Spring 2007
Silence by Shusaku Endo
Java City
Wednesday, March 14
4 p.m.-6 p.m.

Shusaku Endo was a renowned 20th Century Japanese author who wrote from the unique perspective of being both Japanese and Catholic. Together with Junnosuke Yoshiyuki, Shotaro Yasuoka, Junzo Shono, Hiroyuki Agawa, Ayako Sono, and Shumon Miura, Endo is categorized as one of the "Third Generation", the third major group of writers who appeared after the Second World War.

Born in Tokyo in 1923, his parents moved shortly after to live in Japanese-occupied Manchuria. When his parents divorced in 1933, Endo and his mother returned to Japan to live in his mother's hometown of Kobe. His mother converted when he was a small child, and raised the young Endo as a Catholic. Endo was baptized in 1935 at the age of 12, and given the Christian name of Paul.

His books reflect many of his childhood experiences. These include the stigma of being an outsider, the experience of being a foreigner, the life of a hospital patient, and the struggle with tuberculosis. However, his books mainly deal with the moral fabric of life. His Catholic faith can be seen at some level in all of his books, and it is often a central feature. Most of his characters struggle with complex moral dilemmas, and their choices often produce mixed or tragic results.