Lafcadio Hearn as an ambassador of French literature in the United States and in Japan.

The article focuses on the life and career of Lafcadio Hearn. The author examines speculation about the early education of Hearn in the United Kingdom or perhaps in France. In fact, while Hearn wrote that he became acquainted with the French language following a stay in France, the evidence of where exactly he may have attended school and learned French has not been found The author examines the translations that Hearn made of works of French literature for newspapers in the United States.