Abstract
1980's were in many ways a transitional period for literature in Japan. It was a period of generational change, which was accompanied by changes in style, subject and meaning of literary work and literature as an institution. 1980's are a period often associated with the phenomenon of postmodernism, literature being no exception.
This transition can be seen in a way that figures, works and styles that shaped modern Japanese literature of both pre-war and post-war periods are being reflected in works of a new generation of writers, the main modes of depiction being parody and ironic distance. This emphasized the change in literary landscape and showed a unique relationship that new authors had towards the narrative of modern Japanese literary tradition, it's meaning and historical continuity.
In this paper I will focus on early works of Murakami Haruki (*1949), Takahashi Gen'ichirō (*1951) and Shimada Masahiko (*1961) and analyze the ways they implemented various subjects taken from modern literary history, how their often distorted images of modern literary tradition, its figures and narrative modes encapsulates and reflects Japanese postmodern condition and the literary transformation mentioned above.