Natsume Soseki's Life and Work Chronology
| Year | Soseki's life and work | Literature・Thought・Society |
| His early childhood | ||
| Keio3(1867) | Born and out at nurse. | |
| Meiji1(1868) | Adopted into Shiobara family. | Meiji Restration |
| Meiji2(1869) | Restoration land and nation | |
| Meiji3(1870) | Contracts smallpox | |
| Meiji4(1871) | Abolition of the han system | |
| Meiji5(1872) | Yukichi Fukuzawa "An Encouragement of Learning: Gakumon no susume" | |
| Meiji6(1873) | Revision of the Land tax system | |
| Meiji7(1874) | Enters The 8th Public elementary school, Toda elementary shool | |
| Meiji8(1875) | Divorce of his adopted parents, is adopted into Natsume family | |
| Meiji9(1876) | ||
| Meiji10(1877) | Birth of Kiyo Nakane | Satsuma Rebellion |
| Meiji12(1879) | Enters Tokyo 1st Junior Hight School | Ibsen "A doll's House" Dostoevsky "The Brothers Karamazovy" |
| Meiji14(1880) | January Death of his mother, Chie April Enters Nishogakusha: The Study of Chinese school of classics | |
| Meiji16(1883) | Enters Seiritsu School for preparation of preschool entrance examination. | Maupassant "A Woman's Life" |
| Meiji17(1884) | Enters Tokyo University Preschool（Meiji19 change its name to The 1st Higher School Preparatory Course） | |
| Meiji18(1885) | Shoyo Tsubouchi"Portraits of Contemporary Students" The cabinet system birth | |
| Meiji19(1886) | July Misses examination for promotion to next grade of The 1st Higher School Preparatory Course and remains in the same grade. | Stevenson"Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde" |
| School days | ||
| Meiji20(1887) | March Death of his oldest brother, Daisuke June Death of his second brother, Naonori | Shimei Futabatei"Ukigumo" |
| Meiji21(1888) | January Returns to Natsume familiy register
September Enters The 1st Higher School Regular Course (Humanity) | |
| Meiji22(1889) | January Cultivates his friendship with Shiki Masaoka
February Presents 'The Death of My Brother' at the Society of English May Subscribes "Soseki" to Shiki Masaoka's "Nana kusa shu" September Finishes wiriting "Bokusetsu Roku" | Bergson "Essai sur les donnees immediates de la conscience" Issue of The Constitution of the Empire of Japan |
| Meiji23(1890) | September Enters The Imperial University, Department of English Literature. | Ogai Mori"The Dancing Girl: Maihime" The first election of the House of Representatives The Imperial Rescript on Education (Kyoiku Chokugo) |
| Meiji24(1891) | July Death of his mother-in-law, Tose December Accepts Prof. Dickson's offer to translate "Hojoki". | Wilde "The Picture of Dorian Gray " Otsu affair |
| Meiji25(1892) | April Transfers to Hokkaido. May Becomes a lecturer of Tokyo Senmon Gakko.（present Waseda University） | Shiki Masaoka "Dassai Shooku Haiwa" |
| Meiji26(1893) | July Enters The Graduate School of Imperial University. October Becomes a part-time Enlish lecturer of the Tokyo Higher Normal School. | Tokoku Kitamura"The Inner Life Theory: Naibu seimei ron" |
| Meiji27(1894) | August Visits Zuiganji temple in Matsushima.
December Knows Shaku Soen, a monk of Enkakuji temple in Kamakura | Ichiyo Higuchi"Otsugomori" Sudermann "The undying past. = Es war." Anatole France "The Red Lily.= Le Lys rouge." The Sino-Japanese War |
| Days in Matsuyama and Kumamoto | ||
| Meiji28(1895) | April Becomes a part-time teacher of Ehime prefecture junior high school. His students include Kaichiro Manabe Matsune Toyojiro(Toyojyo). June Moves and names his house "Gudabutsu-an". August to October Shiki Masaoka lives together and holds meetings to make Haiku every night. December Engagement to Kyo Nakane. | Ichiyo Higuchi"Takekurabe" Simonoseki treaty Triple Intervention |
| Meiji29(1896) | April Leaves for a teacher of Kumamoto prefecture the 5th Higher School. Lectures on "The French Revolution " "Hamlet" "Othello". June Celebrated a wedding to Kyo. | |
| Meiji30(1897) | June Father, Naokatu dies. | Koyo Ozaki"Konjikiyasha" Shimazaki Toson "Wakanashu" |
| Meiji31(1898) | July Kyo commits suicide. | Doppo Kunikida"Musasino" Roka Tokutomi"Hototogisu" |
| Meiji32(1899) | May The firstborn doughter, Hudeko is born. | Bansui Doi"Tenchiujyo" |
| Days in the United Kingdom | ||
| Meiji33(1900) | May The Ministry of Education oders Soseki to study in Britain. September Sails from The Port of Yokohama. October Arrivals London. Takes Prof.Craig's private lesson. | Kyoka Izumi"Koya Hijiri" |
| Meiji34(1901) | January The second doughter, Tsuneko is born. May Cultivates Ikeda Kikunae August Picks up Bansui Doi at the Victoria Station. | Yosano Akiko "Tangled Hair: Midare-gami" |
| Meiji35(1902) | September Shiki dies. October Trips to Scotland. December Departs from Britain.く | Gorky (М. Голький) "The Lower Depths = На дне" Anglo-Japanese Alliance |
| Literary careerⅠ | ||
| Meiji36(1903) | Janurary Returns to Japan. April Serves as a lecturer of The Department of English literarure, The 1st Higher School and Tokyo Imperial University. October The third doughter, Hanako is born. | Hujimura Misao commits suicide. |
| Meiji37(1904) | April Serves as a lecturer in Meiji University Decembre Reads "I am a cat: Wagahai ha neko de aru" at "Sankai". | Chekhov (А.П. Чехов )"The Cherry Orchard = Вишнёвый сад" Russo-Japanese War |
| Meiji38(1905) | Janurary "I am a cat"（"Hototogisu"） Janurary "London Tower"（"The Empire Literarure"） Janurary "Carlyle Museam"（"Gakutou"） June "Koto no Soraoto"（"Seven people"） December The fourth doughter, Aiko is born. | the Treaty of Portsmouth = the Russo-Japanese Peace Treaty |
| Meiji39(1906) | April "Botchan"（"Hototogisu"） September "The Three-Cornered World"（"Sin syosetsu"） October "The 210th Days" October 11th The 1st "Mokuyo kai" | Sachio Ito "The Grave of the Wild Chrysanthemum" |
| Literary careerⅡ | ||
| Meiji40(1907) | Janurary "Nowaki"（"Hototogisu"） From the end of March to the beginning of April Trips to Kyoto and Osaka May "Bungaku ron"（Okura Shoten） May Speech for entrance（"Tokyo Asahi Shinbun"） June The first son, Jyunichi is born June to October "Poppy" June Declines Saionji Kinmochi's invitation for literary personalities. September Moves to 7 Minami machi, Waseda, Usigome Ward | Tayama Katai "Futon" |
| Meiji41(1908) | Janurary to April "Miner" June "Buncho" July to August "Ten Nights of Dream" September to December "Sanshiro" A cat which is a model of "I Am a Cat" dies December The second son, Noburoku is born | |
| Meiji42(1909) | Janurary to March "Eijitsu-Shohin" June to October "And Then" From September to Octorber Trips to Manchuria and Korea with Nakamura Zeko. October to December "Mankan tokorodokoro" November Founds Asahi literature column. | James "A Pluralistic Universe" Morita Shinpei "Baien" Hirobumi Ito is shot. |
| Meiji43(1910) | March to June "The Gate" June Enters Choyo Stomack and Intenstines Hospital for stomack uncler. August Moves to Izu Shuzenji Hot Spring for medical treatment. Spits blood and gets into critical condition. October to February "Spring Miscellany" | Takashi Nagatsuka"Tuchi" Ogai Mori"Seinen" "Shirakaba"starts high treason incident of 1910 Annexation of Korea |
| Meiji44(1911) | Februray Declines doctoral degree. July "Koeber Sensei: Teacher Koeber" November Hinako dies suddenly | Saneatsu Mushanokoji "An Innocent" Ogai Mori"The Wild Goose" |
| Meiji45 Taisho 1(1912) | January to April "To the spring equinox and beyond" Decmber to November "Wayfarer" | Emperor Meiji passes away. The self imolation of General Nogi and his wife for Emperor Meiji |
| Taisho2(1913) | February "Shakai to Jibun" | Kansuke Naka "The silver spoon: Gin no saji" Naoya Shiga "Han's crime: Han no hanzai" |
| Taisho3(1914) | March "My individualism: Watashi no kojinshugi"（Hujinkai-zasshi） April to August "Kokoro" | World War Ⅰ |
| Taisho(1915) | January to February "Inside My Glass Door" March Trips to Kyoto June to Septenber "Grass on the Wayside" December Ryunosuke Akutagawa and Masao Kume participates in Mokuyou Kai | Ryunosuke Akutagawa "Rashomon" |
| Taisho5(1916) | May to December "Light and Darkness" December 9th dies | Ryunosuke Akutagawa "The nose: Hana" |