The Miner - Natsume Sōseki

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

Kōfu/The Miner first appeared in serialization in 1908 in the pages of the Asahi Shimbun, the narration is from a nineteen year old youth who after being caught between two women, Tsuyako and Sumie, finds himself wandering out of Tokyo through a forest of endless pine trees with the looming intention of throwing himself into a crater at Mt. Asama, or alternatively off Kegon Falls, in his afterword Jay Rubin mentions of the true character whose story Sōseki used as source material for aspects of the book, reading this is in some ways to be reminded of Kusamakura and of Fujimura Misao, finishing The Miner reiterates the hope for an explorative biography of Sōseki which would shed further insights into the stories behind his novels. In some descriptions of The Miner the book has been described as a precursor to Beckett and Joyce including sections which incorporate a stream of conscious style, this is probably mostly evident in the first two thirds of the book, although the reflective nature of the narrator's thoughts are never distant from the course of his describing the unfolding events of the novel, some of these reflections concern his evolving consciousness of his place in society, or more broadly the nature and follies of man, many of these instances of reflection here project over a number of pages and are prompted in a number of differing ways and scenarios, the line of a mountain that dissolves and blurs with that of the sky, the narrator observes that he finds himself in an 'out of focus world', a moment disembarking from a train, another theme that appears in the novel, reiterated by the narrator is the notion of the undefinable character of man and of the concluding observation that there is nothing more unreliable than man.

In some ways it feels that The Miner could be in part a bildungsroman due to the young age of the narrator, there is a sense we're sharing his rite of passage, early in the novel he reveals the fact that his period at the mine was only temporary, so the narrative comes partially from a perspective of hindsight, another aspect that remains slightly obscure is the nature and true scenario of his problem with the two women, Tsuyako and Sumie, it feels very much that perhaps he is the guilty party. In his afterword Jay Rubin observes that there were two Sōseki's, one humorous, the other an intellectual tragedian, and there is a little of both to be found in The Miner, perhaps more of the latter with an added percentage of being of a philosophical and sociological enquiry, with an emphasis on the absurd, it feels a little incredulous to contemplate that this translation has just passed being over a quarter of century old, there is the inclusion of phrases like; highfalutin, and in another scene where the boss of the mine, Mr Hara, instructs the narrator's guide, Hatsu, when after returning with the narrator from a tour of the dark depths of the mine, to sit down and 'take a load off', it feels slightly difficult to reconcile these phrases to a novel from 1908, Rubin's afterword and notes throughout the text remain greatly enlightening and informative.

It's tempting to read The Miner with the idea that  Sōseki is using the mine as a metaphor as the narrator explores his thoughts about the meaning of his existence and future, it feels like we are briefly visiting a darker or baser denizen of humanity amongst the squalid conditions and ways of the miners, another aspect is of the narrator's metropolitan background experiencing for the first time the provincial life, in some ways this is a common scenario that appears in a number of other of Sōseki's novels, of the main character or protagonist relating their experiences when travelling to a new location or surrounding, it occurs in Botchan and also in Sanshiro. Reading The Miner is to be reminded that although there are a number of similar themes usually running through Sōseki's novels, the narrative styles used in his novels are markedly different, in his introduction to Light and Dark John Nathan observes of the scale of interiority that the novel incorporates, but there remains a feeling that in The Miner that this is more so, it feels that The Miner is more allegorical than metaphor in parts it feels like it could be veering into a Kafkaesque landscape, the mine, it appears could be viewed as Sōseki's Vor dem Gesetz/Before the Law, the narrator can't move forward until he has journeyed through the darkness of the mine, there is a hybrid of different motives to his narrative, a sense that the narrator is assuaging his guilt and of his on going interpretation of the nature of the world at large, but the novel offers no redemptive quality, the narrator does not turn to the mine as an alternative to suicide, it's not until he encounters an older miner in the darkness, Yasu, when he becomes lost after Hatsu, his guide, scurries away from him that his thoughts begin to formulate into a concrete coherent course of action. In Yasu, the narrator sees a projected mirror image of himself older, one learnt from experience, Yasu too had come from a comfortable and educated Tokyo family and with a crime in his past a feeling that he is unable to leave the mine and the fate he has chosen, the narrator contemplates Yasu and the possibility of his sacrificed future in the outside world - 'Had society killed Yasu, or had Yasu done something that society could not forgive?'. Yasu offers to pay the narrator's return fare to Tokyo, but the narrator is reprieved from working in the depths of the mine due to a slight of fate, already we know from earlier in the novel that he won't spend the rest of his days at the mine, reading Sōseki often feels like experiencing the narrative unroll perhaps as in a modern emakimono.

Another more experimental aspect of this novel which surfaces from time to time is the narrator's scepticism of the literary worthiness of the events occurring in the novel, this also overspills in relating aspects of the literary worthiness of his own character and actions, and by turns in an equal number of places he expresses his scepticism with learned academia, which he often sees as expressing itself with a lot of 'hot air', was this perhaps included in reaction to the disdain Sōseki received after choosing to give up his university post and write for the Asahi?. In some ways it's none too surprising to see how The Miner is one of Murakami Haruki's favourite novels, as literary worthiness, (or junbungaku-ness?), appears to be a bone of contention that many critics often level with Murakami's writing, much of Rubin's afterword is taken up discussing the criticism levelled at Sōseki's writings at the time of their appearance. As 2016 and then 2017 approaches no doubt hopefully this will see an increase of interest in Sōseki, perhaps this too will also see an increase with the availability of all of his works.

  

The Quilt and Other Stories by Tayama Katai

 

 

 

The central character of Futon or The Quilt is a man caught in the midst of many contradictory desires, originally appearing in 1907 its mention and discussion of repressed passions may have provoked sharp intakes of breath although from a retrospective viewpoint the story is a fully realized portrait of a man caught with ennui in the emerging realization that his married life is running on empty. Through translator Kenneth G. Henshall's thorough introduction we learn that Futon along with Toson's Hakai/The Broken Commandment, of 1906 is one of the earliest examples of the Shishosetsu. Takenaka Tokio is a man of literature who receives repeated requests to act as a patron for a young woman named Yoshiko whose character is the polar opposite to that of his wife, she in ways represents the new age, unlike Tokio's rather old fashioned wife she has a passion for new literature, under Tokio's tutelage the plan is that she will become a successful writer, which of the time the idea of a female author was more than likely seen as being quite a modern phenomenon. There are many scenes of desperation throughout the beginning of the story, Tokio's sense of entrapment within his marriage reduces him to bouts of drinking out of frustration, and when Yoshiko has moved into the family home he begins to become deeply enraptured by her, but is caught in wondering if she feels the same way, rumours go around and she has to move to a relatives house to avoid the gossip of scandal spreading. The story becomes more fraught for Tokio when it's discovered that Yoshiko had been whisked away one night by a fellow student, Tanaka, and Tokio is left in a state of agonized suspicion as to whether anything happened between the two, has Yoshiko's chastity been preserved?, the rest of the story witnesses the untangling of the predicament. Futon is obviously an important landmark work in Japanese Literature, there is much here that is representative of the changing attitudes of the age, and also of it heralding the changes within literary styles told with a psychological honesty that must has made revelatory reading on its publication. When considering what had been before, the honest and unrestrained voice of Futon and some of the other stories here must have seemed to represent a colossal shift in direction and tone, Kenneth G. Henshall also discusses Tayama's reactions to readings of Guy de Maupassant, Turgenev, Zola, Nietzsche, Sudermann and Hauptmann, and his philosophical outlook and his own vision of the leading writers of Naturalism of the day.

 

As mentioned The Girl Watcher/Shojobyo, 1907, is very much in the same vein as Futon, it was written slightly before, although everything is much more out of reach and at a distance for the protagonist, Sugita Kojo - also a literary man, although past his prime, he was once a popular writer of 'girl novels', and is ridiculed for his interests in romantic notions. Instead of being in contact with the woman at the centre of his fixation, and aside from returning a hair comb that she drops, he has to make do with watching her amongst the crowds aboard the tightly packed trains. Sugita is a pitiable character, although despite his appearance - 'he had the looks and build of someone about to do battle with the beasts', he believes in pure love, and the power of instinct, seeing the woman he questions himself: 'How could such a pretty girl exist in this vulgar world', his narrative dips into being that of a lament for his chaste youth. Another element of the autobiographical can be seen in the story One Soldier/Ippeisotsu, 1908, which also appears in the anthology - this story comes from the perspective of a wounded soldier on the eve of the Battle of Liaoyang, war and the military was something that Tayama had first hand experiences of in a number of ways, his father was killed in action during the Satsuma Rebellion, 1877, and in 1904 he was sent to Manchuria to report on the Russo-Japan War but was sent back after contracting typhoid and on his return, Kenneth G. Henshall adds, he was treated by the writer/doctor Mori Ogai.

The stories cover the period from 1902 to 1914, I'm not sure of the intention in the way they are presented but there is a linking familiarity in some of the settings of the stories and in the way that some of them thematically merge, The Girl Watcher with its tragic accident on the railway at its ending links to the story The Railway Track, 1912, which begins with an accident on the rail lines, and One Soldier shares perspectives with The Sound of Wheels/Karuma no oto from 1908. One Cold Morning/Samui asa, 1914, and The Photograph/Shashin, 1909, appear as being two brief stories that stand alone in their setting, The Photograph is in ways as literal as it sounds, offering a snapshot portrait into the lives of a group of people assembled for the taking of a photograph, and One Cold Morning witnesses the intrusion of death in an innocently presented domestic scene.

It could be said that in every short story collection there is a stand out story, and Futon is obviously the most widely known perhaps for its notoriety, but for me The End of Juemon/Juemon no saigo, from 1902, is a story that wanders away from the rest in the uniqueness of its narrative and in depicting how the forces of nature surreptitiously intercede on man's fate, it's the earliest story here from 1902, written when Tayama was 30 and influenced by his reading of Hermann Sudermann's Der Katzensteg/The Cat's Bridge, aka Regina or The Sins of the Fathers, from 1890. The narrator recounts meeting in his school days two fellow students, Yamagata and Nemoto, who had come to the city from a remote village in Nagano, they rent lodgings above a bath house, and as they grow closer they exchange stories of characters and families from their hometown. Some years later the narrator tracks out the village of his friends and asks a villager for directions to their family homes, he learns that the village is in a state of turmoil and unrest after recent attacks of arson. After meeting up with one of his old friends the story of the outcast Fujita Juemon begins to emerge, born with a rare deformity which left him with an enlarged scrotum, symbolizing by implication the state of the family legacy he inherits, his childhood was filled with episodes of rejection and ridicule, although eventually he marries and for a time his life appears to stabilize, only again he falls back into previous debaucheries that are a result of the anguish he feels at his deformity, after learning of his extra marital activities his wife too has an affair, Juemon's life disintegrates and he takes up with a feral woman and goes on a rampage of revenge to vent  his bottled up sense of rejection. The story is imbued with an almost mythic quality, and its setting in a remote village near the Chikuma River, overlooking Mt. Kosha adds to this, it's a story that holds a deeply entwined morality to it, Juemon's end is one that ends in murder after the natives can no longer tolerate his arson attacks. His death is made to look like an accident in a rather bungled attempt at a cover up, although set in a remote village and thus seen as a microcosm, The End of Juemon reads very much as a case study in the psychology of communal thinking, of the transferability of moral codes and examines the margins between acceptance and non-acceptance, Juemon appears as the scapegoat that is sacrificed in order to preserve the sense of the 'normal'. The tone of the narrator is one that becomes more affected and more empathetic to Juemon's plight as the story progresses, at the beginning of one of his contemplations of what he is witnessing he considers - "If man is completely natural, then it's bound to end in tragedy. For then nature necessarily comes into conflict with the conventions of the present day. In which case, does not nature itself end up, in this world, as unnatural?", (pg142) . Out of the eight stories The End of Juemon/Juemon no saigo seems to offer the most penetrating insight into Tayama's at times harsh and unrelenting vision of naturalism, written a little over 110 years ago, during reading I had to pause to contemplate at the period of its setting. The collection was originally published by Tokyo University Press and is currently out of print.


For a more in depth look on the shishosetsu - The Rhetoric of Confession by Edward Fowler.

and also Kenneth G. Henshall's book on Tayama Katai  - In Search of Nature, Brill Books, 2012




                                 

Botchan



In a translation by J.Cohn, Botchan, is the fourth title by Natsume Sōseki to be published by Penguin Classics, previous titles have included; Sanshiro, translated by Jay Rubin, Kusamakura and Sanshiro, both translated by Meredith McKinney. Botchan first appeared in 1906 the same year that Natsume produced Kusamakura and also Shumi no Iden, (translated as The Heredity of Taste), in some aspects the perspective of the narrative of Botchan  resembles that of I Am a Cat, where the view is that from an outsider, in I Am a Cat we see the drama unfold from the cat's perspective, in Botchan the perspective is seen from Botchan, a Tokyoite, and considered Edokko, who takes a teaching post in a remote town in Shikoku. His honorific name mixed with a term of endearment is given to him from the family maid, Kiyo,  throughout the novel we never learn Botchan's true name, although we do learn something, in slightly comical style, of his genealogy. The novel opens with a telling of the events of his parents deaths, and then the dissolution of the family home as his brother leaves to pursue business leaving Botchan some money to do what he wants with, Botchan uses it to study. The story is one dotted with a farcical humour through various episodes and scenes, the grasshoppers, the fishing trip, (where we are first introduced to the slightly enigmatic character referred to as the 'madonna'), the fight scene between the rival schools, although the full realization of the humour it could be said is saved for the climax of the novel. Botchan is a fantastic and bewildering character, and probably one of Natsume's most iconic, forthrightly clinging and pursuing to the truth as he sees it, (and by turns we see it), he also points to a certain reckless spirit as a family trait. Although through the focus of the narrative our empathy falls with Botchan, we find that in the wake of his story his actions have thrown up many questions which at the time of it's publication must have resonated with the reader leaving them to reconsider notions of the traditional, and in a way give form to what or how things maybe in the future, although Botchan remains a mixture of both the old and new, perhaps Botchan and his nature could be seen to form a middle ground that pushes both temporarily aside.

After graduating, Botchan takes up a post in Shikoku as a maths teacher, the first gist of the petty bureaucracy of the place can be seen when the principal hands him his certificate of appointment which he then makes Botchan present to each of the other teachers in turn when introduced, it doesn't take long for Botchan to rename all of the teachers with nicknames, Redshirt, Hanger On, Porcupine, Pale Squash. The novel is almost ambidextrous in the way it manages to shift between humorous anecdote and moral observation, Botchan's pursuit of the moral seems to begin and end with appearances to the degree that in the end when an act of  subterfuge by the principal is discovered we begin to get the fuller impression. Another prevalent aspect to the novel is that of the meeting between the metropolitan and the provincial, with Botchan coming from Tokyo we perceive the characters from his outsider's point of view, as the drama progresses we get the impression that both sides exhibit a certain stand off-ish indifference to each other, Botchan is regarded as being the outsider which adds to his frustrated exasperation in turn fueling his animosity, a sense that Botchan is in far off territory is seen through his letters to Kiyo back in Tokyo. The behaviour of his first landlord also adds to his bewildered impression of the nature of the local people As is with Natsume's prose in translation it can at times feel acutely compacted, Botchan's narrative is wholly absorbing, occasionally the external world is referenced in snap shot, a near naked boatman clothed only in a red loincloth/fundoshi, and when stepping out at night he sees, 'the milky way streaming across the sky overhead', in these little instances we again realize that Natsume's novels have a poetical dimension.  Much has been written about the nature in some of his scenes between some of the male interactions that appear in Natsume's novels, another scene here sees Botchan squeezingly test the muscles of one of his colleagues.

Towards the ending of the novel the external world begins to infringe to a greater degree when Botchan witnesses the war victory celebrations, dazzled by the patriotic fervour and fireworks, Botchan's attention is caught by the swordsman's display, his concern is focused on the dangerous sharpness of their blades. Botchan is a curious novel which can be appreciated in many ways, there are so many subtle portraits and scenes in it which encapsulate a portrait of the shifting Meiji zeitgeist between the old and new, and the emergence of the influences of the West. Natsume's versatility is awe inspiring, reading Botchan is a unique experience, there is also the aspect that Natsume drew on his own experiences in writing it, the onsen that Botchan visits, (Dōgo Onsen) is the same one that Soseki used, and also the inclusion of Iyo dialect, an example of which Cohn has left in his translation.

Many thanks to Penguin for providing a preview copy.

Botchan at Penguin Classics

Natsume Soseki at Wikipedia

Japanese Literature Challenge 6

The Dancing Girl by Mori Ogai

After recently reading Gan I've been keen to return to Mori Ogai, one of Mori's tampen, The Dancing Girl/Maihime is a fascinating story that must count as being one of the first modern Japanese fictions set outside of the country. Set in the late 1880's, the story first appeared in 1890, opening with various brief recollections of his journey to and from Berlin, Ota Toyotaro goes further back with his recollections and recounts the path of his life, his father passing away, achieving a degree in Law at an early age, also learning French and German. After being sent to Berlin for further studies he notices with some relief that he is able to escape from the rather petty remonstartions of the head of his department. He walks Berlin through the Tiergarten and Unter den Linden, there's a sense that with his move to Berlin Toyotaro has gone through a subtle transformation of character, through shifting continents he himself has been through a subtle transformation of spirit, keeping aloof from his fellow countrymen in Berlin he is viewed with derision and suspicion by them and falls victim to slander, eventually loosing his post. At an old church at Klosterstrasse he comes across a sobbing girl, describing the girl's appearance he concedes; 'that only a poet could do her justice', through acknowledging that he is a stranger to the area, he inquires what is the matter, and learns that her father had recently passed away and that her employer is trying to coerce her into marriage with the condition that he will pay off her family's debt, the girl's mother scolds her for refusing the proposal. He learns her name, Elsie, also that she's a dancing girl, at first they form a relationship of tutor and pupil and after helping her out of her financial problems takes up lodgings in her home. Through an intermediary in Japan he gets some work writing journalistic dispatches.

As the story progresses it becomes apparent that Toyotaro is a man caught between many emotions and allegiances, although not explictly expressed, he finds himself caught in an emotional displacement, the consequences of these forces that are pulling him though are irreverisble in the end for Elsie. The story is potted with refrences to German literature, through a reading of Hackländer Toyotaro learns that the dancing profession is secondary to that of  'the lowest trade'. The arrival of Aizawa, his intermediary, in Berlin, along with that of Count Amakata forces Toyotaro's fate to turn, through translation work for the Count which takes him to Russia, Toyotaro's experiences lead him through the poorest and also the most privilged echelons of society. Though brief, the panoramic vision of intercontinental life must have made revelatory reading for its Meiji era audience, one that still transports the reader today. Although the narrative is one from a personal perspective, it could also be read that Toyotaro's actions and relationship with Elsie represent a comment in microcosm on the sensibilities of the expanding Meiji conciousness and the beginnings of Japan's presence into the wider world, Mori's portrait of this though, rather than being one of celebration ends with a beleagured sense of resignation and dissolution. The story is translated by Richard Bowring and has appeared in the first volume of The Columbia Anthology of Japanese Literature, and also in Youth and Other Stories edited by J. Thomas Rimer.

The Dancing Girl/Maihime at Chikumashobo

Above picture Unter den Linden, 1890 by the Polish artist Anna Bilinska-Bohdanowicz via wikicommons.

The Wild Geese

As is often the case that after a period of reading relatively modern or contemporary books or novels the desire to turn to something older pounces on my reading habits, and vice a versa. Feburary 17th will mark the 150 anniversary of Mori Ogai's birth,  which seems like a great prompt to read some of his works, 2012 also marks the 100th anniversary of Soseki's Kokoro. Gan/The Wild Geese was written between the years 1911-1913, it could be described as being a long novella coming in at around 120 pages long, although it took longer to read than anticipated, theres plenty in here to inspire thought, like Kawabata Yasunari's later novel Koto/The Old Capital the novel is of interest with topographical descriptions of it's setting, here it's in and around Muenzaka near Tokyo University and Shinobazu Pond, this area is also the setting for Kawabata's short story from 1926 Boshi Jiken/The Hat Incident, which can be found in the collection, Palm-of-the-Hand-Stories. Biographical details on Mori are plenty throughout the internet, but a reading of a number of his fictions we can see that he  drew on experiences and episodes from his life to use in his writings, Mori lived and wrote during the Meiji period, and many of the changes that this epochal period caused are witnessed and reacted to by the characters in his books. Like Natsume Soseki, his writing is seen as being anti-naturalist in it's perspective, in Gan the narrative is dotted with asides which can be interpretated to this effect. The story is narrated by an anonymous acquaintance of a student called Okada, who the narrator notes reminds him of Kawakami Bizan, it could be said that the book has four or five distinctive narratives, the opening one introduces us to the two students and of Okada's first contact with Otama by seeing her in the window of a large house he walks by. In the second the story of the money lender Suezo is described, at first a servant to the students of the university, Suezo through being thrifty has also managed to amass a capital of money, and he is reviled in the neighbourhood as a money lender, the narrative set before Okada's  encounter with Otama traces Suezo's fascination and attraction to Otama, which eventually leads him to renting a house in Muenzaka for her as his mistress, and another one to accomodate her father. Mori's narrative moves in and out of the thoughts of his characters, Otama's as she misses  being with her father, Otama's father's thoughts about his daughter, then it passes to Suezo's wife, Otsune, who begins to suspect her husband after hearing rumours,  Otsune comes nearly to breaking point when Otama is pointed out to her in the street with the same parasol that Suezo had given her, confrontations abound. The narrative also following Suezo as he continually tries to put his wife off the scent, these psychological portraits are incredibly well defined insights into the worlds of the characters, Otama's loneliness and sense of entrapment in particular.

Throughout the novel the narratives of Mori's characters observe and note events and people occurring around them, the Namamugi incident is referred to and Suezo picks up on the idiosyncrasies of Fukuchi, the writer who owns a large house next to his - He was supposedly an intelligent man, a writer. But was he? If a clerk did the same kinds of nasty tricks with his pen as Fukuchi did, he would be discharged, reading a line like this makes you think that perhaps Mori had someone particular in mind.  Examples of the changes being brought in with the period can be read too - The wheeled stall vanished from it's set place under the eaves. And the house and it's surroundings, which were always modest, seemed suddenly attacked by what was then fashionably called "civilization",  for new boards over the ditch replaced the broken and warped ones, and a new lattice door had been installed at the entrance. This passage gives the impression that Mori is alluding that the changes that were underway went only as far as appearances, that in an understated way that  underneath things remained pretty much the same, the big changes were perhaps only skin deep. As the narrative progresses  Suezo  acting on a slight impulse buys Otama a pair of linnets which can read as being the first appearance of two metaphors used in the narrative, after Otama has hung the cage up in her house in Muenzaka, the narrative flows into focusing on Okada's perspective, coming to the rescue of the birds when the cage is attacked by a snake. Gan finishes with many threads left unresolved, it leaving it up to the reader to imagine the continuous lives of it's characters.

Gan has been translated into English twice, as The Wild Geese by Kingo Ochiai and Sanford Goldstein, published by Tuttle Publishing, and again by Burton Watson as The Wild Goose published by Center for Japanese Studies Publications, University of Michigan      

And Then by Natsume Soseki

Two writers whose works I want to read more of are Natsume Soseki and Abe Kobo, I thought I'd try to make up my reading of their novels this year but as we head into the second half of it I'm beginning to think that maybe my aim won't be fulfilled. It's good to learn though that Tuttle are reissuing And Then/Sorekara next month, the translation I think is the same one published here by Louisiana State University Press by Norma Moore Field, I remember reading Oe's essay in Japan the Ambigious and Myself , (Kodansha 1995),where he discusses the novel and have been meaning to read it ever since, Oe talks about the novel in his essay about the modern Japanese novel in relation to the modernization of Japan. Reading Natsume made me think about his time spent in London, (1901-1903), which led me to think of another English novel which in some ways shares some of it's themes, The Whirlpool, by George Gissing which was published  in 1897 has at it's centre a character unable to cope with the machinations of a society facing rapid modernisation, the character unable to keep pace and adapt to these changes has a tragic ending.

 

In And Then it's focus is the rapid modernization of Japan after the Meiji Restoration, the central character, Daisuke, in some ways is in a similar predicament to the character in The Whirlpool, unable to commit himself to the social mores occurring around him. Daisuke is from a family whose father has done well in the newly expanding economy, Daisuke's brothers all appear to be following productive industrial lives, Daisuke is not so committed in pursuing this path. He leads a  comfortable life, his father is happy to continue paying his allowance, although aged thirty Daisuke is still unmarried,  many potential brides have been suggested for him, but he has managed to fend off these arranged marriages. When his father, was young, he and his brother, (Daisuke's uncle), got involved with a brawl that turned nasty, it was still in the era of the samurai code, this world to Daisuke appears very distant from his, when he hears these stories from his father's and grandfather's past instead of having feelings of admiration, feelings of terror threaten to overwhelm him whenever he hears of the spilling of blood, through the implications of this brawl another potential bride is lined up for him. He reads Leonid Andreyev and contemplates how he might feel if faced with his own end. Daisuke at first appears far from being a victim, his perspective is one that sees through the veneer of the actions of those around him, seeing that the pursuit of financial gain or social advancement is not the be all and end all of his existence. An antithetical character to Daisuke's is introduced at the start of the novel, his friend Hiraoka who had moved to Kansai because of his work, only having to resign and return to Tokyo due to a subordinate embezzling company money, seems to cajole Daisuke about his lack of application to the outside world. It could be said though that Hiraoka's failure at succeeding in this new world reconfirms Daisuke's assertions about the new way of things.

As the novel progresses Daisuke's disliking of the modern world becomes more prevalent, and the pressure from his family to marry increases, almost to the point of entrapment in one scene, the only woman that Daisuke seems to have emerging feelings for is Hiraoka's wife Michiyo who he had known before she and Hiraoka had married, at times she appears unhappy being with Hiraoka. Daisuke feeling duty bound to his friend arranges to help Hiraoka pay off a pressing debt, and this brings him into closer contact with Michiyo. Throughout  the novel little instances appear that remind Daisuke of the dangers of actively participating in society, a letter from a friend who he had gone to university with arrives telling him of his married life and the child he has, Daisuke had used to send him books which the friend would discuss at length in his letters, as the correspondence continues the friend no longer mentions even the fact that he receives the books, this acts as a stark reminder to Daisuke. Daisuke is caught between following his duty to his family with that of following his heart, but he finds that in choosing this option he will begin to pull at the building blocks of society, Daisuke's predicament seems to see Natsume questioning just how much people were prepared to let go of the old order of things and examines how much of the new they were willing to embrace. I'm not sure which of Natsume's novels to turn to next, I feel as though I should continue with another from the trilogy, although The Miner/Kofu looks like an interesting novel, as does the unfinished novel; Light and Darkness/Meian. And Now/Sorekara comes with an excellent afterword from translator Norma Moore Field placing the novel in bibliographical and biographical context. The narrative of And Then has probably one of the most rational tones that I've found in a novel in a long while, and has a Janus like quality to it, this pivotal moment in history is represented well in the novel's opening scene when Daisuke half asleep notices the flower head of a Camellia has fallen off during the night, the sound of it hitting the floor reverberates around his waking consciousness, as a calmative he places his hand on his chest over his heart to reassuringly check his pulse is beating steadily.

Musashino

Ima no Musashino/Musashino was written by Doppo Kunikida in 1897, after he and his wife, Nobuko Sasaki, divorced he rented a cottage there, at it's opening Doppo tells us that after reading about the historical Battle of Kotesashi,  that took place in what was Musashi Province,  a desire to visit the place had welled up in him. Musashino is read like a multi layered piece of reflective writing, at first he describes his initial attraction and preconceived impressions of the place, and then he refers back to his notebook entries that he wrote during his visit. A striking feature of the piece is the differing length of the passages and entries Doppo uses, in his introduction the translator David Chibbett points out that Musashino is written in the tradition of zuihitsu, (random jottings), within his piece Doppo quotes passages from a short story by Turgenev, (translated into the Japanese by Futabatei Shimei), called Rendezvous. These longer passages are a contrast to Doppo's own shorter entries, in them he notes his observations of the weather, wind , rain and recalls midnight walks amongst the forest with an almost haiku like simplicity, there is not much reference to his frame of mind until an entry from 24th November 1896; - Not all the leaves have fallen yet. When I look at the distant mountains, my heart is filled with yearning and longs to vanish into them. Doppo charts the labyrinthine network of paths that criss-cross the woods, following them he finds old gravestones deep within them. Subtly he contrasts the woods of the birch trees descibed in Turgenev's piece with those of his native Japan, noting the absence of the oak tree from Japanese literature, autumn seems to be his favourite season and he notes the  re-appearance of greenery as the seasons change. Doppo a reader of Wordsworth and the Romantic poets writes in their style but his stories and writing are filled with characters from Japanese history, Yoshitsune, Rokudai Shojiki, also including a passage from the poet Kumagai Naoyoshi, (1782-1862). Musashino is filled with descriptions of the sounds of the woods and the plains, observations of the shadows of clouds drifting across the fields, although at it's heart the piece has a certain melancholy silence to it, and for it's descriptions of the winds and movement, a certain feeling of stillness is also felt. Nearing the end of Musashino Doppo recounts a walk with a friend, marvelling at the sight of the sun setting over the shoulder of Mt Fuji and describes an impromptu chance of tsukimi , but Musashino for Doppo, at it's ending is infused with the sights and sounds of life glimpsed in the present leaving us with an impression of the eternal.  

Musashino can be found in the collection River Mist and Other Stories translated by David Chibbett, published by Paul Norbury, 1983, Chibbett also included an interesting biography of Doppo, drawing on biographies by Fukuda Kiyohito and Sakamoto Hiroshi, Musashino stands out in this collection being the only non-fiction piece which also includes a number of Doppo's prose poems. Another excellent resource I came across while looking online about Musashi Province and the Kozuke-Musashi Campaign was The Samurai Archives Wiki.

An Adopted Husband

Futabatei Shimei's novel, Ukigumo/The Floating Cloud, 1887 is acknowledged as being one of Japan's first modern novels, his other novels have seen translation into English, Heibon/Mediocrity, 1907, translated by Glen W.Shaw, Hokuseido Press 1927, and also Sono Omokage/An Adopted Husband, 1906, translated by Buhachiro Mitsui & Gregg M Sinclair, Alfred Knopf 1919. Futabatei Shimei, like many other Meiji era novelists found inspiration in reading Tsubouchi Shoyo's Shosetsu Shinzui/The Essence of the Novel, 1885-1886, which can be read online in a translation by Nanette Gottlieb, in the essay Tsubouchi advises writers to, 'write about living people, not from fancy', Futabatei was also influenced by Russian literature and translated Turgenev into Japanese. Futabatei Shimei was the pen name of Hasegawa Tatsunosuke, who took his name from hearing what his father said to him when he told him that he intended to study literature, 'Kutabatte shimee', (Drop dead!).

The adopted husband of the title is Tetsuya Ono, a professor of Economics and Finance, and a well respected teacher, adopted by the wealthier Ono family to marry their daughter Tokiko, at the time Tetsuya was at university studying when his father passed away, leaving him struggling to finance his studies, the Ono's saw Tetsuya as a wise choice, thinking that a prosperous future lay ahead for him, families in Japan without sons often adopted in a husband to also ensure the family lineage. The novel opens however, with Hamura, a friend of Tetsuya's, pressurizing him into giving his sister in law away as a governess to the president of Hamura's company, the womanising, Shibuya. Tetsuya's sister in-law Sayoko, was an illegitimate child, in her early twenties she had married before, but shortly after the wedding her husband died unexpectedly, Tetsuya has heard about Shibuya's bad reputation and dreads being the one to communicate the proposition to Sayoko and the family. Tetsuya describes the immorality of Shibuya's household and reports of him abusing his maids, after her silence, he tells her he was only joking regarding the proposition, Tetsuya observes how kindly Sayo is towards him, very differently than the way his wife Tokiko treats him. Seeing Tetsuya vexed over the situation she agrees to go to Shibuya's house. The Ono family, whose father, Reizo, died recently also have strained finances, leaving the burden of supporting the family to Tetsuya. Tokiko, Tetsuya's wife seems very manipulative, and Tetsuya's relationship with his mother in law is approaching animated civility. Tetsuya tries to put off Hamura from making a formal request to the Ono family but fails and mother agrees to Sayoko being Shibuya's governess. Tokiko notices a change in Tetsuya, and suspects that her husband no longer loves her, Tetsuya finds himself missing Sayoko's kindness. Tokiko's hysteria comes out by way of demanding that Tetsuya hire another servant and asking for more money from him, he responds by saying that Sayoko should return, Tokiko accuses him that he's planning to leave her and live with Sayoko, mother over hears this and prostrates herself before him, begging him not to leave, bowing deeply until her head touches the ground.

Sayoko returns to the house after Shibuya tries to force himself on her, Hamura calls again on behalf of Shibuya saying that he intended her to be his future wife, Tetsuya declines the offer on behalf of Sayoko, Hamura calls Tetsuya stupid for sticking to his ideals, 'This is because you're obsessed by the spirit of old books!'. This seems to be the novels underpinning thesis, the pursuit of the moral good, or following your truer path as in Tetsuya's case, pitted against the pursuit of material wealth and advancement in society, and in the case of Tetsuya, it could be said it poses the question of what happens to the man who follows his heart, as he begins to meet with Sayoko outside of the family home, and together they plan to live together, but he has to pay his way out of his adopted marriage to free himself. Sayoko is confronted with familial obligations, and the consequences of their affair begin to undermine her, along with feelings of guilt of taking her sister's husband. As the couple's affair becomes untenable, Tetsuya having no way out, despite taking up an offer of work abroad, takes the path to self destruction, the end of the novel sees Tetsuya as a broken man and Hamura as successfully wealthy man.

To read Sono Omokage/An Adopted Husband online visit the translations to read online post.

for the Iwanami edition of Sono Omokage

On Knowing Oneself Too Well

Born in Iwate Prefecture, Ishikawa's birth name was Hajime, meaning, 'first one', his father, Ittei, was curate at Joko Temple, situated in Hinoto Village. An early interest in literature and writing brought him attention from major literary figures of the time, and for a while in his late teens he lived in Tokyo, and the poet Tekkan Asano gave him the pen name of Takuboku, translating as 'woodpecker'. At this time attitudes within Japanese poetry were beginning to shift, the poet Masaoka Shiki noting that change was happening all around with the Meiji era, had begun to intiate a change in styles, hokku to haiku, waka to tanka. Along with Tekkan and Akiko Asano, Ishikawa also began to adapt the tanka form. Ishikawa's short life was dogged by poverty, his father was discharged from his position at the temple and the responsibility of providing for the family was passed onto him. He married his childhood sweetheart and shortly after came the birth of their daughter Kyoko, Ishikawa worked as a teacher but was sacked after organizing a student strike, the family poverty stricken were forced to move apart. Working for a time in Hakodate as an editor, he had to move on again after the city suffered from a huge a fire. Although this proved not to affect his output as a writer, surviving on loans and gifts, he wrote up to a thousand poems in a year. His son Shinichi was born when Takuboku was 24, but died shortly after his birth, using the advance from his first book of poems A Handful of Sand to pay for his son's funeral, not long after he was diagnosed with tuberculosis and died aged twentysix on April 12, 1912, three months prior to the end of the Meiji era, his mother had also died from the disease a month prior, and a year later his wife also died.

Newly published by Syllabic Press and translated by Tamae K.Prindle, 'On Knowing Oneself Too Well' contains some of Takuboku's most well known poems, 'A Love Song To Myself', the longest poem being 117 three line stanzas of observational pieces reveal the poet's thoughts on himself, where he poses the question to life itself 'Shall I die for such a thing?, Shall I live for such a thing?, An endless controversy', the poem also contains the line that has been chosen as the title of the collection. The poem to me appears like a piece of perfect poetic cinematography, in a film where if you were to press pause at any given moment, you'd come away with a perfect photograph.'The ennui,  After pretending to be somebody, What shall I compare it to?'. In some ways it resembles Akutagawa's 'Life of a Fool', Takuboku notes the exasperation of keeping suicidal feelings in check, the pieces explore desperation, alienation, despondency, where smoking in an empty house, just to feel alone and miserable offers a momentary haven from other people, and a need of escape seems to inform many of the poems, in Smoke (1) a lost childhood is recalled, 'I escaped through a classroom window, And, alone, Went to lie in a ruin', being alone provides the opportunity to reflect, with the envy of a discontented child he looks up at the sky and the birds, in a melancholy poem about time passing and he muses on the children he knew, and the places that life has taken them, time like a stone rolling down a hill. The only thing that Ishikawa finds unfettered solace in is nature, looking at natural scenes, like an evening sky, seem to be the only opportunity to free himself of his vexations.

 

The collection also includes Ishikawa's 'Sad Toys', a poem composed from his hospital bed, thoughts of his hometown and money concerns are mixed with his distrust of the outside world, 'Fearing my thoughts would be heard, I quickly drew my chest back, From the stethoscope', and observes, 'For the first time in many years, I laughed aloud, At the sight of a fly rubbing it's hands'.

On Knowing Oneself Too Well

more on Takuboku Ishikawa


To read A Handful of Sand by Takuboku Ishikawa, visit the translations to read online post.

Kokoro by Natsume Sōseki

Finishing Kokoro my thoughts move on to which of Natsume's novels to read next, Natsume's prose in Kokoro is near to faultless, it's difficult to think of a book to follow it. The new edition of Sanshiro seems like it would be a good choice. Previous to reading Kokoro, the only other of Natsume's books I had read was Grass on the Wayside/Michikusa, and that was quite a few years ago. I read Edwin McCellan's translation of Kokoro from the Regnery/Gateway Edition , a new translation is on the way from Penguin, translated by Meredith McKinney, Penguin have also recently published Sanshiro and Kusamakura , which has previously been translated as The Three-Cornered World, so maybe some of the other novels will appear in new translations. First serialised in the Asahi Shinbun in 1914, Kokoro is told in three parts, written two years before Natsume's death it was his last completed full novel, Light and Darkness/Meian, was left unfinished. In some ways the first part of the novel reminded me of Stefan Zweig's novel Confusion, another novel that stems from the student/teacher relationship. Three historic events mentioned in the novel being the suicide of Nogi Maresuke (General Nogi in the novel), his involvement in the Satsuma Rebellion and also the death of the Meiji Emperor in 1912, which ended the Meiji Era, find reflection in the lives of the characters in the novel. The sensei of the novel is very much a man of this time, his letter to the young student, which almost reads as a novel within a novel, taking up the last third of the book reiterates not only the generation gap between himself and the student, but also illustrates the shifts of social behaviour that was taking place in Japan at that time. A period of great change, one that would reshape Japan. The student and sensei's story, set against the events of the end of Meiji, give the whole novel a valedictory tone.

Beginning with the young student recalling how he first met sensei at the beach at Kamakura, he learns that the enigmatic sensei visits a grave every month at Zoshigaya. 'I could not have known that there had been in sensei's life a frightening tragedy,inseparable from his love for his wife', he observes. The closer he seems to get to sensei the more his misanthropic and reclusive ways become apparent to him, the older man's wisdom seems to be a great source of vexation for the younger man, 'Don't put too much trust in me,you'll learn to regret it if you do. And if you ever allow yourself to feel betrayed you will find yourself being cruelly vindictive.' Talking with sensei's wife he tries to learn the source of why sensei is the way he is, she tells him that in his youth sensei had a friend who died suddenly, an unnatural death, but she can say no more, she feels that she maybe the source of his unhappiness, but the truth of what the secret is in sensei's past remains elusive to them both it seems. Natsume's prose captures all the subtleties of the young student's fascination with sensei, and sensei's growing openness toward the student. The student's father suffers from a kidney disease,which the family fear will prove fatal, and he's called back to the family home to help look after his father, his father at first doesn't appear too ill, and for a while concerns over the students future job prospects seem to be the main concern, and after telling his parents about sensei, his mother encourages him to write to sensei seeking his assistance in finding him a position. Whilst waiting for a reply his father's condition takes a change for the worse. As his father deteriorates, his anxiety over sensei heightens when he receives a thick letter from sensei, he reads the line, 'By the time this letter reaches you, I shall probably have left this world-I shall in all likelihood be dead', the second part of the novel ends with the student torn between leaving his dying father, and rushing back to Tokyo to see if he can stop sensei from his suicide.

The third part of the novel is the story of sensei's secret told in the letter, he recounts his student days and of the character that he refers only to as K, but that you'll have to discover yourself. Kokoro was adapted into a film by Kon Ichikawa in 1955, and again by Kaneto Shindo in 1973.

Nami-Ko

Kenjiro Tokutomi, 1868-1927 who's also known as Roka Tokutomi was the younger brother of Soho Tokutomi who was an eminent historian. Nami-Ko was serialized initially in the Kokumin Shimbun between 1898-1899, it's Japanese name was Hototogisu, (Cuckoo). The translation done by Sakae Shioya and E.F Edgett of this Yurakusha 1905 edition is a little dated now, but it's still a very readable novel. Kenjiro Tokutomi was a great admirer of the works of Tolstoy, he translated him into Japanese and even visited Tolstoy at Yasnaya Polyana, the novel has a western influence to it. Shadowed by the Sino-Japan war it follows Nami-Ko just married to Baron Takeo Kawashima,a naval officer, as they honeymoon around Mount Akagi , telling of her childhood, her birth mother died when she was eight years old, and her step mother never liked her, scolding Nami-Ko and at times ridiculing her dead mother, marrying Takeo was a relief to escape from her. Whilst out collecting ferns on their honeymoon, Takeo's cousin Chijiwa finds them and whilst Takeo leaves them alone to fetch a cane he forgot, Chijiwa questions Nami over the letter he sent to her, it's revealed that Chijiwa had intended to propose to Nami, but his cousin beat him to it, Chijiwa's unwanted attentions upset her, but she tells him that his letter will remain a secret as she put it in the fire, a source of great bitterness for Chijiwa he accuses that she only married the Baron for his money.

After Chijiwa has left them he meets up with Hyozo Yamaki, 'a gentleman merchant' who appears to be an unscrupulous man, with all sorts of shady dealings, his daughter O-Toyo has always had feelings for Baron Takeo and dislikes Nami. Baron Takeo's father we learn died in the Restoration War, and his widowed mother suffers from rheumatism, soon after they return from their honeymoon, Takeo is called away for duty, Nami has to stay with her mother-in law. Takeo learns that Chijiwa is gaining a bad reputation, falling into debt, military secrets have leaked, and Chijiwa has been seen around the stock exchange. Baron Takeo is seen as a figure of incorruptibility, leaving early from a party held by Hyozo Yamaki, repulsed by the drunken behavior. Takeo learns that Chijiwa forged his official seal to raise funds from a promissory note to pay off a debt, Takeo chastises Chijiwa, paying off the debt for him, but severing their relationship, and telling him he won't make it public. Nami-Ko falls ill to consumption and Takeo is called up again,and whilst he's away Chijiwa plans his revenge, and hearing that Nami is gravely ill he meets Takeo's mother, who has never liked Nami and has been jealous of the attention Takeo has given her, Chijiwa suggests that maybe Takeo and Nami should be divorced as her illness threatens the family line of the Kawashima's. They go behind Takeo's back and seek consent for the divorce from Nami's father telling him that Takeo knows and has agreed to it, he gives his consent and Nami is 'called back' to her family home.

At the out break of the Sino-Japanese War Takeo sees action at the Battle of the Yalu River.  Nami is devastated by her situation, her consumption worsens. Takeo is injured during the battle, and convalesces at Saseho. Yamaki taking full advantage of Takeo's absence and trying to work his way into the wealthy Kawashima family, sends his daughter to Takeo's mothers residence, to have her trained as a maid, and a possible second wife for Takeo, but Toyo is not popular with Takeo's mother who's estrangement from her son, soon leaves her questioning her actions. Once Takeo's injury has healed he doesn't return home, instead he goes back to his ship. Recovering at Sagami Bay, Nami grows more and more despondent, contemplating the early death of her real mother, and the separation from her husband, Nami concludes that maybe death is the only way she can find happiness,standing at the cliff edge, staring out at the sea, she imagines Takeo out there, perhaps her spirit may reach him...

Tokutomi, in his later years moved to the country,and like Tolstoy became reclusive, a prolific translator and writer, his last book 'Fuji', an autobiography was written with his wife Akio, although he died before it was completed. Interested in Christianity, he was baptized when he was seventeen, his writing is also noted for his fascination with nature. I think two other of his books are available in translation; 'Footprints in the Snow' and 'Nature and Man', which hopefully I'll read in the future.


To read Nami-ko online please see the Japanese Literature: Online Translations post. 

Country Teacher

After reading a few articles on Katai Tayama's (1872-1930), 'Futon', Country Teacher seemed like an interesting novel to look at. Tayama is known as being one of the foremost writers in Japanese naturalism. First published in Japan in 1909 under the title 'Inaka Kyoshi' by publisher Sakura Shobo, this translation by Kenneth Henshall and is published by University of Hawaii Press. Kenneth Henshall also translated Tayama's 'Literary Life in Tokyo 1885-1915', as well as, 'The Quilt and other Stories', (containing Futon), both out of print as far as I know, I'd really like to read both of these. In his preface Kenneth Henshall explains how Tayama had based his novel from the real life diaries of Kobayashi Shuzo,1884-1904, and gives a background to the characters in the novel, and also of the authors who make an appearance under alternative names, who include, Ota Gyokumei, critic Hasegawa Tenki, and Tayama himself. He goes onto highlight that Kobayashi's literary hero was Shimazaki Toson , and reminds us that in those days, writers were followed in the press like pop and sports stars are today. Also included here is an extract on Country Teacher from Tayama's 'Thirty Years in Tokyo', in which he goes further into detail about the diaries and Kobayashi Shuzo whom he had met a number of times through Ota Gyokumei, in the extract there is a page of photographs and a map of the area of where the novel is set, mainly around the border between Gunma and Saitama prefectures.

In the novel Shuzo's name is changed to Seizo Hayashi, starting as a teacher in the small rural village of Miroku, and opens just prior to the Russo-Japan War. Like most of the other young men in his village he has an interest in literature, his group of friends are planning to start a literary magazine, (Gyoda Bungaku), Seizo is often found reading 'Myojo', he reads admiringly of Akiko Yosano , and one of his favourite poems is Enoch Arden. Seizo's family struggles to survive financially, after his father's business went bankrupt, so Seizo's new job come's as a great relief to the family. Seizo also had a younger brother who died young due to tuberculosis. The group of friend's excitement grows as publication of the first edition of their magazine approaches, and Seizo is asked to go to the temple near his school to see if he can obtain a manuscript from the chief priest, who had connections with the literary world in Tokyo, but has since turned away from that world, speaking of an old acquaintance he says, 'It was hopeless for him to chase fame and get smeared with dirt from the city. It doesn't matter how successful you become, once death comes calling, your nothing but tears in other's eyes'.
 

Whilst walking with his friend Ikuji, Seizo realize they both have feelings for the same girl, Mihoko, but Seizo seems quite happy not to stand in the way of his friends happiness should they become a couple. Seizo has to walk miles from his own village to the school, and as the temple is close to his school, Seizo lodges with the priest. Whilst here, his friends begin to drift away from the village, moving onto universities in Tokyo, the feeling that Seizo gets that his life might not be going in the direction he had envisioned, begin to surface as he observes the older teachers, and thinks sadly of himself, that if he's not careful he might end up like them, 'Am I too then going to pass my life with idle words, like so many people in the world?'. Things worsen when Mihoko returns from her dormitory in Urawa and he receives a postcard from Kojima (an old school friend) telling him that he's qualified for higher school and is going to Kanazawa, Seizo writes him a congratulatory letter, than bursts into tears over his own lack of fortune.
 

Winter approaches and the literary magazine the friends started is abandoned due to increasing debts and Seizo learns of Ikuji's and Mihoko's relationship which is a source of bitterness. His parents have increasing debt which he helps with, barely leaving any money left over. He continues teaching, eventually moving into the school, on a return trip to his home village he finds that none of his friends are there anymore, he begins to distance himself from the world, composing verse, and weeps over his situation. Seizo begins to learn of Hotto, a neighbouring village and hears of the loose morality there, he contemplates the harsh life in the countryside, compared with the great men in the newspapers, thinks about how many people live the mundane existence, could he to be content with that?. He learns that the countryside is full of stories of suicides, infidelities, burglaries. One day he builds up the courage to take the ferry and visit one of the brothels across the river, after walking away once, he resolutely walks back and picks out the prostitute Shizue, who he's very much taken with, and returns to her again, thinking that maybe they could start a relationship. But he thinks that maybe the brothel house is just toying with his lonely heart, considering her other clients. He doesn't visit for sometime but when he does Shizue has been redeemed, another prostitute gives him a parcel, inside is a note with sorry written in crude characters and a photograph.

In an attempt to change the direction of his life, Seizo signs up for a music school in Tokyo, he makes the journey for the entry exam but fails to get through and returns, with mounting debts Seizo feels he has to get a further grip on his life, concentrating at his job, he restarts his diary in November 1903. Seizo who has suffered from ill health begins to develop a temperature, at night he sweats and begins to suffer from stomach pains, and through the start of the new year his condition worsens, but continues to work. Ikuji returns home and the two discuss the war, and the mounting tension of the siege of Port Arthur . The doctor can't seem to find a cause and the suspicion that it could be consumption is discussed, but nothing can be verified and they can hardly meet the cost for the medicine, Seizo grows paler. Ikuji and Mihoko are to be married, which he can't bring himself to contemplate, and his friend takes him to another doctor for a second opinion, but he is unable to give definite diagnosis. His condition deteriorates and Seizo's doctor announces that its a permanent disability, and he becomes bedridden, he worries about his sick pay entitlement, after investigating he's entitled to two months. Confined to his bed Seizo frustratingly contemplates not being able to take part in the jubilation of the victories as the war progresses and thinks of the soldiers fighting and giving their lives on the plains of Manchuria.

Kenneth Henshall highlights in his preface that Tayama elaborated on some aspects of the diaries and changed some of the dates, and also notes that Kobayashi's original diaries were used to repair sliding doors in the second world war, so sadly further re-examination is impossible. The novel gets a little nationalistic near the end, but being written when it was, it's none too surprising, I'm unaware of Tayama's politics, but Tayama's depiction of Seizo's loneliness as his friends leave for university, and pursue life beyond the village, was done with a heart breaking accuracy, further compounded by the novel's sad conclusion.