花火 [Hanabi]

by Osamu Dazai, 太宰治

「無頼派」「新戯作派」の破滅型作家を代表する昭和初期の小説家、太宰治の同人時代の短編。初出は「弘高新聞」［1929（昭和4）年］。メーデー日和のからっと晴れた日、花火を合図に広場へと集まることになっていると告げる「僕」が、花火にまつわる思い出を語る話。作品の前後に記される労働運動や兄の獣欲の犠牲となる小間使いには、階級意識に根付いた告発の姿勢がある。

17 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1929

About the author

Osamu DAZAI (native name: 太宰治, real name Shūji Tsushima) was a Japanese author who is considered one of the foremost fiction writers of 20th-century Japan. A number of his most popular works, such as Shayō (The Setting Sun) and Ningen Shikkaku (No Longer Human), are considered modern-day classics in Japan.
With a semi-autobiographical style and transparency into his personal life, Dazai’s stories have intrigued the minds of many readers. His books also bring about awareness to a number of important topics such as human nature, mental illness, social relationships, and postwar Japan.

Reviews

[Derek Lei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very strange book, but good book nonetheless. Gonna have to re-read it to fully appreciate its strangeness.