[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-literary-master-of-tokyo":3,"chapter-literary-master-of-tokyo-literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-262":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Literary Master of Tokyo",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2355111,4607,"Chapter 262: Aestheticism","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-262",262,"\u003Cp>\"Akiwara-sensei, I apologize, but your 'Bamboo Grove' does not meet the requirements of our journal...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto frowned in confusion as he read this rejection letter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was somewhat bewildered, even feeling that the editorial department of *Jewel* at Toei Publishing had \"gone mad.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One had to know that his previous collaboration with its competitor, *Yuno*, had easily led to multiple reprints and explosive sales for their publication!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beyond that, this work of his was also one of the works written by Ryunosuke Akutagawa during his lifetime, and it had even been highly praised by many writers of that era.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thought about it for half a day without coming to any conclusion, so he had Asano Aiko send the manuscript through an acquaintance to *Literature and Travel* at Kejiaoguan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although the circulation of *Literature and Travel* was only 10,000 copies, it was his only choice at the moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, given his relationship with Kejiaoguan, he did not believe his submission would fail this time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But to his surprise, three days later, the editor-in-chief of the *Literature and Travel* editorial department called, saying in an apologetic tone: \"Akiwara-sensei, I apologize, but we cannot publish this manuscript.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why?\" Akiwara Yuto was even more puzzled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We have our own reasons on this side; in any case, we hope you will try other journals.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After apologizing repeatedly, the editor-in-chief hung up the phone in a hurry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto was silent for a while, and could only pick up the phone again to call his only \"acquaintance\" in the traditional literary world, namely Shuichi Toyama.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After informing him of the ins and outs of the matter, Shuichi Toyama provided an explanation: \"Akiwara-sensei, you have likely been boycotted by the traditional literary world.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He paused, then continued to add.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Compared to mystery, the traditional literary world is a very small circle. In this circle, although there are divisions of literary schools, there is basically no obvious infighting like there is in mystery.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Therefore, after you refused to become a disciple of Yoshikawa-sensei, many people in the traditional literary world may have started looking at you through colored glasses, believing that you are not 'one of us'.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing these words, Akiwara Yuto thought of his identity as a mystery writer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Presumably, his current predicament was inseparable from this identity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seems the conflict between pure literature and mystery literature in this world is even greater than he had imagined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Thank you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After expressing his thanks, Akiwara Yuto hung up the phone and began to think about what he should do next.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Originally, his plan was to find a pure literature journal and, through constant submissions, break into this circle to win various pure literature awards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just like some well-known Japanese writers from his past life: debuting by winning the Gunzo New Writers' Award, the Bungei Prize, the Tanizaki Prize, and other major awards, then achieving fame and success by winning the Naoki Prize and the Akutagawa Prize, and finally becoming a candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he did not expect that at the very first step, just like Haruki Murakami, he would be boycotted by the traditional literary world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In Akiwara Yuto's memory, although Haruki Murakami had gained many domestic and foreign fans and won some well-known awards in the 40 years since his debut.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it is undeniable that he had never won the Naoki Prize or the Akutagawa Prize, which best represented the highest level of the Japanese literary scene, and was even repeatedly criticized by authors and critics in the traditional literary world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For example, regarding the work *Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World*, a person named Shusaku Endo criticized it as follows: \"First, the female characters are too similar; second, the story content is too bloated; third, the descriptions of daily life are too long-winded.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his remarks, he even claimed it could not be \"regarded as literature in the true sense.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After his statement, many literary critics also published criticisms one after another, believing that he had betrayed traditional Japanese literature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These successive criticisms made Haruki Murakami very uncomfortable, and he even self-deprecatingly remarked, \"I am an outcast of the Japanese literary world, an ugly duckling that can never turn into a swan.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There are many theories regarding the reason for the boycott.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, one relatively unified opinion is that he read too many foreign mystery works, to the point that his work style was incompatible with traditional Japanese literature, filled with a large amount of magical realism and surrealism.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the \"closed-door\" traditional Japanese literary world, such works were naturally unwelcome.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That said, what should he do?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto frowned and considered it. Should he learn from Haruki Murakami and turn a blind eye to these things? Or go back to writing mystery?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He could not just admit defeat like this!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stood up, paced back and forth twice, and finally made a decision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The current rejection from the traditional literary world was nothing more than his identity as a mystery writer and his refusal of Yuichiro Yoshikawa's invitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, if he could produce a long-form traditional literary work that could be considered a masterpiece, rather than the short stories from before, he would surely be able to make these people take notice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once it was proven that this work could demonstrate that his literary foundation was not inferior to Yuichiro Yoshikawa's, it was estimated that many book critics would change their views, and some might even stand on his side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, what work should he bring out?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto took out paper and pen and began to recall Yuichiro Yoshikawa's identity, which was that of a representative of aestheticism literature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, if he wanted to prove he was not weaker than the other party, he had to bring out a work that could represent aestheticism.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just then, a name popped into his mind—Yasunari Kawabata.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yasunari Kawabata, a \"leading authority\" in the Japanese literary world, whose three works, *Snow Country*, *Thousand Cranes*, and *The Old Capital*, won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1968.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Throughout his creative career, he always adhered to the direction of aestheticism literature, and his \"aesthetics\" followed a path different from that of ordinary people.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>General aesthetic writers believe that the mission of art lies in providing sensory pleasure to humanity, rather than conveying some moral or emotional message.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, they pursue the \"beauty\" of art, believe that \"beauty\" is the essence of art, and advocate that life should imitate art.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Yasunari Kawabata's aestheticism often manifested the beauty found in \"adversity.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was often adept at describing young women at the bottom of society, with content mostly expressing their tragic life experiences and their pursuit of love and art.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By truthfully expressing the contradictions and entanglements in the lives and emotions of the lower classes, he expressed their inner pain and struggle, and expressed deep sympathy and pity for their fates.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, his aestheticism could be said to be a unique work, or a breakthrough in previous Japanese aesthetic literature!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, which piece should he write?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto hesitated for a moment, then suddenly remembered the heavy snow that had fallen last year, and immediately began to write furiously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The train came out of the long tunnel into the snow country. The earth lay white under the night sky. The train pulled up to a signal stop.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A girl stood up from the opposite seat and opened the glass window in front of Shimamura's seat. A rush of cold air swept in. The girl leaned out of the window, calling out as if to someone in the distance...\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1270,"2026-06-21T03:58:02.196Z",1,"Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite","7cc3826d99f9f93916cc56f520a0c9992e5c879905efb9cc94de9ce620df254a","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-263","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-261",334,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fliterary-master-of-tokyo-cover.jpg"]