Takizawa Bakin

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Template:Short description Template:Family name hatnote Template:Infobox writer

File:The well at Takizawa Bakin's house.jpg
The well at Takizawa Bakin's house

Template:Nihongo, born Template:Nihongo, was a Japanese novelist of the Edo period, who wrote under the pen name Template:Nihongo. Later in life he took the pen name Template:Nihongo. Modern scholarship generally refers to him as Template:Transliteration, or just as Template:Transliterationn. He is regarded as one of, if not the, leading author of early 19th century Japanese literature.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> He was the third surviving son of a samurai family of low rank. After numerous deaths in his family, he relinquished his samurai status, married a merchant's widow, and became an Edo townsperson. He was able to support his family with his prolific writing of Template:Transliteration,<ref name="Ueda-2005">Template:Cite journal</ref> primarily didactic historical romances, though he always wanted to restore his family to the Template:Transliteration social class.<ref name="Zolbrod-1967">Template:Cite book</ref> Some of his best known works are Template:Transliteration (The Chronicles of the Eight Dog Heroes of the Satomi Clan of Nansō) consisting of 106 books<ref>滝沢馬琴墓（深光寺） Bunkyō, Tokyo</ref> and Template:Interlanguage link multi (Strange Tales of the Crescent Moon). Template:Transliteration published more than 200 works in his life, including literary critiques, diaries, and historical novels.

Life and career

Family and early life

Born in Edo (present-day Tokyo) on 4 July 1767, Template:Transliteration was the fifth son of Template:Transliteration and Template:Transliteration. Two of his elder brothers died in infancy.

Template:Transliteration's father, Template:Transliteration, was a samurai in the service of one of the Template:Transliteration retainers, Template:Transliteration until 1751 when he left his lord and gained service with Template:Transliteration. While serving under Template:Transliteration, Template:Transliteration was adopted into the family and wed Template:Transliteration's adopted daughter, Template:Transliteration. Template:Transliteration returned to serve the Template:Transliteration family in 1760 after Template:Transliteration successor was dismissed for embezzlement. Though a heavy drinker, he was devoted to scholarship of classical Chinese works, especially those focused on military matters. He was a diligent Template:Transliteration, but contracted gout in 1773 and died in 1775. His death forced the Template:Transliteration clan to reduce the Template:Transliteration stipend by half, starting the steady decline of Template:Transliteration's family.

Template:Transliteration, Template:Transliteration's mother, is characterized as being a good mother and loyal wife and the family had the privilege of living in the Template:Transliteration mansion until their piecemeal departure from Template:Transliteration's service that reached its completion in 1780. Her eldest son, Template:Transliteration (1759-1798) was the only child not born on the Template:Transliteration estate and served the family until becoming a Template:Transliteration in 1776. His departure led to Template:Transliteration and her remaining children including Template:Transliteration and his two younger sisters, Template:Transliteration (1771-?) and Template:Transliteration (1774-?), being forced into a much smaller dwelling. Template:Transliteration's older brother, Template:Transliteration (1765–1786), was adopted out to lessen the financial burden and Template:Transliteration was declared the head of the family at age nine.<ref name="Zolbrod-1967" /> When Template:Transliteration found service with a new family in 1778, Template:Transliteration pretended to be ill to move in with him. While living there, Template:Transliteration grew ill due to malnutrition and died 1 August 1785.<ref name="Zolbrod-1967" />

Template:Transliteration served the Template:Transliteration lord's grandson until 1780 when he declared himself Template:Transliteration at age 14 leaving the following Template:Transliteration:

こがらしに
思い立ちけり
神の旅
Chilled by winter winds
I have decided
To journey with the gods.

Template:Transliteration was able to secure a position for him in 1781, the longest Template:Transliteration would hold, until he departed in 1784 due to dissatisfaction. Template:Transliteration then moved in with Template:Transliteration for a short time until Template:Transliteration's lord died, discharging him from service in 1785. He found a position for Template:Transliteration, though the young Template:Transliteration stayed on for less than a year. Template:Transliteration died unattended in September 1786.

Template:Transliteration's death humbled Template:Transliteration who became ill in 1788. He left his post as a Template:Transliteration and moved in with Template:Transliteration who had spent most of his savings on medicine. This was the last time Template:Transliteration would serve as a Template:Transliteration. He would study medicine but find the profession uncomfortable before pursuing jobs as a comic poet, fortuneteller, comedian, and Confucian Scholar.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Template:Transliteration's turning point came in 1790 when he approached the very successful author, Template:Transliteration, seeking help with the publication of the former Template:Transliteration's first work, Template:Transliteration (Template:Lang).<ref>Kotobank. Takizawa Bakin. The Asahi Shimbun.</ref>

In 1798 Template:Transliteration died of dysentery leaving Template:Transliteration as the sole male heir of the Template:Transliteration line. He swore to restore the family line. Template:Transliteration's two daughters had died of illness in infancy.

File:Chinsetsu Yumihari-zuki.jpg
Illustration by Hokusai of "Chinsetsu Yumihari"

Life as an author

Template:Transliteration (尽用而二分狂言) was published in 1791 under the pen name "Template:Transliteration, Disciple of Template:Transliteration". This first book had a didactic tone that Template:Transliteration would carry through most of his works going forward. This choice in tone would benefit him as literature and the laws around it had changed in 1790 with the adoption of the Kansei Reforms. Template:Transliteration was able to avoid the punishments levied on his contemporaries like Template:Transliteration, Template:Transliteration and his friend and patron, Template:Transliteration. Template:Transliteration chose to stay silent on any controversies in his writings. Template:Transliteration's own humiliation deeply affected him. He requested Template:Transliteration ghostwrite for him as a deadline for two works approached. These two works, Template:Transliteration and Template:Transliteration were written by Template:Transliteration and copied by Template:Transliteration before being sent off for publishing.<ref name="Zolbrod-1967" /> 1792 marked the first time "Template:Transliteration" appeared in a published work.

In 1793 Template:Transliteration married Template:Transliteration, a widow and owner of a footwear shop, mainly for financial reasons. Template:Transliteration gave Template:Transliteration four children during their marriage: three daughters; Template:Transliteration (1794-1854), Template:Transliteration (1796-?) and Template:Transliteration (1800-?), and one son, Template:Transliteration (1798-1835). Template:Transliteration helped with the shop until the death of his mother-in-law in 1795 when he acquired time to write more regularly. In 1796, he published his first Template:Transliteration Template:Transliteration (Template:Lang) and his works spread to Template:Transliteration and Template:Transliteration, earning him nationwide acclaim. He had eleven other works published in 1797, setting a pace of about ten books per year until 1802. If he wrote a story he didn't enjoy, he would sign it "Template:Transliteration, disciple of Template:Transliteration" causing other aspiring authors to seek out this fictional disciple.<ref name="Zolbrod-1967" />

In 1800 Template:Transliteration embarked on a walking tour and his experiences would play pivotal roles in both his life and writing. The first tour lasted two months and provided him with several historical locations that would appear in his works. During this trip he also fully resolved to restore his family position using his writing.

A second walking tour in 1802 lasted three months and was a tour along the Tōkaidō Post Road. On this tour, Template:Transliteration visited many places that would appear in his future work. He also encountered people of various social standing and professions. His travels coincided with extensive flooding across the nation. Template:Transliteration witnessed recent destruction and displaced peoples all along the road. These encounters and experiences made their way into Template:Transliteration's novels and lent them an honesty that would make his works popular through the entire social strata of Japan.<ref name="Zolbrod-1967" />

From 1803 to 1813, Template:Transliteration published thirty historical novels, marking the beginning of his full career as a professional writer. Several of these works were adapted to various forms of theater across Japan. By 1810 Template:Transliteration was making a comfortable living as a writer, exceeding the stipend that had been allotted to his family while they served under Template:Transliteration and he was considered the preeminent author of historical novels.<ref name="Zolbrod-1967" />

This success was partly due to his collaboration with famous artists. Between 1804 and 1815, Template:Transliteration and the creative illustrator Template:Transliteration collaborated on 13 works. In particular, Template:Transliteration, published between 1807 and 1811, which borrowed the concept of The Tale of Hōgen, Taiheiki and Water Margin. There are various theories as to why Template:Transliteration and Template:Transliteration dissolved their cooperation, such as discordant personalities and conflicting opinions on how to draw illustrations.<ref>日美ブログ 第86回 深川・両国・九段へ 北斎と馬琴の面影を探す旅. Template:Webarchive NHK. February 17, 2019</ref><ref>Kotobank, Chinsetsu Yumiharizuki. The Asahi Shimbun</ref><ref>北斎生誕260年記念 北斎視覚のマジック. Template:Webarchive Hokusai Museum.</ref><ref>曲亭馬琴と葛飾北斎 Template:Webarchive Hokusai Museum.</ref> By 1818, with the purchase of a second household with the profits of his book sales and wife's business, the Template:Transliteration family was officially restored. In 1820, Template:Transliteration's son, Template:Transliteration was appointed clan physician by Lord Template:Transliteration making his social class officially Template:Transliteration and Template:Transliteration felt his family's future was secured.

The Bunka-Bunsei cultural renaissance which started in 1804 lent momentum to fiction as a whole and art flourished until the renaissance concluded around 1830. Serialized long-form works became more prevalent, not just among historical novels. It was during this time that Template:Transliteration continued publishing profitable and popular works. These ranged among scholarly essays and journals, though his most prevalent fiction remained the historical novel. He also embarked on creating his signature piece, Template:Transliteration. This work consisted of 106 volumes, making it one of the world's longest novels, and took 28 years to complete (1814–1842). Like most of his works, Template:Transliteration focused on Template:Transliteration themes, including loyalty and family honor, as well as Confucianism, and Buddhist philosophy. During its production, Template:Transliteration would recede from public life and split from his contemporaries causing rumors to circulate that he had died. Unfortunately, while working on this voluminous work, Template:Transliteration would experience the loss of his eyesight and the death of his wife and only son.

File:TakizawaBakin20110924.jpg
Grave of Takizawa Bakin

Decline and death

While writing, Template:Transliteration also went about ensuring his children married well. Template:Transliteration had married in 1815 and given birth to a son. Template:Transliteration married Template:Transliteration (1787-1837) in 1823 and her new husband took on the management of the family business under the name Template:Transliteration. Template:Transliteration, after a prolonged illness that kept him from his duties as a clan physician, married a young woman named Template:Transliteration in 1827. She was later called Template:Transliteration and would play a pivotal role in her father-in-law's later life. Template:Transliteration bore three children; son Template:Transliteration (1828-?), daughter Template:Transliteration (1830-?) who was adopted by Template:Transliteration and Template:Transliteration, and daughter Template:Transliteration (1833-?). The final parts of the work were dictated to his daughter-in-law.

Template:Transliteration's health, which had started a slow decline in 1818 worsened into the 1830s. He continued to publish but at a much slower pace than before. His wife's frequent illnesses taxed him as did his son's continued invalidity and Template:Transliteration's rheumatism and vision loss progressed. He would feel bouts of energy between 1825 and 1835 that would allow him to continue working.<ref name="Zolbrod-1967" /> In 1835, Template:Transliteration passed and the blow was so devastating to Template:Transliteration that he considered retiring from writing.

Fearing the collapse of his newly restored family, Template:Transliteration decided in 1836 to hold a party to celebrate his birthday. In reality, he did so to raise funds for Template:Transliteration to afford a position as a low-ranking samurai. The gala attracted leading writers and publishers, poets and entertainers, and important officials form the Template:Transliteration's court. Template:Transliteration's future was secured though he was too young to serve at the time. Template:Transliteration's cousin served in his place until 1840 under the name Template:Transliteration. In order to be closer to his grandson's post, Template:Transliteration sold the family house in the city and moved into a rural estate. He would spend the last twelve years of his life there.

Template:Transliteration lost vision in his right eye in 1834 and was completely blind by 1840. Template:Transliteration, who could read complex literature acted as Template:Transliteration's amanuensis from 1840 till his death in 1848. With her assistance he finished several works and answered many letters and critiques. She also attended to the house as Template:Transliteration had slipped into mental instability with the death of Template:Transliteration. Template:Transliteration died in 1841.<ref name="Zolbrod-1967" />

In the autumn of 1848, Template:Transliteration felt chest pains and had difficulty breathing. After a short recovery he relapsed and declined the services of a physician. On November 30, he gave his final testament and passed early in the morning of December 1. He was interred in the Template:Transliteration Temple beside his ancestors.<ref name="Zolbrod-1967" />

Influence on Japanese culture

Nearly four decades after his death, Template:Transliteration's works were still popular. Many writers, such as Template:Transliteration kept his works in the public eye. There was, however, push back from students who had become versed in Western literature. Foremost among them was Template:Transliteration who heavily criticized Template:Transliteration's didactic method of writing as pre-modern without directly attacking Template:Transliteration in his work Template:Transliteration.<ref name="Ueda-2005" /> This attitude was countered by scholars like Template:Transliteration.

Template:Transliteration made also the Japanese version of Haoqiu zhuan, titled Kyōkakuden.<ref>Rainier Lanselle, dans André Lévy (editor), Dictionnaire de littérature chinoise, Presses universitaires de France, « Quadrige », 1994, rééd. 2000, p. 109. "L'ouvrage a connu une certaine fortune tant en Chine qu'à l'étranger : adapté par Takizawa Bakin sous le titre de Kyōkakuden (Les Chevaleresques), [...]"</ref> and authors like Template:Transliteration used Template:Transliteration's methodology for adapting Chinese literature to bring Western works to Japan.

A series of Template:Transliteration containing 50 pictures depicting characters from Template:Transliteration and featuring leading kabuki actors was created by Template:Transliteration. These prints were published in the early 1850s by Template:Transliteration.<ref>Catalogue: Chiba Museum, Hakkenden no sekai (2008).</ref> Excerpts translated by Chris Drake are included in Early Modern Japanese Literature: An Anthology, 1600-1900, edited by Template:Transliteration (Columbia University Press, 2002). The Eight Dog Chronicles has been adapted many times in, for example, the anime OVA The Hakkenden.

His Template:Transliteration (Strange Tales of the Crescent Moon) was adapted for the Template:Transliteration stage by Template:Transliteration.

A character based on Kyokutei Bakin appears in the video game Fate/Grand Order.

Sample bibliography

Yomihon (Readers' Books)

Gōkan

Yellow Books

Saijiki (Seasonal Dictionary)

References

Template:Reflist

Template:Commons category-inline

Template:Nansō Satomi Hakkenden Template:Authority control

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