芥川ファンの日本人って、どんな人だろう?

日本では芥川龍之介は大変評価の高く、ファンも多い作家です。
「芥川賞」は文学賞の中でも最高峰のものですから、芥川がそれだけみんなに高く評価されていることがよく分かると思います。
小学校、中学校、高等学校の「国語」の教科書の中にも、芥川の作品がよく選ばれています。

日本では芥川について、「知的で冷たい作家」というイメージで考えられていることが多いようです。

あなたはどうでしょう?
「南京の基督」や他の作品を読んで、芥川が「知的である」ということと、「冷たい(性格である)」ということを感じましたか?
それとも、他の印象を受けましたか。

日本人は、なぜ、「知的」で「冷たい」芥川に魅力を感じるのでしょうか。
彼らは芥川の作品に、何を求めているのでしょうか。

どう思いますか?





4 件のコメント:

  1. In Japanese, I have only read Kumo no Ito, but in English I've read Hell Screen (地獄変) and In a Grove (薮の中). I have also seen the movie for Rasshomon. Although I can't really say I remember what Rasshomon was about because I'm pretty sure I was asleep for most of it, I really enjoyed Hell Screen and In a Grove. I know that there are probably a lot of things that are lost through the translation of these stories, but I was probably able to enjoy them a lot more because I could understand the more fully.

    Hell Screen was by far my favorite. It was extremely dark and a very interesting read. Now I don't know if I would call these works "intellectual" but I don't know why his works are chosen. I don't even know why some books are chosen in the schools in America. I feel that they might be more revolutionary than anything else. They might have been the first of their kind back when they came out and that's why they're important in Japanese literature.

    While reading Christ in Nanking, I was not able feel anything deep or anything in that sense, but I'm not a very critical reader. If I really enjoy a book, then I might be able to pull it a part and read behind the meanings of things, but if not, I usually just read it as it is. It was just a story to me.

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  2. @Courtney

    >In Japanese, I have only read Kumo no Ito,

    2009年の春学期に教科書で読みましたね。「蜘蛛の糸」の話は好きですか?「地獄変」と同じく、「地獄
    」の話ですが。

    >but in English I've read Hell Screen (地獄変) and In a Grove (薮の中).

    「地獄変」も映画があるんですよね。怖くて見られませんけれどね(笑)。


    >I have also seen the movie for Rasshomon. Although I can't really say I remember what Rasshomon was about because I'm pretty sure I was asleep for most of it,

    TAJOMARUは見ましたか?
    映画の羅生門は、ストーリーは「藪の中」なんですけれど、それでも映画はつまらなかったですか。

    >I really enjoyed Hell Screen and In a Grove. I know that there are probably a lot of things that are lost through the translation of these stories, but I was probably able to enjoy them a lot more because I could understand the more fully.

    「地獄変」も「藪の中」もストーリー自体が面白いですよね。これは翻訳されても変わらないと思います。



    >Hell Screen was by far my favorite. It was extremely dark and a very interesting read.

    「地獄変」は怖い。芸術のために娘を焼き殺すんですものね。焼かれて死ぬって、死に方の中でも一番怖いと思わない?

    「藪の中」もね、誰かが嘘をついているんですよね。この作品はサスペンス的な面白さ、ありますよね。それと同時に、誰かが死んでいても(あるいは、自分が死んだ後でも)嘘をつき続ける「誰か」がいる・・・っていうことが強烈ですね。

    >Now I don't know if I would call these works "intellectual" but I don't know why his works are chosen. I don't even know why some books are chosen in the schools in America. I feel that they might be more revolutionary than anything else. They might have been the first of their kind back when they came out and that's why they're important in Japanese literature.


    芥川が「知的」と言われているのは、彼の書いた作品が、彼の実際の経験に基づくものじゃなくて、本当に100% fiction,頭の中で作った話だからでしょうね。話のネタは平安時代の文学作品などからもらったりするのですが、その後の創作が上手なんです。短い小説なのに人間の醜さをとても鮮やかに描いていたりして。

    でも、小説の創作は上手なんだけれど、芥川自身はまったく熱くなっていなくて、話の外で静かに語っているように見えますね。それが「冷たい」と言われる原因でしょうね。

    While reading Christ in Nanking, I was not able feel anything deep or anything in that sense, but I'm not a very critical reader. If I really enjoy a book, then I might be able to pull it a part and read behind the meanings of things, but if not, I usually just read it as it is. It was just a story to me.

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  3. @コートさん

    芥川以外の作家の作品で、コートさんの好きな作品は何でしょう?英語の作品でも何でも。


    コートさんの好きな小説っていうのは、どんなストーリーのものですか?冒険(ぼうけん)もの?恋愛もの?悲しい話?わくわくどきどきする話ですか?

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  4. I would classify the story 「蜘蛛の糸」 as a fairy tale, so I wouldn't say I like it, but I would but it in the same genre as "Little Red Riding Hood" or "Hansel and Gretal" in my opinion. I'm not sure if it really belongs in that category, but I feel that it was similar to stories of the Grimm Brothers. There is a semi-dark plot, hidden in the disguise of a children's story that has an underlying message to teach you.

    I can imagine that movie for 「地獄変」 to be very scary, in fact, I doubt that I could read it.

    I haven't seen TAJOMARU, but I really want to!! I know that Oguri Shun is in it!! <3 <3 <3. I think I watched 羅生門 at Konan actually.... I think it was at the beginning of the year in the film class. I think the day we watched it, I was late for class and tired, but the main reason I didn't like it was probably because it was old. I can't stand old films in any language.

    I think I liked 「地獄変」 so much because it was a lot different than what I was expecting. It's probably one of the darkest stories I have ever read, and it was one of the first Japanese stories I read. I don't think I've read another story like that before or since. As for 「薮の中」 I absolutely LOVE stories that are told from multiple points of view or how different characters are seemingly not related are connected in different ways.

    After you explain it, I guess I can understand how his stories can seem 「冷たい」but I don't really think about those things when reading. I mainly read just because I love stories, not so much analyzing. It makes a lot more sense when I think about it now though.

    I wrote about some of my favorite works in the post 「後味はどうですか?」 but I love all stories in all forms. I read books, watch movies, anime, dramas, and play video games all just because I love different stories. I'm not too keen on adventure and fantasy in books, but romance and sad stories are definitely my favorite. Nicolas Sparks covers those two genre pretty well in a lot of his books. Some other books that I started to read and like are "My Sisters Keeper" and "The Time Traveler's Wife"

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