山本周五郎被評論為以「活下去」的重要性當作其文學上的主題之一。這點跟基於武士道的日本傳統生死觀不同，山本周五郎這樣的生死觀，反而卻是在日本近代史上武士道式生死觀最被稱讚的太平洋戰爭末期所形成。本論文以《山本周五郎　戰中日記》及「活著的源八」為研究資料，探討山本周五郎之生死觀所形成的過程及作者思想如何反映在作品上的問題。

Yamamoto Shugoro is said to have been a writer who wrote about the
importance of "living" as one of his literary themes.
This is a different way of thinking from the traditional Japanese view
of life and death based on Bushido. It is believed that Yamamoto Shugoro's
view of life and death was formed during the Pacific War, when the view
of life and death based on Bushido was most admired in modern Japanese
history.
This paper examines the process by which Yamamoto Shugoro's
views on life and death were formed, and how the author's thoughts are
reflected in his works, using "The Diary of Yamamoto Shugoro during the
War"and "Ikiteiru Genpachi" as texts.