Celebrity File Japan by Lint


英文		重要語句
■ When most people think of manga (Japanese comics) artists they tend to think that men dominate the field. Well, they do, but a female manga artist by the name of Riyoko Ikeda has made tremendous inroads into this field. She also bettered the men by being the first to have a Japanese manga translated into English for the North American market.		dominate …を支配する make inroads into ... …に食い込む better …をしのぐ
■■ This happened way back in 1983 and the manga in question was a translation of Bersaiyu no Bara (The Rose of Versailles)―her most famous work. Ikeda specializes in writing what Westerners might say pattern themselves after those Classic Comics or Classics Illustrated of the '50s (i.e., Ivanhoe, King Arthur, etc.). She, though, takes those types of historical time periods and uses them as backdrops for her stories mixing in fictitious characters with real ones.		way back はるか昔の specialize in ... …を専門に扱う pattern ... after ～ …に基づいて～を作る i.e. すなわち…である a backdrop for ... …の背景 fictitious 架空の
■■■ How this quiet young woman came to be a manga artist is even more interesting than her way of mixing fiction with non-fiction. Born in 1947 in Osaka to a very traditional family, her father had agreed to pay only for her first year at college. With four boys in her family, this seemed reasonable at the time given women from traditional families were expected to marry while in, or soon after, college.		given …を考えると while in college 大学在学中に
■■■■ Ikeda had other ideas and wanted to continue with her education past that first year. In 1967, she published her first manga in Kashihonya magazine. Then, at 21, in her third year at college, The Rose of Versailles was serialized in the weekly magazine, Margaret. After that, it came out in the more traditional Japanese manga form in a massive 11-paperback book set.		past …を過ぎて serialize …を連載する come out 出版される
■■■■■ It was such a success, she followed up this fictionalized tale centering on Marie Antoinette with others in the same vein. Of those, the most successful was Orfeusu no Mado (Orpheus's Window), which is set during the Russian Revolution. Even though she loves this historical genre, she has set some of her manga in the modern world such as Oniisama E... (To My Brother ...).		follow up ... …〈話〉を追っていく center on ... …を中心にした vein スタイル genre ジャンル
■■■■■■ Her storytelling is not the only reason she is considered a pioneer. Another aspect of her pioneering style is her drawings. Anyone who has seen any Japanese anime will recognize it―the characters are usually tall, with pointy upturned noses and long flowing hair. They tend to have an androgynous look and, as Ikeda’s style emerged in the '70s, that should come as no surprise.		pointy 先のとがった upturned 上向きの flowing 緩やかに垂れている androgynous 両性具有の emerge 突然現れる
■■■■■■■ Also, given that education played an important role in her life, she returned to school at age 47 to study singing. She is now an accomplished vocalist and dramatist. This multi-talented artist even performs a few times a month in concert. Ikeda claims she has retired from the manga world, but she really has never left it as evidenced by an operatic adaptation of The Rose of Versailles for which she is now writing the lyrics. This masterpiece had already been performed onstage back in the '70s by a Takarazuka troupe, but this time she wants to be the one directing things.		dramatist 劇作家 operatic オペラ風の adaptation 脚色 lyrics 歌詞 masterpiece 傑作 troupe 劇団
■■■■■■■■ Being at the forefront of other artistic ventures will always be her calling. Manga, though, will never fully disappear from her life, as no matter what other fields she tackles, she will always be known as the "Mother of Manga."		forefront 最前線 calling 天職 no matter what ... どんなに…しても

－written by Brian Maitland

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