseki defines the role of art in light of the isolation of the modern world. Each essay includes personal anecdotes that act as allegories about the fate of Japan. In her introduction, Soseki expert Dr. Inger Sigrun Brodey masterfully unravels the complexities of the two essays