What is the "poor" Japanese described by kazuo ishiguro?

British writer kazuo ishiguro won the Nobel Prize in Literature on 20 17.

At the Hay Culture Festival held in powys earlier, Japanese-born British novelist kazuo ishiguro appeared in the public eye, bringing his latest and only novel "The Buried Giant" in the last decade.

Although this new book has been criticized by many book critics as "painful to read", it does not prevent readers all over the world from loving it. In an interview with the media, kazuo ishiguro bluntly said that "African-Americans are becoming' buried giants' in the United States", while society is choosing to forget.

Since the publication of The Buried Giant on March 3rd, kazuo ishiguro has participated in a series of publicity activities. When talking about the new book, he said: "In every personal relationship and social relationship, there are always dark and unknown memories, which were deliberately concealed or buried at that time, but when and whether to recall are the key points."

Move to England

Japanese "sucks"

1954165438+1October 8th, kazuo ishiguro was born in Nagasaki, but he only lived here for more than five years. From 65438 to 0960, his parents moved to England with him and his sister Fumiko and lived in guildford, a small town near London. The experience of moving was regarded as an "adventure" in their life-they thought it was only a short stay, and kazuo ishiguro took his Japanese textbook with him when he left. At that time, kazuo ishiguro's father kazuo ishiguro was sent to Britain by British North Sea Oil Company. "My parents have no intention of emigrating at all. At that time, they just wanted to stay in Britain for a while and then go back. "

I didn't think about it. After that, he didn't return to Japan for 29 years. "When I didn't pay attention, everything will be rearranged. And when I realized it, Japan was gone, "kazuo ishiguro sighed years later.

As he said, his Japanese is "poor"-although he has a Japanese name. In some interviews, kazuo ishiguro had to clarify to readers that he almost never wrote in Japanese, and his works were quite different from Japanese novels. In an interview with 1990, he said, "If I write under a pseudonym ... I believe no one will say,' This guy reminds me of a Japanese writer'."

Ten years after moving to England, kazuo ishiguro's grandfather died in the old house in Nagasaki where they once lived together. For a long time, my grandfather was the only link between kazuo ishiguro and Japan. He will send kazuo ishiguro a big and heavy package filled with children's magazines, gifts, puzzles and cartoons. "You must understand that traveling at that time was not as easy as it is now."

Under his deliberate avoidance, Shi Hei was not given a chance to return to Japan until 1989, or because he participated in a short-term activity called "Author's Journey" organized by a Japanese foundation. "In my opinion, all those people are still alive ... I believe everything there is still running peacefully as before. My childhood world is still intact. "

"I think pure personal nostalgia is often a memory of childhood, or at least a memory of such a period. At that time, the world we described in our hearts was often better than the world we saw later. Because when we are young, we can live in fantasy-if we are lucky ... adults, not only our parents, but even strangers on the street make children believe that the world is better than real life. "

Treat the novel as a "long version song"

In the year when he entered the University of East Anglia, kazuo ishiguro wrote about Japan for the first time. "When I wrote about Japan, something was released. I put a novel in class, which was written from the perspective of a young woman in Nagasaki, where the atomic bomb was dropped. The praise I got from my classmates greatly increased my confidence. They all say that this article about Japan is really wonderful, and you are sure to succeed. Later, I received a letter from Faber Publishing House. They accepted my three novels and compiled them into their introduction series. "

Kazuo ishiguro published his first novel Mountain Shadow at the age of 27, and the story is also set in Nagasaki.

Little known is that after he started writing, kazuo ishiguro's more enthusiastic career was as a songwriter. This hobby can be traced back to his entry into Woking Grammar School, where there is a strong artistic and musical atmosphere. After graduating from high school, kazuo ishiguro worked as a percussionist in Balmoral's Empress Dowager. His music idol is Bob Dylan, and he hoped that he could create great music like singer leonard cohen or musician Johnny Michel. Unfortunately, this dream has not been realized so far, although kazuo ishiguro has always regarded his works as "long-version songs".

However, until now, kazuo ishiguro still loves music. It is worth mentioning that he wrote lyrics for the jazz singer Stacy Kent, and their jazz album Breakfast on the Tram in the Morning was very popular in France. In 2009, kazuo ishiguro published a collection of short stories "Serenade", in which five stories are connected by music.

"Those life templates discussed in bars or student dormitories actually only apply to a certain point in your life. In fact, you will find that you don't have so much control over your life. " -kazuo ishiguro