Fifty Sounds.
London: Fitzcarraldo Editions, 2021.
New York: Liveright Publishing, 2022.
Book Information : Publisher UK; Google Books; Amazon.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author Information :
- Polly Barton (b. 1984), Wikipedia.
- Polly Barton, The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities (TORCH).
- Polly Barton, Porn: An Oral History, London: Fitzcarraldo Editions, 2023.
[Publisher; Google Books; Amazon.com.]
- Tomoka Shibasaki, Spring Garden, Translated by Polly Barton, London: Pushkin Press, 2017, 2024.
[Publisher; Google Books; Amazon.com.] - Nao-cola Yamazaki, Friendship for Grown-Ups, Translated by Polly Barton, Norwich, UK: Strangers Press, 2017.
[Publisher; Amazon.com.] - Misumi Kubo, Mikumari, Translated by Polly Barton, Norwich, UK: Strangers Press, 2017.
[Publisher; Google Books; Amazon.com.] - Aoko Matsuda, Where the Wild Ladies Are, Translated by Polly Barton, London: Tilted Axis Press, 2020; New York: Soft Skull Press, 2020.
[Publisher; Google Books; Amazon.com.] - Kikuko Tsumura, There's No Such Thing as an Easy Job, Translated by Polly Barton, London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2020.
[Publisher; Google Books; Amazon.com.] - Misumi Kubo, So We Look to the Sky, Translated by Polly Barton, New York: Arcade (Simon & Schuster), 2021.
[Google Books; Amazon.com.] - Mieko Kanai, Mild Vertigo, Translated by Polly Barton, New York: New Directions, 2023.
[Publisher; Google Books; Amazon.com.] - Asako Yuzuki, Butter, Translated by Polly Barton, London: 4th Estate (HarperCollins Publishers), 2024; New York: Ecco (HarperCollins Publishers), 2024.
[Publisher; Google Books; Amazon.com.]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wikipedia Articles :
- Sado Island, Japan.
- Japanese language.
- Onomatopoeia.
- Japanese sound symbolism.
- Reduplication.
- Ideophone.
- Mimesis. ~~~~~
- Culture of Japan.
- Japanese nationalism.
- Ethnic nationalism in Japan.
- Nihonjinron, "literary work that focuses on issues of Japanese national and cultural identity."
- Religion in Japan.
- Edo neo-Confucianism.
- Buddhism in Japan. ~~~~~
- Western culture.
- Feminism.
- Feminism in the United Kingdom.
- Women in Japan.
- Feminism in Japan.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A young British woman goes to Japan, learns Japanese, and, after years of studying the Japanese language, works as a professional translator. Through the device of essays about distinctive onomatopoetic Japanese expressions [see Onomatopoeia and Japanese sound symbolism] she tells the story of her life in Japan. Some of the onomatopoetic expressions are presented in a tone of neutral reportage about amusing or quirky curiosities of Japanese culture; and some arise in situations of cultural misunderstandings that inevitably occur to any foreigner in a foreign land; but many of the onomatopoetic expressions arise from deeply personal and highly charged experiences in the author's life in Japan. So, while the book has the appearance of focusing on a narrow aspect of the Japanese language, the book is mainly a very personal memoir.
In the penultimate essay she confesses :
"For a long time, and particularly of late, it has worried me that I don't love Japan in the way other people around me do; that all I really like is the language" (page 339).
After 10 to 15 years of experience in Japan the author decides to not make Japan her permanent home and returns to the UK, a decision she makes after much psychological distress. She says she had never felt homesick while in Japan and sincerely wanted to assimilate into Japanese society. What was the problem here? Why couldn't Polly and Japan get along?
There is no discussion of the traditional culture of Japan in this book, no discussion of Shinto, absolutely no explicit mention of Confucianism, and Buddhism appears only once in the second to last essay when a romantic partner of the author quotes a most banal Buddhist statement to the author: "The Heart Of The Buddha Is Not Greedy And Does Not Get Angry" (page 331). Barton considers this an intolerable insult.
Who could expect that a national culture has an effect on how individuals think about themselves and how they live their lives?
[Perhaps I should say explicitly what seems so obvious to me: that the author Barton is so thoroughly indoctrinated in the more extreme ideologies of Western liberalism and feminism that she was / is unwilling and incapable of assimilating into Japanese culture and society.]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~