DETECTING JAPANESE VERNACULAR MODERNISM: SHINSEINEN MAGAZINE AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TANTEI SHÔSETSU GENRE, 1920-1931 DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Kyoko Omori * * * * * The Ohio State University 2003 Dissertation Committee: Professor William J. Tyler, Adviser Approved by Professor Richard Torrance Professor Mark Bender Adviser Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures ABSTRACT The post-war discourse on modern Japanese literature has presented the binary opposition between “pure” versus “popular” literature as a historical fact, configuring popular literature as the disposable “other” of “pure” literature. Consequently, Japanese literary studies have paid relatively little attention to popular forms such as mystery fiction, samurai “period” fiction, the romance novel, and “nansensu” humor. This dissertation examines the discursive formation of the Japanese modernist popular genre known as “tantei shôsetsu” or “detective fiction.” Focusing on the popular monthly magazine Shinseinen and several of its writers, it discusses the theoretical and practical dimensions of “tantei shôsetsu” as a vernacular form of modernist literary production. In doing so, it situates the genre within contemporaneous debates about the meaning of both modernity and literature in Japan during the 1920s. Chapter One establishes the theoretical terms for “vernacular modernism” by illuminating the ways in which popular literary production engaged with the forces of commercialism and Westernization that also shaped the development of canonical Japanese literature during the early twentieth century. Chapter Two surveys established critical views of Modernism in Japan and shows that they fail to account for the significance of vernacular expression. Chapter Three discusses the history and growth of ii Shinseinen magazine and its promotion of tantei shôsetsu as important aspects of “modanizumu” culture during the 1920s-1930s. Chapter Four focuses on the principal theorist of tantei shôsetsu, the renowned socialist critic Hirabayahsi Hatsunosuke, who advocated the genre as the most appropriate means for cultivating the kind of critical intelligence necessary for young people to negotiate modernity. Chapter Five discusses the life of Hasegawa Kaitarô (known as Tani Jôji), the most commercially successful writer of the time, as emblematic of the generation of readers targeted by Shinseinen. Chapter Six examines selected popular literary works by Hasegawa. It traces his development from a more orthodox approach to tantei shôsetsu, exemplified in his short story, “The Shanghaied Man,” to a highly parodic use of the genre, as reflected in his famous “’Merican-Jap” stories, The concluding chapter summarizes the over-arching argument of the dissertation and lays out possible avenues of future research. iii Dedicated to my parents in Japan, Shirô Ômori (大森史郎)and Shunko Ômori (大森俊子), as one of the many ways to repay their unconditional love and faith in me throughout the journey iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I could not have come this far without the help and encouragement of so many people. First and foremost, I am grateful to William J. Tyler, my advisor, who patiently listened to my ideas since the early stages of this project and guided me with indispensable advice throughout my graduate work. His detailed and insightful feedback on my drafts always pushed me forward, even when I felt this dissertation work was not going anywhere. I appreciate our many conversations, from which I drew inspiration. I enjoyed stimulating discussions with Richard Torrance in his courses on Japanese detective fiction. I am grateful for his enthusiasm about my research on genre fiction and the socialist critic, Hirabayashi Hatsunosuke. Mark Bender’s work on oral performance in China led me to think about the idea of culture in new ways, and to recognize the power of popular tradition. I also would like to express my gratitude to Sadami Suzuki at Nichibunken (International Research Center for Japanese Studies) in Kyoto. The pioneering scholar of Shinseinen magazine, he pointed to crucial sources, as well as introduced me to scholars who shared my interests. My stay at the center came at a crucial time in the research for this study, and I am deeply appreciative of the hospitality and kindness that everyone showed me there. v Maureen Donovan at the Japanese Collection in the University Main Library has been of tremendous help. Thanks to her, Ohio State University was one of the first two libraries to purchase the reproduction of Shinseinen. She also frequently amazed me by finding a variety of materials related to the magazine. Without those sources related to Japanese popular culture, my dissertation would have suffered immeasurably. Among the many scholars and friends to whom I am indebted, I especially would like to mention Ann Sherif, Masao Shimozato and the members of the Shinseinen Research Group in Japan. I appreciate the help that Toshiko Tsutsumi, Yûsuke Hamada and Shôji Suenaga extended to me. Mr. Ôshima, the director of the Hakodate City Museum of Literature, also provided valued assistance. This dissertation project was supported by the Tanakadate Aikitsu Award and the PEGS Grant for International Research. I also wish to thank Hong Gang Jin, De Bao Xu, David Paris and the entire Asian Studies Group at Hamilton College for their continuing interest in and support of my work. I cannot express enough of my appreciation and affection to Steve Yao, who saw the potential in my research and was always there to listen to my ideas and explore the issues of vernacular modernism. I hope we will keep growing together over the many years to come. Finally, deep love and gratitude are also due to my parents, my brother Hajime and my sister Satsuki. vi VITA Autumn 2002-present . Assistant Professor, East Asian Languages and Literatures Department, Hamilton College Summer 2000 and 2001 . Instructor, The Japanese School, Middlebury College, VT Autumn 1999 . Visiting Instructor, East Asian Studies Program, Oberlin College 1996 . M.A. Japanese Literature, The Ohio State University 1994-1999 . Graduate Teaching Associate, East Asian Languages and Literatures Department, The Ohio State University PUBLICATIONS • “’Merican-Jap and Modernity: Tani Jôji’s Popular Negotiation of the Foreign,” Japan from Somewhere Else: The Proceedings of the Association for Japanese Literary Studies, West Lafayette: AJLS, 2003. • “Gurôbarizumu de miru Nihon no Modanizumu: Nihon modanizumu senshû no shuppan ni mukete.” (Investigating Japanese Modernism in a Global Context: Toward the Publication of the Japan Modanizumu Anthology): Shinseinen shumi. Vol. 9. Tokyo: Shinseinen Kenkyûkai, January 2002. FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: East Asian Languages and Literatures vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract………………………………………………………………………………... ii Dedication……………………………………………………………………………… iv Acknowledgments……………………………………………………………………… v Vita…………………………………………………………………………………….. vii Chapters: 1. Introduction: Literature as Art or/and Commercial Production Activity…………… 1 2. Japan’s Modernity and the Literature of Modanizumu……………………………… 13 2.1 Modernism in the West………………………………………………… 13 2.2 Amorphousness of Modanizumu in Japanese Literature………………. 16 2.3 The Tripod View: Hirano Ken’s Three-legged Concept and Literature of Modanizumu……………………………………………… 22 2.4 Cultural Importations and the Return to Japan: Donald Keene’s View………………………………………………….. 31 2.5 Recent Discourse on Modanizumu…………………………………….. 33 2.6 The Complexity of the Shinkô-geijutsu-ha Meeting…………………… 39 3. Shinseinen …………………………………………………………………………………… 51 3.1 Shinseinen as a Torchbearer of Modanizumu……………………………51 3.2 Publications about Shinseinen and Its Writers: The 1960s to the Present……………………………………………….. 56 3.3 Detective Fiction in the West and the Tantei Shôsetsu………………… 64 3.4 Philology of “Tantei” – An Action of Probing, Exploring and Investigation………………………..………………………….………... 68 3.5 Advancing Detective Fiction as a Legitimate Genre…………………… 73 viii 3.6 Shinseinen’s Critical Discourse on Tantei Shôsetsu – Rampo’s Debut…………………………………………………………………… 80 3.7 Shinseinen’s Bi-Annual Special Issues on the Tantei Shôsetsu Genre… 86 3.8 Tantei Shôsetsu: Examination of the Genre Vis-à-vis Proletarian Literature…………………………………………………… 95 3.9 “Seinen” (Youth): Negotiating Modernity Through Economic Activity.. 99 3.10 Probing Literature: Pushing the Limits of Genre into Parody………… 104 4. Hirabayashi Hatsunosuke…………………………………………………………… 107 4.1 Hirabayashi and His Theory of Tantei Shôsetsu………………………. 107 4.2 Tantei Shôsetsu and Bundan Literature………………………………... 130 4.3 Hirabayashi’s Literary Practice: His Tantei Shôsetsu…………………. 135 4.4 Conclusion……………………………………………………………... 151 5. Hasegawa Kaitarô: Twists of Subjectivity………………………………………….. 153 5.1 Introduction………………………………………………………….….153 5.2 Hasegawa Kaitarô and His Father………………………………………157 5.3 One Man as Three: Kaitarô’s Writing Career Begins…………………..177 5.4 Maki Itsuma……………………………………………………………. 181 5.5 Hayashi Fubô………………………………………………………….. 182 5.6 Tani Jôji………………………………………………………………... 183 5.7 Kaitarô’s Simultaneous Use of Three Pen Names ……………………. 184 6. Tani Jôji’s Tantei Shôsetsu and ’Merican-Jap Stories………………………………. 186 6.1 “The Shanghaied Man” ……………………………………………….. 186 6.2 The Contrast Between Maedakô Hiro’ichirô and Hasegawa Kaitarô…. 199 6.3 ’Merican-Jap Stories…………………………………………………… 202 6.4 The Multivalent Voices in ’Merican-Jap