MISHIMA, Yukio

Prolific author – novelist, play right and poet, inspired by the ideals of the imperial Shinto past. He criticised the terms of the political settlement following the end of WW2, and instead sought to re-establish the Samurai Bushido as models to be imitated. He excelled in the martial arts of karate and kendo and he committed ritual suicide to magnify his protest against what he saw as the contemporary government’s ‘sell-out’ of its heritage. Outside Japan, his writings have been especially popular in Italy.             

Life

• A brief biography of Mishima
• Illustrated biography of Mishima
• Review of a film about Mishima

Writings

• Summaries of some of his novels

Video

Interview with Yukio Mishima (10 mins)