He began his literary career as a student of Chinese Ming-dynasty writings, and adapted traditional Chinese comic verse (called kyōshi in Japanese), under the mentorship of playwright Hiraga Gennai, to daily life in Edo.
hiː bɪɡˈæn hɪz lˈɪɾɚɹˌɛɹi kɚɹˈɪɹ æz ɐ stˈuːdənt ʌv tʃaɪnˈiːz mˈɪŋdˈaɪnɐsti ɹˈaɪɾɪŋz, ænd ɐdˈæptᵻd tɹɐdˈɪʃənəl tʃaɪnˈiːz kˈɑːmɪk vˈɜːs kˈɔːld kaɪˈoʊʃi ɪn dʒˌæpənˈiːz, ˌʌndɚ ðə mˈɛntoːɹʃˌɪp ʌv plˈeɪɹaɪt hɜːɹˈɑːɡə dʒˈɛnaɪ, tə dˈeɪli lˈaɪf ɪn ˈiːdoʊ.