Date of Award
2019
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelors
Department
Humanities
First Advisor
Lopez Zafra, Manuel
Area of Concentration
Religion
Abstract
The focus of this thesis is the Japanese Catholic author Shusaku Endo, and his influence on the Japanese Christian community. Endo struggled with fitting in to the Japanese community as a Christian, as well as having difficulty being accepted into the Christian community as a Japanese person. His struggles with finding acceptance are present in his novels, and result in his works having a prominent Christian influence. Through analyzing his novels Silence and Scandal, I argue that his works have successfully brought awareness to the Japanese Christian community. My first chapter gives an overview of Shusaku Endo’s life, as well as an introduction to the history of Christianity in Japan. My second chapter focuses on Silence, a historical fiction novel about a Jesuit priest who travels to Japan. My third chapter is on his novel Scandal, which is about a Japanese Christian author who has a doppelganger ruining his pristine reputation. In my second and third chapter, I point out some of the different Christian and autobiographical aspects of his work, that are important because they bring awareness to the Japanese Christian perspective. In my conclusion, I summarize my findings that his novels are important because they start a conversation about Japanese Christianity.
Recommended Citation
Richardson, Carly, "SHUSAKU ENDO: DEMONSTRATING THE WHOLENESS OF THE CHRISTIAN EXPERIENCE IN JAPAN THROUGH SILENCE AND SCANDAL" (2019). Theses & ETDs. 5788.
https://digitalcommons.ncf.edu/theses_etds/5788