SOURCE: Horton, H. Mack. “Nijō Yoshimoto (1320-1388).” In Medieval Japanese Writers: Dictionary of Literary Biography, Volume Two Hundred Three, edited by Steven D. Carter, pp. 200-16. Detroit: The Gale Group, 1999.

In the following essay, Horton discusses Yoshimoto's personal and literary heritage and his formative years as a poet. He also analyzes the poet's works and evaluates his legacy.

Nijō Yoshimoto was the most important court literatus of the violent and divisive era of the Northern and Southern Courts (Nanbokushō, 1336-1392). Born into the highest stratum of the aristocracy, he served the Northern Court four times as regent, dominating court politics either personally or through his sons for most of the last four decades of his life. His political position was buttressed by extensive literary activity; he became adept at uta and Chinese poetry, wrote voluminously about court ceremonies and protocol, and may have composed the famous historical tale...