The “Edo” aspect of Naturalism in Japan

――Hogetsu, Ryugai and Shinpa People――

Abstract

The fact that in the history of Japanese literature the turn of the 19th century represented the age of naturalism is rarely remembered especially by scholars of modern theare. The purpose of this paper is to reveal new characteristics of naturalism in theatre which have not so far been realized, through the examination of “Edo” aspects in Shimamura Hogetsu, Hanabusa Ryugai and some important figures in Shinpa (New School) Theatre.

We will come to recognize the significance of the formation of the concept of theatre in modern Japan, and see another possible line of the development of the modern theatre in Japan rather than the line from Jiyu gekijo (Free Theatre) by Osanai Kaoru to Tsukiji Little Theatre, the legitimate Shingeki (New Drama).