いま石牟礼道子を読むTomorrow, I’ll be participating in a round-table discussion in Kumamoto&nbs

いま石牟礼道子を読むTomorrow, I’ll be participating in a round-table discussion in Kumamoto about the literature of the Kyūshū-based writer Ishimure Michiko 石牟礼道子 (born 1927).  Ishimure made a name for herself as one of the foremost environmentalist writers and activists in Japan in 1969, when she published the first part of the book Paradise in the Sea of Sorrow 『苦界浄土』, which wrote in heart-rending detail about the massive human and environmental damage inflicted upon the Kyushu coastline by the industrial conglomerate Chisso, known for its production of chemicals and fertilizer.  In the 1950s and 1960s, Chisso dumped massive quantities of methyl mercury into the Ariake Sea off Kyūshū, and not surprisingly, the local fishermen in Minamata 水俣 and the surrounding areas developed deformities and began dying horrifying deaths. Chisso denied any involvement in the outbreak of the strange “disease,” and the local and national government hesitated for a few years to get involved, thus leading to massive casualties. In this powerful book about the horrors unfolding in her own hometown of Minamata, Ishimure documents the human costs of the disaster, the ways that the “disease” disproportionally struck the poor, and the intricate mechanisms by which capitalism deforms local communities. Since writing that explosively powerful book, Ishimure has continued to write novels and poetry about environmental themes, but never has her literature been more relevant than today, when environmental degradation and the abusive excesses of capitalist production are happening on a broader scale than ever.  A complete selection of her works was published in 18 volumes by Fujiwara Shoten, but even since the release of these “complete works,” she has published several more volumes of interviews and writing. In fact, just this week, Shichōsha 思潮社 is publishing a collection of her poetry entitled The Grassy Villages of My Ancestors『祖さまの草の邑』.  Currently, Ishimure is 87 years old.There will be four of us talking about Ishimure’s work tomorrow at the Kumamoto City Museum of Modern Art: the philosopher/critic Watanabe Kyōji 渡辺京二, the California- and Kumamoto-based poet Itō Hiromi 伊藤比呂美, the critic Taniguchi Kinue 谷口絹枝, and me, a simple admirer of her work, Jeffrey Angles.「祈るべき天と思えど天の病む」（道子）日本が、世界が、石牟礼文学を読みたがっている。そんな時代にわたしたちは生きています。熊本から発信します。【出演】渡辺京二、伊藤比呂美、谷口絹枝、ジェフリー・アングルス定員：100名、予約：1,000円／当日：1,500円お問い合わせ・ご予約：kumamotoband@gmail.com -- source link

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