Woman fan Theme "Women's Happiness," interview with the three-language writing of the Japanese writer new Well 123, listen to her story, you will believe that we have the ability to find their own way out of life.

If you are a reader interested in Japan, the name of new well 123 is certainly not unfamiliar. New Well 123 is a native Japanese, 32 years old began to write Chinese, since the Chinese writing to settle down. She is 56 years old and has published 26 Chinese books.

She has been rich in life, a circle around the Earth, the university during the two years of public tuition to China, wandering Yunnan, northeast, Mongolia and other places, back to Japan as a "Asahi" reporter, after emigration to Canada, study politics and journalism, and began to write in English. He went to Hong Kong in 1994 to serve as the Chinese correspondent for Asia Weekly, and published columns, essays and novels in Taiwan's China Times, the joint newspaper, the free times. I handed my business card to Story Teller, and her eyes lit up, "story teller! What a great job, I'm also a Story Teller! 」

She is currently teaching at Meiji University, is also the mother of two children, her writing in-depth women's experience in the Grand View garden, like a dream of Xue-chai, penetrating the world, sophistication to share her as a daughter, mother and even writers of various discoveries.

Unlike the stereotype of Japanese X-writer Professor X, the new well is a little shy when he smiles at 123, but he is vibrant with words. She changed into our prepared indoor drag, easy to Chinese greetings, such as friends in their own close sense of the entrance.

In the Chinese language world, Taiwanese readers are familiar with her. From the beginning of the 2000 years of the Hazhi of the younger generation, the Chinese works of the new well produce more and faster, and the Chinese writing is also connected with the air, which often makes people wonder whether she is Taiwanese.

However, in the large number of imported Japanese translation of literature in Taiwan, Japanese writers can comfortably use their mother tongue to write, a Japanese in the end why to write in a foreign language path, and written is uninterrupted 24 years?

Chinese writing, let me Be free

The opening of the new well was straightforward, she felt herself out of place in her family and Japanese society. At the age of 19, she met with Chinese at Waseda University, where there were not many people studying Chinese, and Chinese was like a beautiful secret base. With the Chinese and the feelings of mutual sustenance, she described is very similar to love. It is difficult to use mother tongue to speak the idea, entrust in the foreign language, make her feel liberated, also help her to flee mother and native language behind patriarchal cultural oppression.

New from childhood family experience for example, "mother or other people's attitude towards me, and the brother is very different, the mother of my brother is very protective, but I was full of ridicule, as a child thought it is the elder brother long more lovely relationship, and then slowly found that it is not so simple." "Not only in the family, she found that the brother is a man, she is a woman, the whole society is not the same treatment." "To the 20-Year-old University, has been able to say that the full belly of the bitter, do not spit unhappy." 」

She and the students around, but it is difficult to be accepted and understood, "under Japanese culture, the family has complained is unfilial, for a long time even if the heart has a story to say, also cannot say." 」

New wells found that this phenomenon also appeared in Japanese thinking, "the use of Japanese thinking, there will be cultural interference." "She speaks Chinese directly," Thinking in Chinese, things that Japanese can't think of are clearly emerging. 」

Linguistic studies have observed that the first language (the mother tongue) and the second Language (foreign language) exist in different memory libraries. Thinking and writing in Chinese seems to be isolated from daily life, a room to lock the door. When I open this space, no one can come in.
--New Well 123 "Mom is actually the Queen's Poison Apple"

In this regard, she skillfully used the work of British writer Virginia Wul "own room" analogy, "a woman to write, need to have locked after no one can come in space." Chinese is like such a space. Where I was safe to share my life, the fragile parts of my heart. 」

Not just women writers, but maybe a lot of women can appreciate that. There are two children in the new well, it is not easy to find time to write a child on one side, and for her, the child is important and the most creative project,"bring me more study and gift than I give them. "On the other hand, it is difficult to write in Japanese, relatives also understand," take the pen to write, real life will have a lot of interference. Interference is also often from the family we love. 」

I can not help thinking that foreign language writing, may really open up a woman's mind space, from the existing life of the emotional Labor liberation. Not only is liberation, new Wells to supplement, the use of foreign languages to pull out a distance, more objective to deal with their own experience and emotions, comb open a messy knot inside.

"The use of Chinese or English writing is a process of rationalization." "The new well presents a very fresh view.

"Emotions and feelings are dangerous and difficult to control," she said, using sashimi from Japanese cuisine, "My emotions and experiences, like fish with blood on the market, and foreign languages help to think rationally, like chef's cooking tools." After a foreign language thinking to write out the article, is to cook good stab body. 」

The early Waseda School building with no ladies ' room, and the encounter with feminism

She found the raw fish as a puncture tool in the university. In those days, there were few women in the University of Japan. Not to mention that she studied in the School of Economics of Waseda, the department of a female teacher did not, female students accounted for less than 7%.

"Because of this, the entire teaching building has no ladies room, the toilet must run to a small bungalow in the courtyard, dedicated to women's toilet to go on." "New well humorous tone vividly tell the past, I listened to stare big eyes, front of the film" Key minority "the heroine rushed out of the office, through the atrium, the sun or rain, to the park at the other end of the absurd scene of the toilet.

"I am in Chinese class, 50 people inside, I am the only girl." "Not only the peers and teachers, the new well found in the Book of Thinkers, Philosophers, 99% are also men." She said that the past is not too hidden emotions, true temperament, still excited to speak, "class problems are often discussed in the university class, but I often wonder how I can not see the issue of gender, not see the status of women." I speak out, the teachers do not understand, the students are more understand. 」

The department's partners can not understand her language, they find people who understand to say go. The new well begins reading feminist books and participates in related activities. "The event led to the postwar baby boom (note), a generation born in 1946-49," he said. The famous feminist sociologist in Japan is also one of the thousand cranes in Ueno. 」

Also in the new well University, in Ueno Thousand cranes out of the first book: "Sexy girl big research."

Talking about the book, there is still light in the new well. "Sexy Girl" (Sexy Girl) is a word that only appears in men's magazines, but it never occurred to a female scholar to use it in academic interest. Remember one version of the cover design is also bold: a Girl without eyes face, big red lipstick on the tip of the mouth, to show ads commonly used lipstick hint male genital. 」

New well observed in Ueno thousand crane son is very familiar with advertising techniques, but also know in the conservative Japanese society propaganda themselves, "Ueno thousand crane Son to be a scholar, is in the advertising company to work." 」

The gender trend of thought enters the Japanese public view, also has the deep relation with the advertisement. New from his own life time, "Remember my junior High School, 1975, the United Nations convened the first World Women's congress." Affected by the United Nations activities, Japan began to appear some feminist groups. 」

"At that time, Japanese television had a bubble face ad, the girl in the advertisement said:" I am a person (る) "The boy said:" I am the Eater (private food べる) "There is a feminist group, the advertising as a symbol of sexism and representative, to the food company headquarters to protest. Later, a lot of newspapers made a big report, the Japanese began to know the sex discrimination, know that feminism is to change this situation. 」

"Although the general community at the outset is not very receptive and feels too radical, it also feels that what they have said seems to be justified and cannot be completely denied." 」

The process of feminism entering into Japanese mass vision was not appeared in the attitude of ""ism ", but a discourse space. Listen to the new well talk about Japan, I think perhaps feminism is more suitable as a language to understand, in the patriarchal society open the original discussion field does not have space.

In terms of language, it is also better to understand how feminism can coexist in so many different genres. Feminists have different problems and different tools to solve problems, and nature is not a dogma, more similar to the different dialects of the same language.

The bed in the press room, the woman could not lie

After graduating from university, the new well went to China to do exchange students, studying for two years, and returned to the Asahi News service after returning home with the first Chinese result. Her Chinese ability is supposed to be a Chinese correspondent for Asahi journalists. But at that time, the whole Japanese newspaper female reporter Jambi is 1%, the workplace sex discrimination is still very serious, a woman into the big newspaper as a journalist is a gift, but also want to be a Commissioner? The director shook his head and thought she was daring enough to lose common sense.

My supervisor told me on the first day: Never send you to China. "At that time, Asahi, there is no woman to do the precedent of the Commissioner." New was sent away from the power center of Sendai, she touched the nose to go, for six consecutive weeks without a holiday to work, 12 o'clock home at night, at 7 o ' clock in the morning, even the time to wash clothes.

"Sendai News Small division has a bed in the lounge, let the reporter work tired can lie down for a while, but the boss told me, because you are a female reporter, sofa can sit, but the bed in the room can not lie, the best not to go in the room." "The supervisor worried that the men and women shared a bed out of the situation," but for me, boys tired can lie down, but I have no place to rest, must sit straight on the sofa, is very unreasonable things. 」

A long time, she began to be mentally incompetent, several car accidents, and finally determined to quit her job, leaving the Japanese not willing to accept her to study in Canada, to start a new life. But to live in Canada, from a national media reporter, to become a new immigrant in the Americas, life is even harder than in Japan, but also let her understand that the foreign moon is not more round, know the matter, but became her biggest harvest abroad.

For the Japanese, the greatest use of learning English is overcoming the inferiority complex of whites. "She frankly said," can speak English, will go to know each other's content is not particularly powerful, remove unnecessary inferiority, will feel more free. 」

I want something, I have to pursue it myself.

A sense of inferiority will also add to one's unfortunate feelings. The mother of the new well is not higher education, is trapped by the inferiority complex, easy to envy, also feels oneself cannot move.

"I remember particularly clearly, when I was 20 years old, my mother often said to me," I have given you what you want, and no one can give it to me. "I asked her what she wanted, and she never said it. "It made her miserable, and now she has a sympathetic understanding of her mother," she said. "In their time, society gives women too much grievance, in her world, she is Cinderella, she is like asking:" Where is my Prince Charming. "When others bring salvation." 」

At that time, I suddenly understood that the most important thing in life is to satisfy one's own needs, and to think about the freedom he wants. I want to go abroad to read a foreign language, better education, but also to overcome the previous generation of inferiority, or the mother felt very wronged state. I have felt at that time, I do not want Prince Charming, I want something, I go to pursue. 」

Having walked around the world, new wells are facing difficulties or problems, and the Singaporean people who pick up the phone to make friends in Singapore may offer a view that she does not think about; The Canadians have a different view of Canadian friends. Different languages in her brain, also like friends in different countries, tell her that your situation or problems in different cultures, may have different solutions. When you can switch to see your own angle, the road is not only one, the heart is wide.

When the world becomes a part of my mind space, I also become part of the world. No matter where I am, I can settle down.

New Well 123

Originally to escape Japan, to go abroad to study, writing and life, I asked her, in so many different places living, you finally find your own place of refuge?

New open his arms, revealing a cheerful smile, "the world is my refuge." 」

New well 123, like the genetic variant of Japanese culture, has led her to flee to a wider world and communicate with different cultures. Even when I returned to Japan to teach and settle down, Chinese, English, Japanese, and feminism all opened up a broader space in her head, learned different ways of thinking and culture, "when the world became part of my mind space, I became part of the world." No matter where I am, I can settle down. 」