Description
Book SynopsisThe Jesuits were a major source of European information on Japan from the late 16th to early 17th century. Not only were they active missionaries but they also produced linguistic, religious and cultural tracts, regional chronicles, as well as hundreds of Latin plays written in imitation of classical Greco-Roman theatre but set in Japan. An intriguing yet underexplored segment of Jesuit school theatre is that which stages non-classical, non-Western subjects such as Japan, and this volume is the first to present Latin texts of two of these plays alongside full English translations, commentaries and an extensive introduction. The plays in question -
Martyrs of Japan and
Victor the Japanese - were performed in Koblenz and Munich, in 1625 and 1665 respectively, and are collated from original 17th-century manuscripts for this edition. They were based on specific events which took place in Japan in 1597 and 1613, and their main characters are historically attested Japanese Cat
Trade ReviewIn this groundbreaking study of Jesuit theatre in seventeenth-century Germany, the author provides a critical study of two Latin plays performed at the Jesuit colleges in Koblenz (
Japanese Martyrs, 1625) and Munich (
Victor the Japanese, 1665) respectively. Both dramas reflect the influence of the Jesuit mission in Japan on the European imagination -- M. Antoni J. Ucerler S.J., Director of the Ricci Institute for Chinese-Western Cultural History, Boston College, USA
Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgements Introduction 1: Japan on the Neo-Latin Jesuit Stage 2:
Japanese Martyrs (Koblenz 1625) 3:
Victor the Japanese (Munich 1665) Latin Text and Translation Commentary Bibliography Index
