Faculty Member
Eleanor started following the work of Yujitsu OMORI, Aichi Prefectural University, British & American Studies.
Eleanor added themselves to the department British & American Studies.
Eleanor started following the work of Aidan Hehir, University of Westminster, Department of Politics and International Relations.
- Area Studies
- British History
- Cultural History
- Cultural Studies
- Diplomatic History
- Globalization
- History
- History (Archaeology)
- History of Japan
- Humanities
- International Relations
- International Studies
- Japanese Language And Culture
- Japanese Linguistics
- Japanese Literature
- Japanese Studies
- Languages and Linguistics
- Maritime History
- Modern History
- Nineteenth Century Studies
- Political Science
- Social Sciences
- Translation Studies
Papers
The Language of Exploration: Poetic Musings of Nakai Hiromu, a Bakumatsu/Meiji Period Globe Trotter - An Annotated Poetry Translation with Content Analysis
Published in the Journal of the Research Institute for World Languages, Osaka University No. 6, September 2011 pp. 57-83
This paper provides an English translation of Chinese poetry written by Nakai Hiromu (1838-1894) on his first journey abroad in 1866-67. Nakai was sent to Britain to examine the conditions of the West. In his lifetime, he became a well known author of Chinese poetry. Known for his wordsmith skills, he is credited with naming the Rokumeikan building, sadly now only a flamboyant symbol of the Japanese failure to renegotiate the so-called Unequal Treaties signed by Japan with Western powers. He is also credited with coining the word, bounenkai, or end-of-year-party, celebrated at the end of the year by many a Japanese "salary man", student and other members of modern Japanese society.
The poems translated herein are a collection of twenty-eight, all of which were published in Nakai's first account of travel abroad, which this author has translated as, A Trael Sketch of the West - A New Account of Crossing the Seas. As the title suggests, the body of the text is taken up with a day-by-day account of the sea journey to Britain. The journey took approximately two months, during which time, Nakai chose to while away the many tedious hours aboard ship with poetry and journal writing. This paper will examine these poetic musings of Nakai, a Japanese man travelling to the Western world at a time when few of his compatriots had made the journey. In many ways therefore, he was a pioneer, exploring the Western world on behalf of his nation. Unskilled in any Western languages such as English, his Chinese poetry is very telling of the feelings he experienced as such a pioneer. The poetry is therefore very relevant for gaining an understanding into the mind of the Japanese people during the Restoration years. It allows us to see how the infiltration of the West to Japan affected the Japanese people.
Nakai Hiromu (1838-94): A Forgotten Hero of Anglo-Japanese Relations
In Hugh Cortazzi (ed.), Britain & Japan Biographical Portraits Volume VII (Global Oriental, 2010) pp. 33-43
Nakai Hiromu - Unsung Hero of Anglo-Japanese Relations
Published in "Social Systems" No.10. University of Kyoto Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies (2007)
Mutual Perceptions Within Anglo-Japanese Relations: An Historical Overview
Published in "Social Systems" No. 11. University of Kyoto Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies (2008)