Jump to main content
シェークスピヤ最終講義をする逍遙 / 企画展『演劇人 坪内逍遙』データベース

Shakespeare—No Shakespeare in our country?

Shoyo translated Shakespeare's works for over 50 years from Meiji 14 (1881) at the age of twenty-three, by translating Julius Caesar (later published as Jiyu no tachi nagori no kireaji) until Showa 10 (1935), at the age of seventy-seven, by revising translations in a new edition of Shakespeare's complete works.

Full translation of Shakespeare

Shoyo's lifework was to translate all of Shakespeare's works. In Showa 3 (1928), Shoyo published Shakespeare’s Complete Works as a culmination of 20 years of effort. Shoyo also published a new version of the complete works of Shakespeare (40 volumes), which was completed by unifying the writing style and correcting errors, from Showa 8 (1933) to Showa 10 (1935).

“Sao kogi (lecture on Shakespeare)”, “Taisho jyusannen shichigatsu ko Sao kogi (written in July Taisho 13)”, “Sao kogi izen no eikoku gekidan (The British Theatre Industry before Shakespeare)”, “Sao jidai no satsujin geki (Murder dramas of Shakespeare’s period)”, “Sao kogi sonnet”, “Sao shoshi (book history)/sao jidai no gekijyo sonota (Theaters in Shakespeare's period, etc.)”, “Shakespeare, Bacon, etc.”, “Shohyo hoka (Book review, etc.)”, “Dokusho sho (book review)”, and “Sao geki kogi (Lecture on Shakespeare’s dramas)”. The large paper at the rear is the Shakespeare 300th Anniversary Exhibition Catalog.
Initially, twenty volumes of Sao kessaku shu (Shakespeare Masterpieces) were published by Waseda University Press from Meiji 42 (1909) to Taisho 12 (1923), followed by twenty volumes of Sao zenshu (Shakespeare’s complete works) from Taisho 15 (1926) to Showa 3 (1928) . The first complete translation of Shakespeare by an individual in Japan.
Manuscript for the printing of the Complete Works of Shakespeare. The manuscript, stained bright red with ink, is a testament to Shoyo's passion for his work, which could be described as “bloody”.
The complete works were published by Chuokoronsha, a Japanese publisher, from Showa 8 (1933) to Showa 10 (1935). After the publication of The Complete Works of Shakespeare, Shoyo revised them as a personal translation with the aim of unifying the translation.
This is Shoyo's last work.

Dispute over idealism between Ogai and Shoyo

This is a literary debate in which Mori Ogai challenged Shoyo after Ogai’s return from his studies in Germany in Meiji 21 (1888). This debate took place in the literary magazines Shigarami soshi and Waseda Bungaku.

Literature from time to time, a collection of debates with Mori Ogai
Shoyo and Mori Ogai had a fierce dispute, but Shoyo wrote a preface to Mori's translation of Macbeth.

Shoyo and Matsui Sumako

Actress Matsui Sumako (real name: Kobayashi Masako) made her debut in Meiji 44 (1911) in the Literary Society's first performance of Hamlet, directed by Shoyo. Matsui released several records, including "Fukkatsu Shoka (Resurrection Song),” generally known as “Kachusha no Uta (Katusha's song)," and "Gondola no Uta (Gondola song)", which became immensely popular.

  • The digitized version of "Katyusha's Song" is available in the Waseda University Cultural Resources Database (AV Materials Database).

  • “Sasurai no uta” is a song from Ikeru Shikabane (The Living Corpse), performed by the Geijutsu-za theatre troupe in Taisho 6 (1917). The sound files are available at the National Diet Library.

  • The love affair between Shimamura Hogetsu (real name: Takitaro) and Matsui Sumako, a young leader of the Literary Society alongside Shoyo, resulted in them being expelled from the Literary Society, because they were both married.

Responsibility
Produced by : The Tsubouchi Memorial Theatre Museum, Waseda University and The National Diet Library
Secondary Usage

except images: check each right statement

Last updated
January 27, 2023