Shinpei Kusano

Shinpei Kusano (草野心平, Kusano Shinpei, 12 May 1903 – 12 November 1988) was a Japanese poet. He was born in Iwaki, Fukushima. He was a member of the Japan Art Academy, a Person of Cultural Merit, and a recipient of the Order of Culture.

After dropping out of Keio University, he studied art at Lingnan University in Guangdong, China, and published "The Hundredth Grade" in 1928, and joined "Rekitei", a poetry magazine founded by Itzumi Naokichi in 1935. Later, he became an advisor to the propaganda department of the Wang Zhaoming government in the Japanese puppet regime of Nanjing. Some critics have pointed out the influence of the regime's ideology in "Fuji" (1943), which was published in Nanjing. After the war, he republished "Rekitei" and trained many poets and loved frogs.

Life and work Early life Born on May 12, 1903, in Kami-Ogawa Village, Ishiki District, Fukushima Prefecture, the second son of his father Kaoru Kusano and mother Tomeyo. In February 1911, his grandfather Kozo died at the age of 67. Kozo was a landowner who served as a member of the Fukushima prefectural assembly and village mayor. In September, he returned to Guangzhou from February to April 1924, he published mimeograph poems "Sky and Telephone Pole In June. It was during this period of study that he began writing poetry. Shortly before returning to Japan, he read "Haru to Shura," a collection of poems by Kenji Miyazawa sent from Japan, and was greatly inspired by it. In November, he published "Daihyaku-kyuu" (The Hundredth Grade), his first collection of poetry printed in letterpress. All of the poems were about frogs, and he continued to write poems dealing with other amphibians; in December, he published the first issue of the poetry magazine "Gakko".

In January 1931, he published "Amerika proletaria shishu" (American Proletarian Poetry Anthology) with other poets;

In January 1934, he edited and published "In Memoriam of Kenji Miyazawa" following Kenji Miyazawa's death the previous September. In November, he left Tokyo Nichi Nichi Shimbun and joined "Toa Kakuritsu Sha" the following month, becoming the editor-in-chief of Toa Kakuritsu. in October, he opened a small rental library called "Tenzan" in front of Ogawago Station in his hometown; in 1948, he closed the library after eight months and moved to Tokyo by himself in August. In August 1949, he moved to Mount Mitake. In November, he became a director of the Japan Writers' Association. In March 1951, he was a member of the first selection committee for the Mr. H Prize established by the Japan Contemporary Poets Association.

In April 1954, he was elected secretary-general of the Japan Contemporary Poets Association. He serialized a novel about Wang Zhaoming in the Yomiuri Shimbun, titled "The Person of Destiny."

Poetic Works In January 1970, he received the 21st Yomiuri Literary Award for "Wagamama Kotaro" published the previous year.

In May 1973, "Kusano Shinpei Poetic Complete Works" (Chikuma Shobo) is published.

In 1976, on March 29, a fire broke out in a neighboring house in Higashimurayama, Tokyo, burning Shinpei's house half to the ground. In April 1977, he was awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure, 3rd class. 1978, May, "Kusano Shinpei Complete Works" was published by Chikuma Shobo and completed in 12 volumes in May 1984.

In October 1983, he became a Person of Cultural Merit, and in July 1984, he became an honorary citizen of Iwaki City.

Last years In June 1986, he published his last collection of poems, "Ji-Quan et al." In August, he suffered a stroke and was hospitalized, but was released in December. In March 1987, he suffered another stroke and was hospitalized, but was released in July and was hospitalized again in September. In October, he was asked by the Agency for Cultural Affairs to receive the Order of Cultural Merit, and in November he attended the ceremony in a wheelchair despite being in bad health conditions.

On November 12, 1988, he became ill at home and died of acute heart failure at the Tokorozawa Municipal Medical Center in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, where he was taken.