Mushakoji Saneatsu

Born May 12, 1885, in Tokyo. Japanese writer.

Mushakoji studied sociology at Tokyo Imperial University. His first work, Wild Field, a collection of poems, short stories, and essays, was published in 1908. He was a founder of the journal Shirakaba (White Birch; 1910–23) and a group of the same name.

Mushakoji was greatly influenced by L. N. Tolstoy. His works reflect his belief in the possibility of human self-perfection and the full development of human spiritual powers. His best-known works include the novellas The Good-natured Soul (1910), Lucky Man (1915), and Friendship (1919) and the plays His Younger Sister (1915) and In Praise of Man (1922). His novella The Teacher of Truth (1950) stands out among his postwar works.