Gregory Khezrnejat, whose short story “Kaikonchi” is up for the literary award, sees writing in Japanese as a minor rebellion against English's assumed dominance in global culture.

“Her winning the Akutagawa Prize has made a lot of people suddenly see the invisible barriers,” said Yuki Arai, ... The Voice of Old Japan: Midori Kato, 85, ...

AKUTAGAWA is a stage portrait of Ryunosuke Akutagawa, father of the modern Japanese short novel and best known for In a Grove, the basis of Akira Kurosawa's landmark 1950 film Rashomon.

Written by Akutagawa Ryunosuke, one of Japan's leading modern literary authors. His works question human foolishness and the meaning of life and have been read by many people over the decades.