Today is the death anniversary of Natsume Soseki (夏目漱石: Feb. 9, 1867-Dec. 9, 1916). He is one of the most famous novelists at the Meiji era (明治時代:1868-1912). His well-known novels are Kokoro (こころ,1914), Botchan (坊ちゃん,1906), I Am a Cat (我輩は猫である: wagahai wa neko de aru, 1905) and his unfinished work Light and Darkness (明暗: mei an, 1916). They are translated into English therefore you must have read them.
Soseki is his pen name which is the similitude of sour grapes or strong character. His real name is Natsume Kinnosuke (夏目金之助). He was also a scholar of British literature and actually studied in UK from 1901 to 1903. However his life in UK seems miserable. After returning to Japan, he replaced Koizumi Yakumo (小泉八雲) at the First Higher School and later he became a professor of English literature at Tokyo Imperial University.
His portrait appeared on the front of the Japanese 1,000 yen note from 1984 until 2004, therefore if you have visited Japan before, you may have seen them.
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