Shichirō Fukazawa (深沢 七郎, Fukazawa Shichirō, January 29, 1914 – August 18, 1987) was a Japaneseauthor and guitarist whose 1960 short story Fūryū mutan ("Tale of an Elegant Dream") caused a nationwide uproar and led to an attempt by an ultranationalist to assassinate the president of the magazine that published it.[1]
In the fall of 1960, the mainstream monthly magazine Chūō Kōron published his satirical short story Furyū mutan (風流夢譚, “The Tale of an Elegant Dream").[7] In the story, an unnamed protagonist narrates a dream sequence in which leftists take over the Imperial Palace and behead the Emperor and Empress, as well as the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, before an enthusiastic crowd.[7] This story provoked fury in the Imperial Household Agency and among Japanese right-wing ultranationalists.[7][8]
On February 1, 1961, in response to the story, Kazutaka Komori, a seventeen-year-old rightist, broke into the home of Hōji Shimanaka, Chūō Kōron magazine's president, killed his maid and severely wounded his wife.[9][10] Fukazawa received death threats on a daily basis,[9] and after offering a tearful public apology, went into hiding for five years.[11] His promising literary career went into a long hiatus, and although he later returned to writing, he never fully recovered his "rising star" status.[12] In later years, he could be found serving grilled bean cakes (imagawayaki) in a working class Tokyo neighborhood at a stall called "Dream Shop" (Yumeya).[12]
The aftermath of the Shimanaka incident (嶋中事件, Shimanaka jiken) meant that criticism of the Imperial Family, and discussion of the role or existence of the Emperor, became taboo.[10][13]
^"Jap Novelist's Dream Account Raises Furor". Charleston Daily Mail. Charleston, West Virginia: The Daily Gazette Company. Associated Press. 1960-12-01. p. 6. The imperial household agency reacted angrily. There was talk of civil court action... An ultranationalist group in Tokyo, the "Greater Japan Patriotic Party," demanded the magazine issue an apology for printing the story.... Fukazawa... was reported hiding from possible physical attack from rightists.
