Gourt Home::Gourt :: Santo Kyoden
was a poet, writer and artist in the Edo period. His real name was , and he was also known popularly as . He is the brother of Santo Kyozai.
In 1791, during the Kansei Reforms, he is said to have received the punishment of .
Life
Santo Kyoden was born in Fukagawa in Edo. The Iwase family into which he was born were pawnbrokers in a lumberyard. He studied under master , and began illustrating under the pseudonym of . He soon started writing these novels also under the name of Santo Kyoden; several novels are written by Santo Kyoden and illustrated by Kitao Masanobu— the same person! He wrote kibyōshi and in great numbers, and became a popular writer. During this time he married twice, both his wives being licensed workers of Yoshiwara.
During the Kansei Reforms, governmental censors began to impose much stronger restrictions on published works. In 1791, Kyoden was chained in manacles to his house for fifty days as punishment for publishing a series of particularly disagreeable sharebon and kibyōshi.
Kyoden then broke off all ties with sharebon and turned to writing . joined with Kyoden to write jointly, and independently Kyoden also wrote essentially historical texts on the manners and customs of the Edo period. Kyoden was an acute observer of life in the Edo period. While at ease with exaggeration, comedy and linguistic fun, his writing was primarily realistic.
Fiction writers prior to Kyoden generally wrote fiction as a hobby without any expectations of payment. Kyoden was one of the pioneers in turning this hobby into a livable profession.
Major works
Kibyōshi
- (1785)
Sharebon
Yomihon
- 優曇華物語 (1804)
- 忠臣水滸伝
Historical works
- 近世奇跡考
See also
References
- This article incorporates material from the ja:山東京伝.
External links
Japanese writers | Japanese poets | Japanese artists | 1761 births | 1816 deaths | 山東京伝
"Santo Kyoden"