Hiroshi Yosano

(pseudonym, Tekkan). Born Feb. 26, 1873; died Mar. 26, 1935. Japanese poet and critic.

Yosano was a Buddhist priest. In 1894 he published critical articles directed against traditional Japanese poetry. He headed the movement for reform of the tanka (a traditional lyric form). His first collection of poems, East and West, North and South, which are marked by chauvinistic sentiments, appeared in 1896. In 1899, he headed the literary society New Poetry, which included the poets Ishikawa Takuboku, Yosano Akiko, and others who played a great role in the development of contemporary Japanese poetry. Indig-nation at the stagnation in Japan and at social injustice appeared very early in Yosano’s work. In 1909 he became a member of the literary group Subaru. His collection Lyric Poetry (1910) and other works show the influence of European symbolism.