[1] After finishing high school, he started an apprenticeship and later worked in the family business, before eventually entering the German literature department at Tokyo Imperial University.

[3] He debuted as a playwright with The Crown of Life (1920) and gained a reputation for his solidly crafted plays, notably Sakazaki, Lord Dewa (1920) and Dōshi no hitobito (lit.

[2] In addition to his own writings, Yamamoto translated the works of European dramatists into Japanese, including August Strindberg and Arthur Schnitzler.

[3][6] During World War II, he openly criticized Japan's wartime military government for its censorship policies[2] (which had stopped the serialisation of his novel Robō no ishi, lit.

[7][8] On the other hand, Yamamoto was involved in establishing a guide issued by the government which gave instructions on how to write children's stories,[9] and later joined the Patriotic Association for Japanese Literature (1942–1945).