What We Inherit from Mantaro Kubota: The Conclusion of the "Mantaro Kubota Memorial Fund" and Commemorative Projects

2024/01/23

Image: From the symposium "Mantaro Kubota and the Modern Age" (December 16, 2023)

The year 2023 marked the 60th anniversary of Mantaro Kubota's death, but from the perspective of Keio University, it was also the final year of the "Keio University Mantaro Kubota Memorial Fund" (hereafter referred to as the "Kubota Fund").

Mantaro Kubota was a leading figure in the literary world at the time, an overwhelming leader in the theater world who produced one topical work after another, and a creator who led new developments in modern haiku. Even in the media that developed rapidly after the war, he was well known to people in their living rooms due to his outstanding literary sense. His achievements were so great that they cannot be covered by a simple explanation, but over the long years, many Keio students have come to not know his name. However, a considerable number of Keio University alumni have taken the memorial courses named after Mantaro Kubota that lasted for nearly 60 years ("Poetics" and "Modern Art"), and the library's "Mita Bungaku Library" serves as one of Japan's leading archives of precious modern literature materials for people both within Keio and outside. Furthermore, "Mita Bungaku," which Mantaro Kubota was involved in editing, continues to introduce high-quality literature while inheriting 110 years of history and tradition, and continues to support the activities of up-and-coming creators. These important funds that have supported Keio's cultural activities were built through the transfer of all copyrights to Keio University, which Mantaro Kubota announced the year before his sudden death.

The protection period for copyrighted works was up to 50 years after death (currently 70 years), and in Mantaro Kubota's case, copyright income ended in 2013. The Kubota Fund has accumulated every year over this half-century, with the total amount easily exceeding 200 million yen. Upon the conclusion of the Kubota Fund, which made a significant contribution to the Juku, members of the Fund Management Committee, including former Dean of the Faculty of Letters Keiko Kurata and led by Vice-President Yoshimitsu Matsuura, continued various explorations to leave a clear form of deep gratitude to Mantaro. Finally, in early spring 2022, four members from the Faculty of Letters—Maiko Kodaira (Japanese Literature), Eiichiro Hirata (German Literature), Ayako Nishino (French Literature), and Sosuke Yoshinaga (Chinese Literature)—along with myself (Mita Bungaku), were appointed to proceed with this commemorative project.

At that point, the remaining balance of the Kubota Fund was approximately 5 million yen, and a project was required to make meaningful use of this last precious sum. After repeated discussions, we established three pillars: the core of the commemorative project would be the publication of a work honoring Mantaro Kubota, accompanied by a commemorative symposium and a special exhibition. In particular, large-scale publications regarding Mantaro Kubota had ceased for over 30 years, and it was clear that this publication would hold significant literary historical meaning beyond mere commemoration, requiring a corresponding level of resolve to edit it. First, we had to acknowledge the fact that most of the current generation does not know Mantaro Kubota, and a policy was confirmed to introduce the rich and diverse content of Kubota's literature in a comprehensive and easy-to-understand manner. On that basis, we agreed to firmly convey the modern achievements of Mantaro Kubota research while carefully covering achievements and anecdotes that had not received much attention until now. We also decided to have famous authors and poets write essay-style pieces on how they perceive Mantaro. Under this policy, we requested contributions from individuals active in various fields. The 30-plus people who graciously accepted are individuals with remarkable achievements in various sectors of Japan, forming a truly distinguished lineup of writers. We were grateful for the enthusiastic response from Junpei Shimonaka, President of Heibonsha, who undertook the publication. The editors in charge were the experienced veteran Takao Hoshina and Rintaro Shindo, a graduate of the Major in Asian History at the Faculty of Letters. There was a Keio connection here as well, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them both for their meticulous editing.

It was in the final stages of editing that we decided on the title of the book, "Mantaro Kubota and the Modern Age: Beyond Nostalgia." During the harsh times from the pre-war period through the war and into the post-war era, in the shadow of Japan's fierce modern progress, Mantaro Kubota released numerous masterpieces with a sense of boundless regret for the vanishing humanity and arts of the Asakusa downtown area. The title was chosen with the hope that the purity of his literary spirit would be inherited by the modern age. This book was published on October 25, and I sincerely hope it becomes a book loved by many readers, as well as by all Keio University alumni.

The symposium "Mantaro Kubota and the Modern Age," part of the Kubota memorial project, will be held on December 16 at the Mita Campus North Building Hall (see frontispiece; not yet held at the time of writing). Maiko Kodaira will serve as the moderator, and lectures will be given by haiku poet Yuko Onda, Rikkyo University Professor Takumi Ishikawa, and theater critic Hiroshi Hasebe, who are also contributors to the aforementioned book. Additionally, a staged reading of Kubota's works will be performed by Keio student Koki Igarashi (Faculty of Letters, German Literature major) and his colleagues. Igarashi and his team reportedly read the original works together many times, engaging in discussions to deepen their understanding. This is the best evidence that Mantaro's literary spirit is being transmitted to current Keio students. It will undoubtedly be a program worthy of commemorating Mantaro, who was active in so many diverse fields.

The special exhibition "Mantaro Kubota: A Man of Letters Who Regretted the Era and Was Loved by the Era" is being held from November 28 to December 23 in the 1st-floor exhibition room of the Mita Media Center. While Keio has held two Kubota exhibitions in the past, this one is outstanding in terms of the number of items and its comprehensiveness. Including manuscripts and personal effects from the Mita Media Center collection, performance scripts and photos from the Bungakuza theater company founded by Mantaro, and various related photos borrowed from the Museum of Modern Japanese Literature, the exhibition introduces Mantaro's life and literary journey in an easy-to-understand way. The most eye-catching feature of this exhibition is the life-sized illustration of Mantaro standing at the entrance of the exhibition room on the first floor of the Mita Media Center. Mantaro is smiling and beckoning to library users. This was provided by Ikuko Otaka, an illustrator and enthusiastic fan of Mantaro's haiku. Various warm and gentle illustrations of Mantaro by Ms. Otaka are displayed throughout the exhibition and have been very well received.

I am truly happy and honored to have been able to participate in this project. During the preparation, I re-read Mantaro's literature and traced his life. As preparations progressed, the figure of Mantaro in my heart became increasingly large and familiar. The life-sized illustration of Mantaro is unexpectedly small, but the legacy left to Keio is massive. We must ensure that his spirit is firmly inherited.