Fiction and fictionality in Japanese culture: shishōsetsu (i-novel) and “otaku” culture
Fiction and fictionality in Japanese culture: shishōsetsu (i-novel) and “otaku” culture

Summary/Abstract: Fiction and fictionality—their features and uses—can provide numerous insights into a culture. The issues they raise also offer a fertile ground for comparative studies. In the case of Japanese culture, the shishōsetsu (Inovel), often considered the representative genre of modern Japanese literature, uses a special type of fictionality, which is one of its definitory features. Oversimplifying the facts, we could say that it stands at the intersection of the study of Japanese culture and theory of fiction. In Japan, only few thinkers have analyzed the shishōsetsu from this standpoint; for example, Itō Sei and Maruyama Masao, soon after the end of the Second World War, pointed out the unique type of fictionality present in the shishōsetsu, and connected it to a wider argument about the Japanese cultural background and mentality. This talk introduces the ideas of Itō and Maruyama, and attempts to reconsider the theoretical implications of this “Japanese-style fiction” from a present-day perspective. Another topic I tackle is the so-called “otaku culture”, especially the production and consumption of narratives it involves, often discussed in terms of “narrative consumption”, nijisōsaku (derivative work), etc. The phenomenon is not limited to literature, encompassing many subculture genres: manga, anime, video games, etc. The “otaku culture” in this sense, when we consider it from the point of view of fictionality, seems to contrast strangely with the shishōsetsu: while the latter is a quasi-autobiographical genre, recounting the author’s everyday experiences, the former is characterized by a sort of panfictionalism, a key concept of “postmodern” culture. Nevertheless, both are presumed to be Japanese. How can we explain this? That is the question I address in concluding my talk.

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