Japanese Fairy Tales
Yei Theodora Ozaki
eBook
(BookRix, Jan. 23, 2020)
This collection of Japanese fairy tales is the outcome of a suggestion made to me indirectly through a friend by Mr. Andrew Lang. They have been translated from the modern version written by Sadanami Sanjin. These stories are not literal translations, and though the Japanese story and all quaint Japanese expressions have been faithfully preserved, they have been told more with the view to interest young readers of the West than the technical student of folk-lore.AboutOzaki:YeiTheodoraOzakiwasanearly20thcenturytranslatorofJapaneseshort storiesandfairytales.Hertranslationswerefairlyliberalbuthavebeen popular,andwerereprintedseveraltimesafterherdeath.Accordingto“A BiographicalSketch”byMrs.HughFraser,includedintheintroductory materialtoWarriorsofoldJapan,andotherstories,Ozakicamefroman unusualbackground.ShewasthedaughterofBaronOzaki,oneofthefirst JapanesementostudyintheWest,andBathiaCatherineMorrison,daughter ofWilliamMorrison,oneoftheirteachers.Herparentsseparatedafterfive yearsofmarriage,andhermotherretainedcustodyoftheirthreedaughters untiltheybecameteenagers.Atthattime,YeiwassenttoliveinJapanwith herfather,whichsheenjoyed.Latersherefusedanarrangedmarriage,lefther father’shouse,andbecameateacherandsecretarytoearnmoney.Overthe years,shetraveledbackandforthbetweenJapanandEurope,asher employmentandfamilydutiestookher,andlivedinplacesasdiverseasItaly andthedraftyupperfloorofaBuddhisttemple.Allthistime,herletterswere frequentlymisdeliveredtotheunrelatedJapanesepoliticianYukioOzaki,and histoher.In1904,theyfinallymet,andsoonmarried.