was a Japanese author known for his unique style and self-introspective themes. His major works include "The Moon Over the Mountain" and "Light, Wind and Dreams" with the former being published in many Japanese textbooks.
During his life he wrote about 20 works, including unfinished works, typically inspired by Classical Chinese stories and his own life experiences. Nakajima's childhood was filled with turbulent times with his parents divorcing two years into their marriage and less than one year since Nakajima was born. The infant Nakajima was then sent to Saitama Prefecture to be raised by his grandparents. Unfortunately, one year after he was sent to his grandparents, his grandfather died.
In February 1914, he was sent to his father who at this point had remarried. His father worked a teaching job and often transferred to many different locations. In 1918 he moved to Seoul and later on in 1920 he also moved to Manchuria for his father's teaching job. Because of this teaching job, the young Nakajima often transferred schools which led to a feeling of isolation. Despite his frequent transfers however, Nakajima was known for being an intelligent student who consistently received good grades. He wrote his graduation thesis on the topic of Aestheticism. The thesis, titled "The Study of Aestheticism" traces the influences of modern Japanese literature to Edgar Allan Poe, Oscar Wilde and Charles Baudelaire. The thesis then also proceeds to analyze the works of Tanizaki Jun'ichirō, Mori Ōgai, Ueda Bin and Nagai Kafū. After graduating, he married Taka Hashimoto. The couple had three children: Takeshi, Masako (died three days after birth), and Kaku.
Literary career
His literary career started very early into his life. After graduating from his school in Seoul, he joined the Tokyo First Higher School's (第一高等学校) literary program where he began writing fiction. In 1927 he began publishing in the school's literary magazine and by 1929 he became a member of the editorial staff. During this period he began showing his signature style of setting his stories in exotic locations such as China or Korea along with recurring themes of self-doubt, questions on the meaning of life, isolation, fate and the nature of human existence. Some of his later works also display a sense of irony and satire. The story was first published in the February 1942 issue of Bungakukai.
"The Moon Over the Mountain" tells the story of Yuan Can who recently had heard about a man-eating tiger roaming around his area. One day he encountered the tiger and the tiger started speaking to him. Yuan Can discovered that the tiger was his friend named Li Zheng (李徴), Li Zheng was smart and could qualify as a government official but his true ambition was to be a poet. Unfortunately, he failed and started working as a government official. While traveling for official business one day, Li Zheng claims that he went insane and transformed into a tiger. Li Zheng claims that this was because of the "cowardly pride" and "arrogant shame" he harbored within him which caused him to transform into the tiger. Li Zheng laments that as a tiger he could no longer become a famous poet, the two then parted ways.