A Study on the Pictures in Toson Shimazaki’s ?tranger: Focusing on the Machenism of Chevannes’s The Poor Fisherman

As most people knows, Toson Shimazaki committed adultery with his niece（the second daughter of his second brother）, Komako, who helped him with housework after his wife passed away. To escape from confrontations, he left Komako and his children behind, and fled to France along in April 1913. His life abroad ended in April 1916, when Toson went back to Japan, and tried to figure out a solution for the relationship. Afterwards, Toson decided to publish the episode in his new novel, and told publics about his incestuous affair, which is called “the Sinsei event”.
After the Sinsei event went public, Toson started another new work called ?tranger, which is regarding his thoughts and 3-year life in France. In other words, the contents of ?tranger could be deemed as his escape from the incestuous affair, and therefore, bought him some time and space to figure out the final solution.
In Toson’s time, France is a promised land for all artists. The spirits of art could be felt all over the country. The main character of ?tranger, Kishimoto（who actually implies Toson himself）, kept close relationships with many artists. Among those descriptions, the artist Chevannes and the scenes that Kishimoto appreciated his art works are with certain implications. This study focused on the implications of this artist, and expected to figure out how Chevannes’s most famous work, The Poor Fisherman, helped Kishimoto solve the Sinsei event , and eventually find his way home.