This book argues that underneath the authorial insignia of
Higuchi Ichiyō lies a creative dialogue with the literary ancestors. Likewise, my book is unequivocally the result of a creative dialogue with many people, and it seems somewhat
disingenuous for my name alone to appear on the cover. It
is with great pleasure, then, that I acknowledge the others
who contributed to its development. I owe my largest intellectual debt to Ken K. Ito of the University of Michigan. His
contributions run the gamut from his willingness to engage
in a patient, exacting critique of my work at every stage of
its development, to the model of excellence in scholarship that
he himself provides. Put in the simplest terms, he taught me
how to read modern Japanese literature. I spent nearly a year
and a half researching this project under the skillful guidance
of Komori Yōichi of the University of Tokyo, whose vast
erudition and intellectual generosity are unparalleled. From
him, I learned that the world of Meiji Japan lies not behind
the words on the page, but in those words.