An essay published more than 70 years ago by a Japanese military police officer convicted over the extrajudicial killings of anarchists in 1923 expressed admiration for the prominent female writer Ichiyo Higuchi, according to the literary critic who recently found it in a rare publication.
The essay by Masahiko Amakasu, rediscovered by Masaru Nishida, will be reprinted in the magazine Subaru in its Wednesday issue along with commentary by Nishida.
He said the find offers a rare chance to study "the relationship between literature and fascism in Japan."