9 - Shiina Rinzō: His Two Visages

Summary

Shiina Rinzō can be seen as both a member of the Sengoha (postwar) literary coterie and that of “Christian writers.” These two categorizations are born from two of his pivotal life experiences: his awakening to literature in the form of his “Dosutoefusukii taiken” (Dostoevsky experience) in 1938, and to the Christian faith with his “fukkatsu taiken” (resurrection experience) in 1951. And these two experiences are closely linked to the image of “light” that pervades Shiina's entire oeuvre.

Introduction

Shiina Rinzō (1911–1973) had two different visages. One belonged to an author who was active on the front lines in the post-World War II literary scene as a representative of the Daiichiji Sengoha (the First Generation of Postwar Writers). His other visage was that of a formally baptized “Christian author” whose writings vividly displayed themes rooted in a Christian world view.

The First Generation of Postwar Writers refers to those authors who debuted in 1946– 1947 as members of “a group who began writing after the Second World War. Employing psychological and existential techniques in their works, they pursued such themes as war responsibility and the question of individual identity, centering on issues dealing with politics and literature” (Daijirin, 3rd ed.). After a memorable debut with “Shin’ya no shuen” (Midnight Banquet*) in February 1947, Shiina proceeded to write a series of provocative works. In 1956, following publication of Utsukushii onna (The Beautiful Woman), he received the “Geijutsu senshō Monbudaijin-shō” (Minister of Cultural Affairs art encouragement prize) for that and other works. He was active in many fields: in addition to novels, he wrote screenplays, television dramas and plays, thereby bolstering his solid position in the postwar literary world. Existential leanings are especially strong in Shiina's writings in each of these genres, as he continued to question what it means to be alive.

Turning to his role as a Christian writer, Shiina was baptized on Christmas Eve 1950 in a Protestant church. Beginning with his “resurrection experience” in 1951, he foregrounded his Christian faith; and, in his writings, including the essays treating his personal experiences of faith which were collected as Watashi no seisho monogatari (My Bible Stories, 1957), and the images of the resurrected Christ in The Beautiful Woman, his Christian faith was tightly interwoven into his literary works.