『よしの冊子』からみる江戸の読者と黄表紙 ― 武士戯作者の引退の背景を探る

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between the main text of Ōmu gaeshi bunbu no futamichi (1789) and other historical materials from the Edo period, such as Yoshi no sōshi, focusing on several scenes. Harumachi’s kibyōshi has been described in previous scholarship as a work that has led to the author’s death because of its satirical depiction of the Kansei reforms and Matsudaira Sadanobu. This view, that kibyōshi were banned because of their satirical elements, has remained unchanged from the Meiji period to the present. The Edo period, however, had a different view of satire. The shift in evaluation is due to the changing social role of kibyōshi during the Meiji period. By re-examining source materials from the perspective of Edo period readers, rather than later generations, we can reveal how kibyōshi were read and understood at that time. Through the examples presented in this paper, we make clear that kibyōshi’s topicality did not mean more than a theme that began and ended in the same year for Edo readers. Furthermore, this paper aims to explore alternative reasons for the retreat of samurai writers, rather than simply attributing it to the political constraints imposed by the stylistic elements and themes of kibyōshi, as has been the prevailing view.