The Japan Foundation has truly supported me, and I will never be able to express my thanks enough for that. If a novel is not translated and printed, it cannot transcend the limits of the language in which it was written. But a translator’s work does not always receive payment corresponding to its importance. Moreover, in countries with circumstances that make the publication of literature difficult, releasing translated literature is itself a massive venture for a publishing company. Therefore, I am grateful for the Japan Foundation’s support.

On top of this, in some countries there is demand for a dialogue with the author once a translated novel has been published. For my part, I am interested in how readers who speak a different language have received my novels. It was also the Japan Foundation that supported me when I traveled for exchange activities with readers and other authors. This was more than just practical support for a trip. The Foundation made arrangements so that I could interact with authors, artists, and students in local areas, and even introduced me to places of great cultural and historic interest. I have striven to return the favor to my readers by incorporating what I learned in these foreign cultures in my works, right up until today—although the term “foreign culture” may not be accurate, because there is not necessarily a distinction between my culture and those of other peoples. All cultures are inherently connected, and I wonder if our role is to make sure that those connections are not severed. The world of today is not in a state where we can be optimistic. It is not uncommon for people to feel a sense of impending crisis where an image of “enemies” is willfully being built up and people’s dissatisfactions are being manipulated toward certain cultures and peoples behind the scenes. In this context, literature must redouble its efforts to continue depicting other people, who may not be as well known, from multiple perspectives.

TAWADA Yoko

(Original text in Japanese)

The Japan Foundation Awards (2018)