Kosagawa Chito has won the 175th Akutagawa Prize for the novel "Zombie Collector," announced Wednesday in Tokyo [3], [4], [5].
As one of Japan's most prestigious literary awards, the Akutagawa Prize often defines the trajectory of a writer's career and signals shifts in the country's cultural and literary landscape.
The selection committee, appointed by the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Literature, determined that "Zombie Collector" was superior to other nominated works [2]. For Kosagawa, the win follows a period of persistence, as this marks the third time the author has been nominated for the prize [2].
Kosagawa, 36, addressed the evolving nature of creativity and the rise of technology following the announcement [1]. The author spoke about the tension between human writers and artificial intelligence.
"AI may take the jobs of novelists, and we might lose to it," Kosagawa said. "But as long as I feel the desire to create, I believe it is okay to keep creating" [1].
The award was finalized during a selection meeting held within Tokyo on July 15 [3], [5]. The decision recognizes Kosagawa's contribution to contemporary fiction through a narrative that blends genre elements with the literary rigor expected by the prize's board.
“"As long as I feel the desire to create, I believe it is okay to keep creating"”
The selection of a novel titled 'Zombie Collector' for the Akutagawa Prize suggests a continuing trend of the literary establishment embracing genre-bending or speculative fiction. Furthermore, Kosagawa's comments regarding AI reflect a growing anxiety within the global creative class about the displacement of human authorship by generative technologies.
