I-novel is a literary genre in Japanese literature used to describe a type of confessional literature where the events in the story correspond to events in the author's life. This genre was founded based on the Japanese reception of naturalism during the Meiji period, and later influenced literature in other Asian countries as well. This genre of literature reflects greater individuality and a less constrained method of writing. From its beginnings, the I-novel has been a genre that also is meant to expose aspects of society or of the author's life.
History
Origin
The first I-novels are believed to be The Broken Commandment, written in 1906 by Tōson Shimazaki, and Futon written by Katai Tayama in 1907. Futon, written by Tayama Katai in 1907, is not only considered as the first works in this novel, but also a model. In Futon, the protagonist confesses his affection for a female pupil. In The Broken Commandment, Shimazaki described a male who was born a member of a discriminated segment of the population, and how he decided to violate his father's commandment not to reveal his community of birth.
Social Background
In the mid-1800s, European power and the US forced Tokugawa shogunate to end its policy of isolation. Japan faced great external pressure which pushed it towards political and cultural renewal. After Meiji restoration between 1860s and mid-1880s, there were enormous intellectual activities between Japan and Western powers, including translation of books on politics, philosophy and science into Japanese. The new government encouraged this kind of activities in order to inform and educate its people. Shoyo tsubouchi was one of the scholars and writers who worked to introduce Western ideas into Japan. He claimed the importance of intrinsic value of fiction as an artistic genre, which provided insight into people's psychological aspects. He strongly opposed literature in Edo period which was weak in depicting characters' emotion. He believed that fiction should be self-relevant and his thoughts lead to major innovations. Later, in order to withstand political and military challenge posed by Western powers, Meiji government proposed the slogan "rich nation and strong army", which lead to centralization of power. Young scholars in Meiji period were not satisfied with such policy and turned to Western literature and philosophy, from which they began to re-evaluate fiction. Another important scholar who played an important role in this process is Fukuzawa Yukichi. He believed that people are born equal. He also emphasized importance of individual self-respect, as well as national independence and freedom. This idea of individualism was later supported enthusiastically by Meiji scholars. 1889, Meiji Constitution was established, which emphasized on the absolute and divine power of the Tenno, and the notion of "Kokutai". Japan entered the period of nationalism. Young scholars who believed in individualism and liberty were disappointed by the militaristic and nationalist politics and then turned to "the path that leads inwards". The literary climate during this period was dominated by Romanticism, Neo-Idealism and Individualism.
Definition
Language Style
The Japanese language contains a number of different words for "I"; mostly, the formal is used in the I-novel. Other words "I" such as Boku and Jibun may also be seen in some works. There are also some instances where the author uses third-person pronouns or a named main character to present the stories as experience of others or fictional.
Framework
There are several general rules for the creation of an I-novel: The first and most important one is that I-novel is often written from the first-person perspective. I-novel is categorized as "reality", and the most important framework is "jitsu, or "makoto". This framework restricts the narrative to "the life experienced by the author", and fiction will make the work no longer considered as not real/sincere. " "Reality" in I-novel is defined from 3 aspects. The first one is one-to-one relationship between the author's experience and the story in the novel, though slight difference is acceptable. The second one is "inner reality". Rather than reflecting accurate facts, I-novel emphasizes more on real spiritual condition of the author. The third one is from the reader's perspective. An I-novel should appear natural and unplanned to its readers.
Difference from autobiography
Autobiography usually presents the whole large picture and provide a comprehensive life story of the author. While I-Novels are more personal and emotional, focusing on greater depth and feeling of a particular experience happening to the author
Influence of I-novel in China started with the early self-referential fiction of Creation Society. I-novel had an brief ascendancy in China during May Fourth period. Despite the increasing scarcity of this kind of narratives during 1930s, its popularity among writers wasn't completely eradicated. And in 1940s, lots of self-referential works written by woman writers such as Xiao Hong and Ding Ling were published. In addition, Yu Dafu continued to produce various self-referential works until he died in 1945. This trend set up foundation for more self-referential works in 1980s. Members of Creation Society at first learned from Western literature, then shifted to Japanese I-novel, since they were dissatisfied with the existing modes of expression and desired to develop a new mode of narrative which was more consistent with their ideals of modern literary expression. Recently,Chinese critics also argue that limited exposure to Western culture lead May Fourth writers to eventually transit to Japanese I-novel which they had direct contact with.
