born: Dec 31, 1904, (Meiji 37) Shimonoseki died: June 2, 1951, (Showa 26) Tokyo (heart attack) [This needs to be paraphrased -- sorry for the literal transcriptions from other pages -- I will fix it soon!] Hayashi Fumiko, one of the most popular prose writers of the Showa era, and perhaps Japan's most distinguished modern woman writer began writing as a down-and-out poet wandering the streets of 1920s Tokyo. Born in poverty, her experiences growing up gave her a deep understanding of the poor's suffering. Her first novel, the semi-autobiographical poetic-diary, Horoko (1930) [Journal of a Vagabond (1951)] was widely popular. In her poetry collection, I Saw a Pale Horse, Fumiko's literary origins are colorfully revealed. Little known in the west, these early poetic texts focus on Fumiko's unconventional early life, and her construction of a female subject that would challenge, with gusto and panache, accepted notions not only of class, family, and gender but also of female poetic practice. In such works, she captured the poor's plight realistically and unflinchingly, avoiding sentimentality and earning herself a reputation as the "moving chronicler of the poor of Tokyo." At age 18, Hayashi moved to Tokyo to live with a college student who promised to marry her but ultimately deserted her; for the rest of her life, she engaged in unhappy affairs and several failed marriages. Her work reflects her own inability to find happiness and satisfaction in a relationship. Scholar Martin Seymour-Smith, in the Guide to Modern World Literature 1, says "few of (Hayashi's) contemporaries wrote so knowingly of the states into which over-acquiescent women find themselves, although she never was able to explain their self-destruction." In her lifetime, she produced more than 200 books and numerous short stories, essays, articles, and poems-she rarely refused a request for a literary contribution. Her works are significant because they depict so accurately the national mood of depression and dissatisfaction in post-war Japan. Fumiko has been honored with several monuments in Japan, such as the one at the Furusato Hot Springs near her birthplace, and Fumiko Hayashi's Corner at Onomichi Municipal Library.
		My favorate movie seiyuu is Kanai Mika. If I were an anime character instead of an android, I would want to have her voice! [sigh]   Here she recites a Fumiko poem... real name: Yamadera Mika born: Tokyo Mar 18, 1964 blood type: O height: 154 cm (5'2") weight: 38 kg measurements: 78-56-79 cm shoe size: 22 cm
		"The Life of a flower is short and has only painful things" - Hayashi Fumiko
		Fly To Me, Boiled Egg (Ude tamago tonde koi) Fly to me, boiled egg. Fly to me, bean jam bun. Fly to me, Strawberry bread. Fly to me, Chinese noodle soup. -- Hayashi Fumiko Winter Is Almost Here (Mo jiki fuyu ga kuru) Winter is almost here the sky has said so winter is almost here the mountain trees say so. The dazzling rain runs to tell us The postman has put on his round hat. The night has come to tell us winter is almost here the mouse has come to tell us in the ceiling it has begun to make its rest. Carrying winter on their backs many people are coming from the country. -- Hayashi Fumiko Passion For Snow (Yuki ni yoseru netsujo) In the field a vast snowstorm I become simply a single eagle Wings spread to the full Full of spirit Spreading out my passion as far as I am One Stroke! I'll zoom over the field. Twisting and turning A beautiful cannonball of snow I put on a red hat Both hands open wide My heart opens wide I open my eyes as wide as I can Rolling over and over I'll cover myself in snow. That pure bluish-white snow! Scattered clouds rising up from the snow Ah, rising up bit by bit my head a sphinx I'll drink up the field, the mountains, the snow and the houses. The sphinx on the snow Has breathed in the sky, tears flying from its eyes Mouth full A full deep breath Rolling and shaking its breast as hard as it can. On the glorious blossoming earth Cannonballs of snow fly generously With all my strength Stamping my feet as much as I can I shall draw the bow with all my strength! -- Hayashi Fumiko
		Horoko (novel) 1930. [Published as Journal of a Vagabond, 1951.] Bangiku (short story) 1948. [Late Chrysanthemum, published in Japan Quarterly, 1956.] Shitamachi (short story) [Published as Tokyo (partial translation) in Modern Japanese Literature, 1956, and as Downtown (partial translation) in Modern Japanese Short Stories, 1962.] Ukigumo (novel) 1951. [Published as Floating Cloud, 1957, and The Floating Clouds, 1965.] Hayashi Fumiko zenshu (novels, short stories, poetry) 1951,1952. 23 vols. I Saw a Pale Horse & Selections from Diary of a Vagabond (poetry) Hayashi Fumiko, Janice Brown (Translator). Cornell East Asia Series Vol 86. 1997. Hardcover, Paperback. Be a Woman : Hayashi Fumiko and Modern Japanese Women's Literature (study) Joan E. Ericson, Fumiko Horoki Hayashi, Fumiko Suisen Hayashi. Univ of Hawaii. 1997. Paperback. Wandering Heart : The Work and Method of Hayashi Fumiko (study) Susanna Fessler. State Univ of New York. 1998. Hardcover, Paperback.
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