Anthology of Japanese Literature

The sweep of Japanese literature in its infinite variety and unusual beauty from earliest times to the mid-nineteenth century is the focus of this impressive volume. Every genre and style of Japanese literature, from the somber beauty of Noh plays to the eroticism of seventeenth century novels is included. Other offerings include poetry and haiku, folktales and legends. The translations have been chosen not only for their accuracy but also their readability as English prose and poetry.

Donald Keene's informative Introduction traces links between the various works, some of which may be foreign to Western readers. The result is a thorough and fascinating insight into the literature and culture of classical Japan.

Donald Keene (19222019), is considered one of the foremost Western authorities on Japanese literature. During his lifetime he was widely regarded as America's pre-eminent cultural ambassador to Japan. Keene was Professor Emeritus and Shincho Professor Emeritus of Japanese Literature at Columbia University, and wrote and translated over fifty books. He won numerous awards for his work, including the Order of the Rising Sun, the Kikuchi Kan Prize, Yamagata Banto Prize, the Japan Foundation Award, the Tokyo Metropolitan Prize, the Fukuoka Prize, and the Inoue Yasushi Award. Professor Keene was the first non-Japanese to receive the Yomiuri Prize for Literature for the best work of literary criticism in Japanese (in 1985 for Hyakudai no kakaku). In 1986, he was elected to the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, and in 1990 was elected as an honorary member of the Japan Academy.

The sweep of Japanese literature in its infinite variety and unusual beauty - from earliest times to the mid-nineteenth century - is the focus of this impressive volume. Every genre and style of Japanese literature, from the somber beauty of Noh plays to the eroticism of seventeenth century novels is included. Other offerings include poetry and haiku, folktales and legends. The translations have been chosen not only for their accuracy but also their readability as English prose and poetry. Donald Keene's informative Introduction traces links between the various works, some of which may be foreign to Western readers. The result is a thorough and fascinating insight into the literature and culture of classical Japan.

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