kanagaki robun and journalism
Robun in the field of journalism
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In either late-1873 or early-1874, Robun first joined Yokohama Mainichi.
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He then made his own newspaper, the Kanayomi Shinbun, which is where Takahashi Oden yasha monogatari was later published (1879).
Robun on his status as an author
“…Robun refers to himself not as ‘Robun’ or ‘the author’ (sakusha) but as ‘the reporter’ (kisha)”
Mark Silver, "The Lies and Connivances of an Evil Woman: Early Meiji Realism and 'The Tale of Takahashi Oden the She-Devil.", p.12
What does this mean?
From his well-established connection to news companies and his own definition as a reporter, one can assume that by the publication and circulation of Takahashi Oden yasha monogatari, Kanagaki Robun was known as a journalist and that he had intended for the tale to be received as a news report.
gesaku writing
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The term is “defined in terms of its privileging of artifice and expropriation – of real history, of actual events or persons – over ‘truth’.”
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A more "frivolous writing" of the Edo and early Meiji period.
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Seen simply as entertainment by the educated audience
robun and his gesaku impression
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Robun hybridized traditional gesaku with “creating an aura of authenticity”, embedding some factual evidence as well as specific dates and names (although many were fabricated), which led to the emergence of tabloid journalism.
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He constantly had to “negotiate between his established reputation as an author of entertaining fiction, and his self-reinvention as educator and long arm of the state’s civilizing mission."
Charles Wooley, "Adjusting to the Times: Kanagaki Robun, Gesaku Rhetoric, and the Production of Early Meiji Literature.", p.196
What does this mean?
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It is still possible to speculate that to the less educated public, or the target audience of this type of journalism, the story was seen as a truthful account.
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Since Takahashi Oden yasha monogatari was a report intended for the less educated mass, it is likely that the Robun version of the tale was one of the only forms of journalism that they were able to access.
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Therefore, it can be assumed that Takahashi Oden yasha monogatari was “news” for this audience.
the emergence of teacher-missionaries
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In April of 1872, the newly formed Ministry of Education released three articles of education, which led to writers taking on a teacher-missionary identity through their works
robun's response to this role
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Robun took this role as an educator seriously, taking on this role within his reports.
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Robun had also chosen to publish Takahashi Oden yasha monogatari in a column within the Kanayomi Shinbun, further emphasizing his position as a reporter and educator of current affairs.
more:
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The effect of Robun taking on such an role is discussed further in the section: Beyond Takahashi Oden yasha monogatari
the split of journalism
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In early Meiji Japan, journalism was split in two– the koshinbun and the ōshinbun.
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The Kanayomi Shinbun was a koshinbun company, which focused more on middle- and lower- class readers using a more colloquial style compared to the ōshinbun.
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The koshinbun:
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written in vernacular language
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targeted a less literate, but more populous audience
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The ōshinbun:
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"focused more on political and economic news, and were comparatively more difficult to read."
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Matthew C. Strecher, "Who's Afraid of Takahashi O-Den? 'Poison Woman' Stories and Literary Journalism in Early Meiji Japan." p.28
koshinbun and gesaku
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The koshinbun was similar to gesaku in that “gesaku from the beginning is not for instructing the educated, but rather for guiding the uneducated.”
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Many koshinbun articles were written in the gesaku style, but this caused the articles to be looked down upon as a “non-serious” form of journalism.
Charles Wooley, "Adjusting to the Times: Kanagaki Robun, Gesaku Rhetoric, and the Production of Early Meiji Literature.", p.185
What does this mean?
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Although the koshinbun was a more colloquial style of writing, it was nonetheless a newspaper.
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Journalism and newspapers, in general, were starting to be recognized as an important, valid form of writing.
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Kanagaki Robun partook in this medium, establishing himself as an educator and a reporter, rather than a fictional storyteller.
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Through this process, the importance of Takahashi Oden yasha monogatari as a newspaper article had also been established, which may have led to the resulting perception of Robun’s story becoming the “truth.”