Rethinking Japanese Literature in the 1960s
With a focus on Jean-Paul Sartre and Yumiko Kura
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.60055/phl.2026.49.56-67Keywords:
Post-war Japanese literature, Student movement, Sartre, existentialism, engagementAbstract
In the field of post-war Japanese literary studies, literature in the 1960s is rarely classified into clearly defined groups. As a result, this period often seems like something of a “blank space”. Apart from Kenzaburō Ōe, relatively little scholarly research has focused on this period. However, the 1960s in Japan were characterized by notable social developments, such as Anpo Tōsō (安保闘争: the struggle against the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty) and the widespread popularity of existentialism, launched forth by the works of Jean-Paul Sartre. This thesis attempts to rethink Japanese literature in the 1960s by examining how Japanese writers who were active during this time – like Jun Etō, Kenzaburō Ōe and Yumiko Kurahashi – were influenced by and responded to Sartre’s philosophy.
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