Allegations of "Plagiarism" in Prince Hisahito’s Essay Selected for Contest: Several Parts Closely Resemble Description in Guidebook

 


A new allegation has surfaced against Hisahito, the eldest son of the Akishino family, who was announced to have "allegedly" entered a high school attached to Tsukuba University on March 16. It is said that his essay, which he entered in a contest in the past and received an "honorable mention," is very similar to other works.

On February 16, "Daily Shincho" reported the story.

 

In the past, His Imperial Highness has been known for his "excellent grades," and the Imperial Household Agency has taken great pains to appeal to his "literary talent," as he was twice selected for essay contests in junior high school. Last spring, out of a total of 97 entries in the junior high school division of the 12th Children's Nonfiction Literature Award sponsored by the city of Kitakyushu, Prince Hisahito's essay was selected as the honorable mention following the grand prize. The subject of the essay was his memories of the Ogasawara Islands, where he traveled with Princess Kiko in 2017, and it was a powerful piece of writing on 19 pages of manuscript paper.

 

However, in the essay, there were several suspicious parts, specifically, "close resemblance to other people's works.”

 

Comparing the expressions in the essay and the guidebook: ......

　Hisahito's essay, "Visiting the Ogasawara Islands," can be viewed on the website of the Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Literature, which sponsors the prize. He writes about the origins of the islands as follows:

 

“The Ogasawara Islands were formed by the uplift of a volcano, and have never been connected to the continent by land. So how did the creatures of these islands get there?”

 

On the other hand, the guidebook "World Heritage Ogasawara" (JTB Publishing), published in 2012, includes phrases which sounds exactly like those written by Hisahito:

 

(page 11)”The Ogasawara Islands were formed by the uplift of a volcano, and have never been connected to the continent. These islands are called "oceanic islands.”

 

(page 12)"How on earth did all the living things arrive here?”

 

　,

The most striking part is what immediately follows. In his essay, he continues in a way that answers the previous question.

 

“Some were carried by the currents, some by the wind, and some by their wings, either on their own or mixed in with the currents.

The three W's, Wave, Wind, and Wing, enabled them to cross the ocean to the islands of the Ogasawara, and only those that adapted to their environment were able to survive.”

 

　It is hard to believe that the author is a second-year junior high school student, and his ability to express himself stirs the reader's imagination without compunction. On the other hand, in the guidebook mentioned above, the author writes as follows

 

“Some are carried by the wind, some by the ocean current. Some are carried by the wind, some by the currents, and some by the wings, either by themselves or with them. By the so-called 3Ws (Wind, Wave, Wing), only a few creatures were able to cross the sea and reach the islands of Ogasawara.”

 

There is no indication in his essay that it is a quotation from a published work, and although one reference is given at the end of the essay, the name of this guidebook is not mentioned.


In the article in the Daily Shincho, Keisei Takagi, a lawyer who specializes in copyrights, pointed out:

 

“A work of authorship is a creative expression of thought or feeling, and the passage about the "ocean current" in this case is considered to be a work of authorship. It depends on the specific circumstances, but if the phrases are identical, not only in terms of the characteristic wording but also in the position of the punctuation marks, it may be judged to be identical.”

 

On April 16, the Imperial Household Agency acknowledged that there were insufficient references in the essay. The Imperial Household Agency plans to check the contents of the essay and take measures such as revising it.

 

A representative of the Kitakyushu City Museum of Literature, which sponsors the literary award, said, "Even if there were omissions, the award is based on a comprehensive evaluation of the entire work. We are not thinking of withdrawing the award at this time.

 

The Japanese Internet reacted sensitively to this report.

 

"He should give the award back."

"Children should be taught from an early age that copying and plagiarism is absolutely wrong."

Also, some people are wondering,

"Wasn't receiving an honorable mention for his essay one of the reasons he was recommended to his high school?”


場所: Japan

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