Remarks 4 by Kiyoko

Good afternoon, everyone!
How are you??
Do you remember me? Kiyoko again.

Last time I told you my thoughts on my childbirth, which gave me a great pain. I was an outspoken person. Finally I could find the child was not my enemy, and happiness came my way. But my husband Iwano still had the bad habit of womanizing. Shortly after adopting a secretary, he had an illicit relationship with her. I would forgive them as long as they respected my pride as a legal wife, but they never did it…

After leaving the house, Iwano asked for divorce, but I turned down the request. Not only that, I called for the obligation to live together. A series of the case had begun, and I was drawn into a “war”…Was I too combative? I didn’t think so. I just wanted to establish wives’ position.

See you next.

Remarks 3 by Kiyoko

Good afternoon, young ladies! I’m Kiyoko Endo.

Today I’ll talk to you about my childbirth. While contributing some articles to seito in 1912, I was so relieved to hear that Iwano eventually divorced his wife. Then I decided to have our own baby. The age of 30 was a deadline for childbirth, I thought. Fortunately I gave birth to my first son Tamio in spring 1914. But the experience was extremely awful for me, and I felt nearly dead. I wrote in the magazine Daisan teikoku;

During the delivery, the new life in my body made an all-out effort to get out. So, I almost came close to death. “A baby. What does it matter?” I shout in my heart. “I can’t endure such pain and danger any more. I want to take it out even after cutting into small pieces. It’s a hateful enemy.”

…What a shocking confession. Many readers felt antipathy toward me. I just said plainly what happened at the time.
But gradually my idea about child had changed.

Remarks 2 by Kiyoko

HI, ladies!

I am Kiyoko Endo.
I think my attempt suicide might have a great impact on the public as a scandal, but originally I was a strong supporter of women’s right. Before the incident, I used to petition the government for revising of the article 5 of the Public Order and Police Law (Chian keisatsu-ho), cooperating with my mentor Utako Imai.

She was a powerful advocate for the movement in Heiminsha. Though I didn’t like socialism, I had admired Imai very much. From 1905 to 1909, I rushed madly around to change the situation, but all petitions were rejected by the Upper House. I was really disappointed, when I lost my love, as I told before…

My life is full of sensational incidents even after that. See you next.

Remarks by Kiyoko

Hi, ladies!!

I am Kiyoko Endo, very pleasure to join you. Going beyond space-time is a fantastic experience for us, isn’t it? All I want you to know is how I could live through my stormy life as a woman.

First of all, I have to talk to you about my first and eternal love. The lover’s name was former colleague Goro Nakano, who worked at Dempo tsushinsha as a political journalist. He already had a wife and a child, and yet felt in love with me when I was 23. A “lover” generally might mean having a sexual relationship even with a married man, but I have long hated such immoral intimacy. I don’t want to be a mistress. So, I told him that I would give my body to him if he divorced his wife. However, he was reluctant to do so, saying his wife hadn’t done anything wrong…

While such an indecisive relationship continued for almost two years, of course without any affairs, I was gradually irritated against him, and finally urged him to commit suicide together, giving him a dagger. Struck with a profound fear, he brought up separation in the end. Losing my all hope, I tried to kill myself by jumping into water at Kouzu, Kanagawa, on 28 July, 1909. But it failed. To make matters worse, next day Niroku shimpo carried the details of the incident, which showed both his and my name….(That was a yellow journalism!)

It was my first love. Bitter memory.