The Nobel prize-winning Japanese author Kenzaburō Ōe has passed away at age 88. The writer was a highly influential figure in contemporary Japanese literature whose work was deeply concerned with politics and issues such as nuclear disarmament and anti-authoritarianism. Born in Shikoku in 1935, the author’s early life was significantly impacted by war, which influenced his work as an adult. His landowning family lost much of their property during the war, demonstrating to a young Ōe the powerful effects of conflict. As he grew older, he became more and more critical of the Japanese military and authority figures, such as...