Unser Alumnus Prof. Yo Kikuchi und sein neues Werk: Ritou Mujoh

Herr Yo Kikuchi sind vom Fach her Biochemiker – was hat Sie dazu bewegt, ein Buch zu schreiben und worum geht es in Ihrem Roman?/Mr. Yo Kikuchi, by profession, you are a biochemist – what prompted you to write a book, and what is your novel about?
I have listened to my father's experiences since I was a child. Ever since I started remembering, I have realized that this is extremely valuable. When my father was still alive, I told him, ``You should definitely write an autobiography,'' but unfortunately he passed away without writing one.
On the other hand, Japanese university professors do not have a tenure system, so they are forced to retire when they reach an age. The retirement age is 65 or 70, depending on the university. I retired from Waseda University at the age of 70. It's unfortunate, but this may be necessary in the sense that we are handing over the limited number of professor positions to young people.
As an experimental scientist, I can't do good research if I don't have a laboratory. I was planning to take a leisurely trip after retiring, but then the coronavirus pandemic began. I could get nowhere. Writing inside the house was not restricted. That's why I decided to write about his life, which my father didn't write about. It's not an autobiography, and I don't know the details of his life, so I created it as a novel.
I created this work by mixing stories I heard when I was young and historical facts about how the generation of those who experienced World War II lived.
Why did I start doing that? The life of my father, whom I respect, and how he survived the difficult times of war and poverty after the war. The main reason is that I want to preserve it, even in the form of a novel.
Another reason is that my children's generation is not very interested in what ordinary people went through during World War II. I wanted to convey the situation to them as well. The images of common people wandering about in the midst of war. The absurdity of war. We must never go to war again. I wanted to pass this on to future generations.

However, while I was writing, wars broke out in Ukraine and now in Gaza, and I was disappointed. Humans are not smart at all. After all, dictators and terrorists start it.

My father (1911-1987) is from Hachijo-jima (Hachijo-Island), a small island south of Tokyo. Of course, he lived on an impoverished island, and from there he moved to Tokyo with a burning desire to learn. He spent the prewar and wartime years in Tokyo, and after the war, he returned to the island and became a high school teacher. I also grew up on that island. I wanted to write about such a special environment and poor life in the past. My novel also includes that. Also, my father was a very honest man, and even after he became a teacher, he remained faithful and worked hard at education. This novel also includes episodes from that period. If I write any more, it will become a spoiler, so I will stop writing here.

Was haben Sie besonders gemocht am Schreiben, was war eine Herausforderung?/What did you particularly enjoy about writing, and what was a challenge for you?
Overall, once I started writing, I was able to write smoothly, and now that I think about it, I feel like my heavenly Father was making me write.

The difficult part was the creation of fiction. I'm a scientist, so I have never experienced to write something that wasn't true as if it were fact. When creating fiction, there was resistance in my heart.

Was sind Ihrer Meinung nach Ähnlichkeiten oder große Unterschiede zwischen der japanischen und deutschen Kultur?/What, in your opinion, are the similarities or major differences between Japanese and German culture?
I think the similarities are that in both Germany and Japan, there are basically many serious and honest people. For example, Germany's railways are quite punctual in Europe, although Japan's is much more punctual.
The biggest difference is that Germany values a lot of discussion, and being silent is seen as an inferior person who has no opinion. Japanese people are not very assertive. One is always considerable to the feelings of others, and even when one expresses an opposing opinion, one often does so in a roundabout way, although this can sometimes lead to misunderstandings at international conferences.
Japan values group harmony. If there are any differences between Japan and Europe and the United States, it seems that there are various differences based on this point.

Buchinformationen

Dies ist eine Fiktion über das Leben meines Vaters (1911-1987), der in der zweiten Hälfte seines Lebens Gymnasiallehrer war. Ihre Generation hat den Zweiten Weltkrieg erlebt, und ihr Leben war wahrscheinlich schwierig und anders und dramatisch als unseres, daher denke ich, dass dies ein bewegender Roman ist.
Japanische Leser (fast meine Freunde) sagen, dass der Text leicht verständlich ist. Daher denke ich, dass dies ein gutes Buch für Leute ist, die Japanisch lernen.
Ich habe keine konkreten Pläne, aber ich denke darüber nach, es eines Tages ins Englische oder Deutsche zu übersetzen.

Titel: „Ritou Mujoh“ (direkte Übersetzung ist „Insel und Vergänglichkeit“)
Herausgeber: Bungeisha (Shinjuku Tokyo Japan)
Autor: Kei Uyochi (mein Pseudonym) (Ich habe ein Pseudonym verwendet, um es von einer wissenschaftlichen Arbeit zu unterscheiden.)
ISBN 978-4-286-24323-8
(Sie können es bei Amazon kaufen)