村上春樹小説: 地名小風波

Recently the Mainichi News on-line reported the following:

中頓別:村上春樹氏小説、町議が「終息宣言」

毎日新聞　2014年02月19日　21時04分（最終更新　02月20日　08時36分）

　作家の村上春樹氏の短編小説にある北海道中頓別（なかとんべつ）町に関する表現が「屈辱的」などとして町議６人が抗議した問題で、共同代表の宮崎泰宗（やすひろ）町議（３０）は１９日、発行元の文芸春秋から質問状への回答があったことを明らかにし、「迅速かつ誠意ある対応をいただいた」との「終息宣言」を自身のブログで公表した。

　小説は月刊誌「文芸春秋」の昨年１２月号に掲載され、たばこのポイ捨てが「たぶん中頓別町ではみんなが普通にやっていることなのだろう」と表現された。村上氏は今月７日、単行本にする際に町名を変更する意向を発表した。文春も「作者の表現を尊重し支持します」とコメントした。

　町議らには文春から１０日付で質問状への回答が郵送で届き、この見解と同じ内容だった。宮崎町議らは出版社あてに返信を書き、村上氏に「ぜひ一度町に足を運んでいただけたら幸いです」と記したという。

　宮崎町議は「町名変更は作家が判断されることで、可否を言うところではない。こちらが求めたことでもない」とし、「たばこのポイ捨てを『普通』にするような町ではないと作家にご理解いただいたことで十分です」と話している。【伊藤直孝】

(試譯文)

     About the incident that six members of a town hall assembly had made a protest against "being humiliated" etc. regarding how the Hokkaido’s Nakatonbetsu town was described in the short novel written by Mr. Haruki Murakami the writer, Miyazaki Yashuhiro, being a member of the town hall assembly (30) and the joint representative, disclosed clearly on the 19th in his own blog that a reply was received from Bungeishunju the publishing agency, and that a "case closed announcement" was made because “there was a quick and sincere response".

     The novel was published by a monthly magazine the "Bungeishunju" in last year’s December issue. Inside, tobacco littering was mentioned by saying that "in Nakatonbetsu-city, everybody is doing this regularly". Mr. Murakami announced on the 7th of this month his intention to change the name of the town when the single volume story book was published. Bungeishunju also commented that "the author's expression is respected and supported".

     Regarding the protests, a reply from the Bungeishunju reached members of the town hall assembly by mail on the 10th and the contents were same as the views mentioned above. Members of the Miyazaki town assembly had written a reply to the publishing company with a note: please told Mr. Murakami "by all means visit our town once, it would be our pleasure".

     The members of the Miyazaki town hall assembly commented that “to rename the town is the writer’s judgment, there is no comments on the renaming and that we have made no demands, either”. It was also said that "what is suffice is that the writer understands that this town has not made tobacco littering into something "common".

[Naotaka Ito]

I do not understand why these town hall assembly members took such a serious view about a place-name in a story which is a kind of literature and not news reporting. I think Mr. Murakami’s response to this incident is appropriate.