Illuminating the Language of Identity: Nationalism and Interiority in Natsume Sōseki’s Kokoro

Abstract

            Natsume Sōseki’s Kokoro (心) is one of the most influential pieces of Japanese literature from the 20^th century. Framed by the end of the Meiji era and the beginning of the Taisho era, this canonized work has often been analyzed for its themes produced by a tumultuous, reforming Japanese society. Building off this scholarship, I utilize Anderson’s and Hobsbawm’s approaches to nationalism and invented tradition to inform my own analysis of national affectation on the individual at the turn of the century. Although the topic of nationalism in Meiji Japan is a common theme in scholarship, this paper examines it with the use of linguistic analysis predicated on national language policy of the late 19^th century. The government’s treatment of language is one disseminated form of nationalist sentiment that is invaluable to highlight in the cultural works of the time. The emergence of the I-novel (watakushi shōsetsu or shishōsetsu)–a genre consisting of confessional, realist works written in the first-person narrative style–during this period is evidence of linguistic style being used to build upon the discourse of identity. Kokoro is unique due to its liminal status as such, as Sōseki utilizes similar aspects to those inherent in the genre. The dichotomous nature of his techniques of obfuscation and revelation reveal a subtextual layer present in the novel’s themes of identity. Furthermore, his inclusion of pivotal, historical events as a backdrop for the daily lives and interactions of his fictitious characters conflates national affairs with that of the individual. Building upon this scholarship of Meiji nationalism and identity, this paper begins with a historical background on the standardization and nationalization of the Japanese language, the genbun itchi movement, the nature of native Japanese literature, and the effect of foreign, translated literature at the time. Utilizing this context, I discuss the shishōsetsu genre in relation to Kokoro, detailing how it flouts and follows its conventions. Furthermore, due to the concurrent emergence of this literary genre with the formation of the Japanese nation-state, I utilize scholarship on the era to contextualize the mise-en-scène of the novel. Through this, I discuss the dichotomy between individual and national identity, as presented by Sōseki. By highlighting the structure in my analysis of Kokoro’s nationalistic themes, I exemplify the importance of analyzing the literal language used to inform the reader’s understanding of its complicated characters.