Takako Takahashi
Encyclopedia
is a noted Japanese
author.
, as the only child of well-to-do parents, with the maiden name of Takako Okamoto. In 1954 she received her undergraduate degree from Kyoto University
in French, with a senior thesis on Charles Baudelaire
. Six months later she married fellow student Kazumi Takahashi
, subsequently a well-known writer. She supported him in the first two years of their marriage by a series of odd jobs, then returned to Kyoto University in 1956 to receive a master's degree in French literature in 1958 for a thesis on François Mauriac
.
From 1958-1965, Takahashi and her husband lived in Osaka
, where she began a first novel in 1961 (A Ruined Landscape). Her husband won a major literary award in 1962, making his name and providing sufficient funds so that Takahashi could quit her job, work on her novel, and publish a translation of Mauriac's Thérèse Desqueyroux. In 1965 they moved to Kamakura, Kanagawa
, when her husband obtained a teaching position at Meiji University
; in 1967, when he became a professor at Kyoto University, she remained in Kamakura. When her husband fell ill in 1969, he returned to Kamakura where she took care of him.
After her husband's early death in 1971, Takahashi and began writing short stories and novels, as well as a memoir of her husband, and translations of French literature. In the 1970s she was both prolific and successful as an author, publishing four novels and eight collections of short stories. In 1980 Takahashi moved to France, where in 1985 she became a nun. After returning to Japan, she entered a Carmelite
convent but left after one year, returning to Kyoto to take care of her mother. She continued to publish prolifically.
Takahashi received the 1985 Yomiuri Prize
for Ikari no ko (Child of Wrath).
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
author.
Biography
Takahashi was born in KyotoKyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
, as the only child of well-to-do parents, with the maiden name of Takako Okamoto. In 1954 she received her undergraduate degree from Kyoto University
Kyoto University
, or is a national university located in Kyoto, Japan. It is the second oldest Japanese university, and formerly one of Japan's Imperial Universities.- History :...
in French, with a senior thesis on Charles Baudelaire
Charles Baudelaire
Charles Baudelaire was a French poet who produced notable work as an essayist, art critic, and pioneering translator of Edgar Allan Poe. His most famous work, Les Fleurs du mal expresses the changing nature of beauty in modern, industrializing Paris during the nineteenth century...
. Six months later she married fellow student Kazumi Takahashi
Kazumi Takahashi
was a Japanese novelist and scholar of Chinese literature in Showa period Japan. His wife was fellow writer Takako Takahashi.-Biography:Takahashi was born in Naniwa-ku, Osaka, and was a graduate of Kyoto University. While still a student, he contributed to the Gendai Bungaku literary magazine...
, subsequently a well-known writer. She supported him in the first two years of their marriage by a series of odd jobs, then returned to Kyoto University in 1956 to receive a master's degree in French literature in 1958 for a thesis on François Mauriac
François Mauriac
François Mauriac was a French author; member of the Académie française ; laureate of the Nobel Prize in Literature . He was awarded the Grand Cross of the Légion d'honneur .-Biography:...
.
From 1958-1965, Takahashi and her husband lived in Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
, where she began a first novel in 1961 (A Ruined Landscape). Her husband won a major literary award in 1962, making his name and providing sufficient funds so that Takahashi could quit her job, work on her novel, and publish a translation of Mauriac's Thérèse Desqueyroux. In 1965 they moved to Kamakura, Kanagawa
Kamakura, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about south-south-west of Tokyo. It used to be also called .Although Kamakura proper is today rather small, it is often described in history books as a former de facto capital of Japan as the seat of the Shogunate and of the Regency during the...
, when her husband obtained a teaching position at Meiji University
Meiji University
is a private university in Tokyo and Kawasaki, founded in 1881 by three lawyers of the Meiji era, Kishimoto Tatsuo, Miyagi Kōzō, and Yashiro Misao. It is one of the largest and most prestigious Japanese universities in Tokyo, Japan....
; in 1967, when he became a professor at Kyoto University, she remained in Kamakura. When her husband fell ill in 1969, he returned to Kamakura where she took care of him.
After her husband's early death in 1971, Takahashi and began writing short stories and novels, as well as a memoir of her husband, and translations of French literature. In the 1970s she was both prolific and successful as an author, publishing four novels and eight collections of short stories. In 1980 Takahashi moved to France, where in 1985 she became a nun. After returning to Japan, she entered a Carmelite
Carmelites
The Order of the Brothers of Our Lady of Mount Carmel or Carmelites is a Catholic religious order perhaps founded in the 12th century on Mount Carmel, hence its name. However, historical records about its origin remain uncertain...
convent but left after one year, returning to Kyoto to take care of her mother. She continued to publish prolifically.
Takahashi received the 1985 Yomiuri Prize
Yomiuri Prize
The is a prestigious literary award in Japan. The prize was founded in 1948 by the Yomiuri Shinbun Company to help form a "cultural nation". The winner is awarded one million Japanese yen and an inkstone.-Award categories:...
for Ikari no ko (Child of Wrath).
English translations
- Lonely Woman, translated by Maryellen Toman Mori (New York: Columbia University Press, 2004). ISBN 978-0231131261.
- "Congruent Figures" (Sōjikei), in Japanese Women Writers: Twentieth Century Short Fiction, translated by Noriko Mizuta Lippit and Kyoko Iriye Selden (Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 1991)
- "Doll Love" (Ningyō ai), translated by Mona Nagai and Yukiko Tanaka in This Kind of Woman: Ten Stories by Japanese Women Writers, 1960-1976, ed. Yukiko Tanaka and Elizabeth Hanson (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1982), 197-223.
- "Holy Terror" (Kodomo-sama) and "A Boundless Void" (Byōbo), translated by Amanda Seaman in The Massachusetts Review 51/3 (Fall 2010): 439-55 and 456-81.