Adaptations of Western Literature in Meiji Japan

185 Pages·2001·4.568 MB·English

by  J. Scott Miller (auth.)

Adaptations of Western Literature
in Meiji Japan
This page intentionally left blank
Adaptations of Western Literature
in Meiji Japan
J. Scott Miller
ADAPTATIONS OF WESTERN LITERATURE IN MEIJI JAPAN
© J.Scott Miller,2001
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2001 978-0-312-23995-4
All rights reserved.No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any man-
ner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations
embodied in critical articles or reviews.
First published 2001 by PALGRAVETM
175 Fifth Avenue,New York,N.Y.10010 and
Houndmills,Basingstoke,Hampshire RG21 6XS.
Companies and representatives throughout the world
PALGRAVE is the new global publishing imprint of St.Martin’s Press LLC
Scholarly and Reference Division and Palgrave Publishers Ltd (formerly
Macmillan Press Ltd).
ISBN 978-1-349-38707-6 ISBN 978-0-230-10755-7 (eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9780230107557
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Miller,J.Scott (John Scott)
Adaptations of western literature in Meiji Japan / by J.Scott Miller
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-349-38707-6
1.Japanese literature—Meiji period,1868-1912—History and criticism
2.Literature—Adaptations—History and criticism. I.Title.
PL726.55 M465 2001
895.6'090042—dc21 2001021793
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Design by Westchester Book Composition
First edition:December 2001
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To Judy,Michela,and Joseph
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
Preface and Acknowledgements ix
Introduction 1
Chapter I: Toward a Theory of Adaptation:Hon’an in
Meiji Japan 9
Chapter II: More Romance than Reality:Ulysses S.Grant
as Japanese Warrior 23
Chapter III: From Madness to Murder:Victorian Novel
as Ninjôbanashi 77
Chapter IV: A Visible Poetics:American Dime Novel as
Paradigm for Theater Reform 111
Conclusion 141
Notes 145
Bibliography 169
Index 177
This page intentionally left blank
Preface and Acknowledgements
A
n esteemed colleague,Gary Williams,often begins an annual sem-
inar we team-teach by discussing Ye xian,a Chinese version of the
Cinderella tale that appeared in the late Tang Dynasty.Each year I
marvel at the way fundamental elements of this ubiquitous story of mis-
placed inheritance and triumph,like water in a vessel,manage to remain
constant while conforming to the surrounding cultural milieu.Of course,
an adapted story does not transform itself into the shape of its respective
cultural vessel; it is the teller who makes the cultural accommodations,
trimming here,expanding there,until the borrowed tale is refit to suit its
new surroundings.
The present study has emerged from my ongoing interest in the related,
and equally intriguing,phenomenon of literary adaptation,which,unlike
literal translation (which seeks to transport stories from other cultures in
relatively correspondent shape),has as one of its fundamental prerogatives
the transformation of the original to fit the particular conventions of the
target culture.In my research of nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century
Japanese literature I have been amazed at the variety and breadth of liter-
ary adaptations from foreign (both Chinese and Euro-American) sources.
These transmutations often reflect contemporary attitudes,ideologies,and
fears in concrete, if metaphoric, ways, and I have always felt that they
deserved much greater attention by literary and cultural scholars for the
wealth of perspectives—not to mention the strident and at times bizarre
eclecticism—they contain.
Since very few formal studies of Japanese adaptations exist, either in
Japanese or in English,much of what follows represents a rough pioneer-
ing foray into new territory.Accordingly,I warn the reader in advance that