Yone Noguchi

Biography

Yone Noguchi (or Yonejirō Noguchi) was an influential English and Japanese writer. He was born on December 8, 1875 near Nagoya Japan. He was the first Japanese-born writer to publish poetry in English.

He attended Keio University in Tokyo where he became acquainted with literature. He left the school before he graduated and moved to San Francisco in 1893 where he worked for a Japanese exile newspaper. The paper focused on the Freedom and People’s Rights Movement. He continued his studies at a preparatory school for Stanford University and worked for a time as a journalist. He decided to dedicate himself to poetry, his first pieces published in The Lark magazine. Though he would primarily publish poetry, Noguchi dabbled in prose and published a few novels. His most popular piece was a collection of poetry called The Pilgrimage.

After a brief time in New York, Noguchi traveled to England where he continued to self-publish his poetry. His success in London brought him into association with other leading Literary Figures of the time such as William Butler Yeats, Thomas Hardy. He also became friends with many American writers.

With the Russo-Japanese War beginning in 1904, Noguchi’s writings on Japanese culture and traditions became increasingly popular as a global audience sought to become more better acquainted with Japan. It is in this time that many stories such as his narration on “Daibutsu” would come to be.

Noguchi eventually returned to Japan where he worked as an English Professor and he continued to publish mostly in English. He continued correspondence with the English Literary world as a translator and interpreter for Japanese culture. While Western culture would long appreciate his work and contributions, his work fell into disfavor towards the end of his career, especially in Japan where few critics would ever smile positively on his poetry.

Noguchi became heavily involved in political literature, writing as an advocate for the Japanese cause in the Second World War. His home in Tokyo was destroyed in an American bomb strike. He eventually died of stomach cancer on July 13, 1947.