Yuasa Yoshiko

Yuasa Yoshiko

Yuasa Yoshiko ( Japanese 湯 浅 芳子 ; * December 7, 1896 in Kyoto ; † October 24, 1990 in Tokyo ) was a Japanese Slavic (Russian) translator.

biography

Born in Kyōto, Yuasa Yoshiko was the first woman to attend the Slavonic seminar at Waseda University in Tōkyō and participated in women's magazines. Through Nogami Yaeko she met Miyamoto Yuriko and from 1924 lived with her, who had separated from her husband at the time. She spent the period from 1927 to 1930 with Miyamoto Yuriko in the Soviet Union and then, again in Japan, devoted herself to the translation and mediation of Russian-Soviet literature. Their translations are still read today. Her most important works include the translations of Marschak's “Twelve Months”, Gorky's “My Childhood”, Shchedrin's “Messrs. Golovlyov” and Chekhov's “The Cherry Orchard”.

After Yuasa Yoshiko's death, the Yuasa Yoshiko Prize was donated in memory of her achievements, which is awarded for outstanding translations, adaptations and performances of foreign plays. From Jakucho Setouchi , who knew Yuasa Yoshiko's lifetime, the critical biography comes koko no hito ( 孤高の人 , "A man of sublime solitude"), published by Chikuma Bunko .

Yuasa Yoshiko, who made a contribution to Russian literature and particularly admired Chekhov , is also known for her love of women. She felt drawn to the writer Tamura Toshiko and lived a "married life" with Miyamoto Yuriko for almost six years.

Works

• Ippiki ōkami ( い っ ぴ き 狼 , Eng . "A wolf"), 1966 in: Chikuma Shobō .
• Ōkami imada oizu ( 狼 い ま だ 老 い ず , Eng . "The wolf has not yet grown old"), 1973 in: Chikuma Shobō.

Translations

In the Iwanami Bunko series :

• Sannin shimai ( 三人 姉妹 ). The three sisters . 1950. Chekhov .
• Sakura no niwa ( 桜 の 園 ). The cherry orchard . 1950. Chekhov.
• Sono zen'ya ( そ の 前夜 ). The night before. 1951. Turgenev .
• Oji Vāniya ( 伯父 ヴ ァ ー ニ ヤ ). Uncle Vanya. 1951. Chekhov.
• Kamome ( か も め ). The seagull. 1952. Chekhov.
• Mori wa ikiteiru ( 森 は 生 き て い る , "The forest is alive"). Twelve months. 1953. Marshak .
• Kōfuku wa dare ni kuru ( 幸福 は だ れ に く る ). Those who master adversity will find happiness. 1956. Marshak.
• Chūnikai no aru ie / Waga seikatsu ( 中 二階 の あ る 家 ・ わ が 生活 ). The house with the gable / My life. 1959. Chekhov.
• Taikutsu na hanashi / Rokugō-byōshitsu ( 退 屈 な 話 ・ 六号 病 室 ). A Boring Story / Hospital Room No. 6. 1963. Chekhov.
• Mahō no shina urimasu ( 魔法 の 品 売 り ま す , something like : "I sell magic ware"). German title unknown . 1966. Marshak.
• Yo no naka e dete ( 世 の 中 へ 出 て , “going out into the world”). Among strangers. 1971/72. Gorky .

Order of information: Japanese title, German title, year of publication of the translation, author of the original.

Web links

• Biographical information (Japanese)

Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . Thus Yuasa is the family name, Yoshiko the first name.