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通俗文学 (つうぞくぶんがく) Japanese meaning | Kotomora
Meanings 1
noun
popular literature ; popular writing
Refers to a genre or school of writing aimed at a general audience, often contrasted with pure or highbrow literature. The term can be used historically or in literary criticism.
せつ
は
通つう
俗ぞく
文ぶん
学がく
の
代だい
表ひょう
作さく
だ
。
This novel is a representative work of popular literature.
Kanji 通 traffic, pass through, avenue 俗 vulgar, customs, manners 文 sentence, literature, style 学 study, learning, science Similar words 大たい 衆しゅう 文ぶん 学がく 大衆文学 also means popular literature but often emphasizes mass appeal and entertainment, while 通俗文学 can carry a slightly more academic or historical nuance, sometimes implying a lower literary status compared to pure literature.
純じゅん 文ぶん 学がく 純文学 is pure or highbrow literature, the opposite of 通俗文学 in literary classification.
Etymology Compound of 通俗 (popular, common) and 文学 (literature). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the term has been used since the Meiji era to distinguish popular writing from elite literary forms.