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Sanshiro
In Natsume Soseki's classic coming-of-age novel "Sanshiro", a young man from the countryside arrives in Tokyo to begin his university studies, filled with excitement, uncertainty and naivete about big city life. Through Sanshiro's journey of self-discovery, Soseki masterfully captures the disorientation and wonder of a sensitive youth grappling with newfound independence, social expectations, and the complexities of relationships.
Set in early 20th century Japan, the novel paints a vivid portrait of a nation in transition, caught between tradition and modernity. As Sanshiro navigates the intellectual fervor of campus life, the intrigues of romance, and the weight of familial obligations, readers are drawn into his inner world - his hopes, fears, triumphs and fumbles.
With gentle humor and keen psychological insight, Soseki explores timeless themes - the search for identity and purpose, the pain and joy of first love, the clash between individual desires and societal norms. Through evocative prose and memorable characters, he invites us to reflect on our own youthful journeys.
Rich in historical detail yet startlingly modern in its concerns, "Sanshiro" is a poignant, beautifully crafted story that continues to resonate over a century after its publication. For anyone who has ever stood on the precipice of adulthood, dreaming and doubting, this novel offers a moving testament to the universal growing pains of the human heart.
Set in early 20th century Japan, the novel paints a vivid portrait of a nation in transition, caught between tradition and modernity. As Sanshiro navigates the intellectual fervor of campus life, the intrigues of romance, and the weight of familial obligations, readers are drawn into his inner world - his hopes, fears, triumphs and fumbles.
With gentle humor and keen psychological insight, Soseki explores timeless themes - the search for identity and purpose, the pain and joy of first love, the clash between individual desires and societal norms. Through evocative prose and memorable characters, he invites us to reflect on our own youthful journeys.
Rich in historical detail yet startlingly modern in its concerns, "Sanshiro" is a poignant, beautifully crafted story that continues to resonate over a century after its publication. For anyone who has ever stood on the precipice of adulthood, dreaming and doubting, this novel offers a moving testament to the universal growing pains of the human heart.
479 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1908
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About the author
Natsume Sōseki
886 books3,272 followersNatsume Sōseki (夏目 漱石), born Natsume Kinnosuke (夏目 金之助), was a Japanese novelist. He is best known for his novels Kokoro, Botchan, I Am a Cat and his unfinished work Light and Darkness. He was also a scholar of British literature and composer of haiku, kanshi, and fairy tales. From 1984 until 2004, his portrait appeared on the front of the Japanese 1000 yen note. In Japan, he is often considered the greatest writer in modern Japanese history. He has had a profound effect on almost all important Japanese writers since.
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September 13, 2018
“When he heard that Sanshiro was going to school forty hours a week, his eyes popped. "You idiot! Do you think it would 'satisfy' you to eat what they serve at your rooming house ten times a day?"
"What should I do?" Sanshiro pleaded.
"Ride the streetcar," Yojiro said.
Sanshiro tried to find Yojiro's hidden meaning, without success.
"You mean a real streetcar?" he asked.
Yojiro laughed uncontrollably. "Get on the streetcar and ride around Tokyo ten or fifteen times. After a while it will just happen by itself- you will become satisfied.
"Why?"
"Why? Well, look at it this way. Your head is alive, but if you seal it up inside dead classes, you're lost. Take it outside and get the wind into it. Riding the streetcar is not the only way to get satisfaction, of course, but it's the first step, and the easiest.”
Natsume Soseki
Japan is struggling with the modernization/westernization of Japan at the turn of the last century. Sanshiro is a young man of peasant country stock who has done well enough with his studies that he is allowed to go to Tokyo to the university. He finds himself becoming friends with the intelligentsia: professors, writers, painters, but most intriguing of all with beautiful, strangely intelligent women.
He is twenty-three and he knows nothing.
He goes to classes religiously because he is studious and because he knows by being industrious is how he has been successful in school to this point. The suggestions by his new friend Yojiro to ride the streetcars instead of going to class is a philosophical concept beyond his scope of understanding. Yojiro is on to something though, because what Sanshiro needs more than anything else is new experiences. He needs more life before what he learns in school will be of any use to him.
He is always the fish out of the water. The person who feels the most behind in discovering who he is. ”The others were truer to themselves than he was, he had to admit. They were people of the city who lived beneath heavens that were broad enough to enable them to be true to themselves.” I certainly had some flashbacks to when I first left the farm to move to Phoenix. I always felt like a rube, but it was also exhilarating because I was discovering how much there was to learn. I was a quick study and one advantage I’ve always had is being able to apply what I read to my own life. Sanshiro learns quickly, as did I, that the best way to learn was to be quiet, speak only enough to keep others talking.
He falls in love, not by design, but because he meets this woman who sees life with more depth, with more nuance than he does. She awakens ideas and concepts in him. He is thinking about things she said days after their last encounter. When he is walking away from seeing her he is already plotting how he can see her again. Food tastes better. The air smells sweeter. Anything seems possible. His emotions run high. ”Lately, Sanshiro had become the captive of a woman, he had surrendered himself. It would be pleasant enough to be lovers, but this was an incomprehensible kind of surrender. He did not know if he was being loved or laughed at, whether he should be terrified or contemptuous, whether he should end it all or go ahead. He was angry and frustrated.”
Remember what it was like? Brilliantly tortuous and oh so brutal when like a house of cards your love is folded up and reshuffled.
I’m not sure if Natsume Soseki was making fun of the Japanese obsession with Henrik Ibsen or he was joining the course of admirers. There are many references in the book to someone being a character out of Ibsen or someone being Ibsenesque.
Sanshiro’s innocence is doomed of course. It isn’t a trait we admire in a grown man anyway. We are expected to be less gullible, less emotional, certainly not a tangle of unstructured thoughts.
It is difficult to pass our wisdom to people younger than ourselves without webbing it with cynicism. What we find annoying in them are the very things we have worked so hard to tamp down in ourselves. By destroying innocence in others we continue to keep it contained in ourselves.
No wonder young people ignore us.
This was a quick, pleasant read. Natsume Soseki was much more assured with his themes in this book than he was in his first book Botchan but then that too is probably just representative of an author losing his innocence as well.
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
I also have a Facebook blogger page at:https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyKeeten
"What should I do?" Sanshiro pleaded.
"Ride the streetcar," Yojiro said.
Sanshiro tried to find Yojiro's hidden meaning, without success.
"You mean a real streetcar?" he asked.
Yojiro laughed uncontrollably. "Get on the streetcar and ride around Tokyo ten or fifteen times. After a while it will just happen by itself- you will become satisfied.
"Why?"
"Why? Well, look at it this way. Your head is alive, but if you seal it up inside dead classes, you're lost. Take it outside and get the wind into it. Riding the streetcar is not the only way to get satisfaction, of course, but it's the first step, and the easiest.”
Natsume Soseki
Japan is struggling with the modernization/westernization of Japan at the turn of the last century. Sanshiro is a young man of peasant country stock who has done well enough with his studies that he is allowed to go to Tokyo to the university. He finds himself becoming friends with the intelligentsia: professors, writers, painters, but most intriguing of all with beautiful, strangely intelligent women.
He is twenty-three and he knows nothing.
He goes to classes religiously because he is studious and because he knows by being industrious is how he has been successful in school to this point. The suggestions by his new friend Yojiro to ride the streetcars instead of going to class is a philosophical concept beyond his scope of understanding. Yojiro is on to something though, because what Sanshiro needs more than anything else is new experiences. He needs more life before what he learns in school will be of any use to him.
He is always the fish out of the water. The person who feels the most behind in discovering who he is. ”The others were truer to themselves than he was, he had to admit. They were people of the city who lived beneath heavens that were broad enough to enable them to be true to themselves.” I certainly had some flashbacks to when I first left the farm to move to Phoenix. I always felt like a rube, but it was also exhilarating because I was discovering how much there was to learn. I was a quick study and one advantage I’ve always had is being able to apply what I read to my own life. Sanshiro learns quickly, as did I, that the best way to learn was to be quiet, speak only enough to keep others talking.
He falls in love, not by design, but because he meets this woman who sees life with more depth, with more nuance than he does. She awakens ideas and concepts in him. He is thinking about things she said days after their last encounter. When he is walking away from seeing her he is already plotting how he can see her again. Food tastes better. The air smells sweeter. Anything seems possible. His emotions run high. ”Lately, Sanshiro had become the captive of a woman, he had surrendered himself. It would be pleasant enough to be lovers, but this was an incomprehensible kind of surrender. He did not know if he was being loved or laughed at, whether he should be terrified or contemptuous, whether he should end it all or go ahead. He was angry and frustrated.”
Remember what it was like? Brilliantly tortuous and oh so brutal when like a house of cards your love is folded up and reshuffled.
I’m not sure if Natsume Soseki was making fun of the Japanese obsession with Henrik Ibsen or he was joining the course of admirers. There are many references in the book to someone being a character out of Ibsen or someone being Ibsenesque.
Sanshiro’s innocence is doomed of course. It isn’t a trait we admire in a grown man anyway. We are expected to be less gullible, less emotional, certainly not a tangle of unstructured thoughts.
It is difficult to pass our wisdom to people younger than ourselves without webbing it with cynicism. What we find annoying in them are the very things we have worked so hard to tamp down in ourselves. By destroying innocence in others we continue to keep it contained in ourselves.
No wonder young people ignore us.
This was a quick, pleasant read. Natsume Soseki was much more assured with his themes in this book than he was in his first book Botchan but then that too is probably just representative of an author losing his innocence as well.
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
I also have a Facebook blogger page at:https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyKeeten
April 30, 2011
I can't believe I'm saying this, but, for once, I'm glad that I'm not an intellectual. Haruki Murakami wrote the introduction to Soseki's Sanshiro (note: I read the "new" translation by Jay Rubin, who should be well known to my fellow Murakami fans [Further to the side note! It felt good to be hearing again through Rubin's cover songs.]). I love Murakami in my greedy passion fashion. In 2004 I read every translated work at that time in a couple of months (followed closely by all yet translated Banana Yoshimoto). That said, I think he missed something important (to me). Nooooo, Murakami, how could you not get it?! "For me, Soseki's apparently most popular novel, Kokoro, left something to be desired, and while I did enjoy the late works, so widely praised for their psychological insight, I could never fully identify with the deep anguish of the modern intellectual depicted in them. "What's the point in going on and on about this?" I would often feel. In that sense, I'm probably a bit removed from the "mainstream" Soseki reader. Nooooooo. Okay, I loved Kokoro so very much because it isn't about the "deep anguish of the modern intellectual". It hurts just as much to be stupid. I don't know when I first started resenting the idea that stupid people were happy. It seems like it has been always. Jack Nicholson's truth is fucking far from this truth and I can't handle either of them. Babies need darkness but c'mon enough is enough. This really fucking sucks, actually. Kokoro is about a whole different kind of awareness and yearning. I kinda didn't want to read the rest of his introduction after he fucked up so royally on Kokoro. Kokoro, and Sanshiro is too, is about trying to sit close or further away in love, not intellect, and know enough to tell where that fire is in the first place. I'd say Kokoro is the fire and Sanshiro is more the knowing how the hell to find it. The mistrust didn't have anything to do with anguish of the modern intellectual. I did really like his introduction, other than that. I'm not too good at finding the cultural fires myself so I don't know if Murakami is right that Sanshiro is about how Japan never "grew up". Is it alright that I'll see myself in it instead? The anguish of the stupid... Wait, I was glad being all glad I wasn't an intellectual and stuff. I needed my love story of Kokoro. Intellectual words aren't gonna be the shovel to dig out or bury into the center of the earth. Sidelong looks, downcast eyes to the heavens and the grounds, blind spots... New ways of looking at things. At least things might look differently then. Is it possible to put it all into words and understand everything? And be HAPPY about it? (I kinda suspect we are all wily coyotes.) Weeell...
Sanshiro recalled how the man eating the peaches on the train had said to him, "You'd better watch out- life can be dangerous." For all his talk of danger, the man was annoyingly self-possessed. Perhaps one could be like that if he stood in a position so free of danger that he could afford to warn others against it. This might be a source of amusement for those men who, while part of the world, watched it from a place apart. Yes, for certain, the man was one of them. It was obvious from the way he ate those peaches, the way he sipped his tea and puffed on his cigarette, looking always straight ahead. The man was a critic. Sanshiro tried out the word "critic" with his unusual meaning, and he was pleased with himself. Indeed, he went so far as to wonder if he, too, should live as a critic some day.
When I was a kid I would bang my head on the wall when feeling frustrated. I kinda still know how little me felt. If I only had a brain... If I only had a heart! Go on and bang on it. See? All hollow. If I only had courage... Sanshiro's inner sore spot in his awareness (like mine is stupidity and miscommunication) is his lack of bravery. The side looks and checking before a step and before falls... Is there more that happened? Hell yes, I got his confusion.
Academics, she said, look at everything as objects of study, and so their emotions dry up. But if you look at things with feeling, you never want to study them because everything comes down to love or hate. Unfortunately, as a scientist, her brother could not help viewing her as an object of study, which was unkind of him, because the more he studied his sister, the more his love for her would decrease.
Sanshiro is a "coming of age" novel. I still don't know what that means. I've read a lot of them so far in 2011: Demian, Of Human Bondage, Confessions of a Mask... They did have things in common, actually. The young protaganists (students) would meet people who would speak great words that make sense and work very well as conversations, sometimes, rather than experience (stimulating conversations, though. Perfect for 3 am mental trains conversations). I'm thinking what I really want in my "coming of age" novels is a feeling that it isn't inevitable. Sanshiro does have this foriegn feeling inside of what could happen, the new ways of feeling, curtains lifted, all that stuff. The pain of being stupid and the sting of unrequited something because you can't know if what you feel is what they feel, if someone else is "just being nice", or playing with you. I remember back in the day in kiddie school when my classmates would scoff at the blatant stupidity of their ancestors: "They thought the world was flat?! *I* wouldn't have been so dumb." Emotions aren't science. You don't really walk the steps of those who came before you, at least not in parallel lines. What makes Soseki a particular genius in my eyes is that Sanshiro's confusion is balanced with the gradually moving world before his eyes (and sometimes it doesn't go anywhere after all, like the clouds he watches). He can't know if people are being fake. You decide to trust, you make comparisons based on experience. Sometimes it's as complex as overhearing a loved one talk shit about you and being able to still feel like they love you in spite of it all. It wouldn't have occured to him that people had it in them to be fake when he was living in more countrified company (although I find it hard to imagine any village without vipers). But his sky changes colors and there are big ass rain clouds over his head when it concerns a woman. It's not inevitable that anything is going to change. You know what else I really love about Soseki? One relationship is not the rest of the life. (Yes!) It's stretching out ages. More to come...
Screw the "coming of age" novel. It's unrequited love story again (these are my favorite, as I understand "unrequited love", anyway). The anguish of the stupid! We none of us are mind readers (unless we are writers like Soseki).
Tear away the pretty formalities and the bad is out in the open. Formalities are just a bother, so everyone economizes and makes do with the plain stuff. It's actually quite exhilarating- natural ugliness in all its glory. Of course, when there's too much glory, the hypervillains get a little annoyed with each other. When their discomfort reaches a peak, altruism is resurrected. And when that becomes a mere formality and turns sour, egoism comes back. And so on, ad infinitum. That's how we go on living, you might say. That's how we progress."
I haven't felt like reading anything but Japanese works translated into English (don't know Japanese. Communication tortures me). Why didn't I read Soseki in 2004? I have no idea. I was really dumb. I don't know enough to say why it is that I'm jonesing so bad now. Maybe it is the suicidal feeling as wanting to make up your mind one way or the other. I could just be reading books about that. I really want the foriegn feeling inside about the unrequited. How do you know when people are being fake? I want to feel that human shit isn't inevitable and the less it is "told" (like taken for granted similarities) the better. I wanna see for my own eyes and increase my scope to tell in spite of it all. I'd have liked Sanshiro even better if the teachers had talked a lot less but that's okay. I'll remember their talk in memory as if they were talking to me, maybe.
It was then that Sanshiro knew somewhere deep inside: this woman was too much for him. He felt, too, a vague sense of humiliation accompanying the awareness that he had been seen through.
P.s. Stray sheep. Stray sheep. The girls! Sanshiro is in love with Mineko. I keep throwing around the word "genius", which is kinda annoying. I'm just trying to say what I value in writing, really. I loved the mind reading glimpses into Mineko, how she seems to be mentally willing one of the men in her life to understand her. She thought that Sanshiro would remember an outfit she wore on a "memorable" day they shared [it was, for different reasons] and that she started being painted on a day because of it. If only he had recognized it that might have been physical proof to her... His not "getting it" was a different kind than hers. I felt like there were echoes waiting to be heard from her when she's with her men. Awesome.
P.s.s. Sanshiro sees "Cuckoo in the far-off heavens" written as a caption of a fellow student's art work. I liked that.
P.s.s.s. I know I picked on Murakami's take but now I'm feeling guilty because there aren't that many reviews of this book on goodreads. I should have made more real book sense.
To place the light and the thing that receives the light in a spatial relationship that cannot be found in the normal natural world is something only a romantic would do."
Sanshiro recalled how the man eating the peaches on the train had said to him, "You'd better watch out- life can be dangerous." For all his talk of danger, the man was annoyingly self-possessed. Perhaps one could be like that if he stood in a position so free of danger that he could afford to warn others against it. This might be a source of amusement for those men who, while part of the world, watched it from a place apart. Yes, for certain, the man was one of them. It was obvious from the way he ate those peaches, the way he sipped his tea and puffed on his cigarette, looking always straight ahead. The man was a critic. Sanshiro tried out the word "critic" with his unusual meaning, and he was pleased with himself. Indeed, he went so far as to wonder if he, too, should live as a critic some day.
When I was a kid I would bang my head on the wall when feeling frustrated. I kinda still know how little me felt. If I only had a brain... If I only had a heart! Go on and bang on it. See? All hollow. If I only had courage... Sanshiro's inner sore spot in his awareness (like mine is stupidity and miscommunication) is his lack of bravery. The side looks and checking before a step and before falls... Is there more that happened? Hell yes, I got his confusion.
Academics, she said, look at everything as objects of study, and so their emotions dry up. But if you look at things with feeling, you never want to study them because everything comes down to love or hate. Unfortunately, as a scientist, her brother could not help viewing her as an object of study, which was unkind of him, because the more he studied his sister, the more his love for her would decrease.
Sanshiro is a "coming of age" novel. I still don't know what that means. I've read a lot of them so far in 2011: Demian, Of Human Bondage, Confessions of a Mask... They did have things in common, actually. The young protaganists (students) would meet people who would speak great words that make sense and work very well as conversations, sometimes, rather than experience (stimulating conversations, though. Perfect for 3 am mental trains conversations). I'm thinking what I really want in my "coming of age" novels is a feeling that it isn't inevitable. Sanshiro does have this foriegn feeling inside of what could happen, the new ways of feeling, curtains lifted, all that stuff. The pain of being stupid and the sting of unrequited something because you can't know if what you feel is what they feel, if someone else is "just being nice", or playing with you. I remember back in the day in kiddie school when my classmates would scoff at the blatant stupidity of their ancestors: "They thought the world was flat?! *I* wouldn't have been so dumb." Emotions aren't science. You don't really walk the steps of those who came before you, at least not in parallel lines. What makes Soseki a particular genius in my eyes is that Sanshiro's confusion is balanced with the gradually moving world before his eyes (and sometimes it doesn't go anywhere after all, like the clouds he watches). He can't know if people are being fake. You decide to trust, you make comparisons based on experience. Sometimes it's as complex as overhearing a loved one talk shit about you and being able to still feel like they love you in spite of it all. It wouldn't have occured to him that people had it in them to be fake when he was living in more countrified company (although I find it hard to imagine any village without vipers). But his sky changes colors and there are big ass rain clouds over his head when it concerns a woman. It's not inevitable that anything is going to change. You know what else I really love about Soseki? One relationship is not the rest of the life. (Yes!) It's stretching out ages. More to come...
Screw the "coming of age" novel. It's unrequited love story again (these are my favorite, as I understand "unrequited love", anyway). The anguish of the stupid! We none of us are mind readers (unless we are writers like Soseki).
Tear away the pretty formalities and the bad is out in the open. Formalities are just a bother, so everyone economizes and makes do with the plain stuff. It's actually quite exhilarating- natural ugliness in all its glory. Of course, when there's too much glory, the hypervillains get a little annoyed with each other. When their discomfort reaches a peak, altruism is resurrected. And when that becomes a mere formality and turns sour, egoism comes back. And so on, ad infinitum. That's how we go on living, you might say. That's how we progress."
I haven't felt like reading anything but Japanese works translated into English (don't know Japanese. Communication tortures me). Why didn't I read Soseki in 2004? I have no idea. I was really dumb. I don't know enough to say why it is that I'm jonesing so bad now. Maybe it is the suicidal feeling as wanting to make up your mind one way or the other. I could just be reading books about that. I really want the foriegn feeling inside about the unrequited. How do you know when people are being fake? I want to feel that human shit isn't inevitable and the less it is "told" (like taken for granted similarities) the better. I wanna see for my own eyes and increase my scope to tell in spite of it all. I'd have liked Sanshiro even better if the teachers had talked a lot less but that's okay. I'll remember their talk in memory as if they were talking to me, maybe.
It was then that Sanshiro knew somewhere deep inside: this woman was too much for him. He felt, too, a vague sense of humiliation accompanying the awareness that he had been seen through.
P.s. Stray sheep. Stray sheep. The girls! Sanshiro is in love with Mineko. I keep throwing around the word "genius", which is kinda annoying. I'm just trying to say what I value in writing, really. I loved the mind reading glimpses into Mineko, how she seems to be mentally willing one of the men in her life to understand her. She thought that Sanshiro would remember an outfit she wore on a "memorable" day they shared [it was, for different reasons] and that she started being painted on a day because of it. If only he had recognized it that might have been physical proof to her... His not "getting it" was a different kind than hers. I felt like there were echoes waiting to be heard from her when she's with her men. Awesome.
P.s.s. Sanshiro sees "Cuckoo in the far-off heavens" written as a caption of a fellow student's art work. I liked that.
P.s.s.s. I know I picked on Murakami's take but now I'm feeling guilty because there aren't that many reviews of this book on goodreads. I should have made more real book sense.
To place the light and the thing that receives the light in a spatial relationship that cannot be found in the normal natural world is something only a romantic would do."
August 14, 2020
3,5. Sanshiro, un muchacho de pueblo, llega a Tokio para estudiar Literatura en la universidad. Su sueño es dedicarse a escribir, por lo que espera aprender y adquirir todas esos conocimientos que le permitan conseguir ese algo distintivo que lo ayude a alcanzarlo. Pronto descubrirá que las clases no lo están sirviendo y lejos de aprender, siente un enorme hastío. Nada lo satisface. La universidad no es lo que esperaba. Tokio tampoco lo es. Sanshiro no termina de encontrarse a sí mismo.
Alrededor de Sanshiro se moverán un grupo bastante variopinto de personajes: un extraño científico llamado Nonomiya que vive apartado de la sociedad, centrado en sus investigaciones; Yoshiko, una joven enferma y hermana del anterior; Yojiro, un compañero de clase que no para de meter en líos al protagonista; el profesor Hirota, que sirve de maestro de vida a los que le rodean y la misteriosa Mineko, una chica de la que Sanshiro acabará enamorándose.
Segunda novela que leo de Natsume Soseki, y empiezo a comprender el porqué Murakami lo tomó como ejemplo a seguir. Mantiene la misma tónica de Kokoro, que fue la primera novela que leí suya. Y en ambas nos encontramos con un chico joven de pueblo, que se siente perdido y que busca una guía en la vida, que normalmente está representada por un hombre mayor con el que forja una amistad. Esos personajes que se sienten perdidos y no encuentran su lugar, es una de las claves de la literatura de Murakami, y al parecer, anteriormente lo fue de Soseki.
Aunque la he disfrutado bastante, hubo ciertos capítulos de reuniones de personajes relacionados con el mundo del arte que me aburrieron muchísimo y eran larguísimos. Me gustó la crítica a la pedantería de la época en estos ambientes culturales y es interesante, pero se me hicieron muy cansinos. Podría haberlos suavizados y dedicado más tiempo a Mineko, ya que me parecía el personaje más interesante y el autor profundiza poco en ella. Lo que sí me gustó mucho fue la constante muestra del miedo de los jóvenes a la reciente apertura de Japón al mundo y a que su país se occidentalizara en exceso.
Aunque me ha gustado, y la importancia de Soseki es obvia, se me ha quedado un pelín corto. Kokoro me gustó mucho más, tanto en la historia, como en la creación de los personajes. Kokoro me transmitió mucho mejor ese sentimiento de desaliento ante la vida, esa sensación de estar perdido en un mundo de personas que parecen todas iguales. Aún así, es recomendable.
Alrededor de Sanshiro se moverán un grupo bastante variopinto de personajes: un extraño científico llamado Nonomiya que vive apartado de la sociedad, centrado en sus investigaciones; Yoshiko, una joven enferma y hermana del anterior; Yojiro, un compañero de clase que no para de meter en líos al protagonista; el profesor Hirota, que sirve de maestro de vida a los que le rodean y la misteriosa Mineko, una chica de la que Sanshiro acabará enamorándose.
Segunda novela que leo de Natsume Soseki, y empiezo a comprender el porqué Murakami lo tomó como ejemplo a seguir. Mantiene la misma tónica de Kokoro, que fue la primera novela que leí suya. Y en ambas nos encontramos con un chico joven de pueblo, que se siente perdido y que busca una guía en la vida, que normalmente está representada por un hombre mayor con el que forja una amistad. Esos personajes que se sienten perdidos y no encuentran su lugar, es una de las claves de la literatura de Murakami, y al parecer, anteriormente lo fue de Soseki.
Aunque la he disfrutado bastante, hubo ciertos capítulos de reuniones de personajes relacionados con el mundo del arte que me aburrieron muchísimo y eran larguísimos. Me gustó la crítica a la pedantería de la época en estos ambientes culturales y es interesante, pero se me hicieron muy cansinos. Podría haberlos suavizados y dedicado más tiempo a Mineko, ya que me parecía el personaje más interesante y el autor profundiza poco en ella. Lo que sí me gustó mucho fue la constante muestra del miedo de los jóvenes a la reciente apertura de Japón al mundo y a que su país se occidentalizara en exceso.
Aunque me ha gustado, y la importancia de Soseki es obvia, se me ha quedado un pelín corto. Kokoro me gustó mucho más, tanto en la historia, como en la creación de los personajes. Kokoro me transmitió mucho mejor ese sentimiento de desaliento ante la vida, esa sensación de estar perdido en un mundo de personas que parecen todas iguales. Aún así, es recomendable.
November 25, 2016
This was a beautiful book from my favorite Japanese author and yet one of his most depressing. After a euphoric stage of his life that produced his happy masterpieces Botchan and I Am A Cat, Soseki grew more and more morose as the Meiji government took on more and more of the aspects of an empire-building police state and his liberal sensibilities were justifiably saddened and depressed. A lot of this sadness comes across in Sanshirô. I won't spoil the plot because despite its dour tone, the book - as everything by Soseki - is incredibly beautiful and deserves to be read.
Two quotes to prove my point:
“The call for political freedom took place long ago. The call for freedom of speech is also a thing of the past. Freedom is not a word to be used exclusively for phenomena such as this which are so easily given outward manifestation. I believe that we young men of the new age have encountered the moment in time when we must call for that great freedom, the freedom of the mind.”
and
“Desire is a frightening thing.”
Regardless of these pessimistic statements, Soseki still believed in literature:
“Literature is neither technique or business. It is a motive force of society, a force that is more in touch with the fundamental principles of human life. That is why we study literature.”
And that is also why we read Soseki with such abundant pleasure.
Two quotes to prove my point:
“The call for political freedom took place long ago. The call for freedom of speech is also a thing of the past. Freedom is not a word to be used exclusively for phenomena such as this which are so easily given outward manifestation. I believe that we young men of the new age have encountered the moment in time when we must call for that great freedom, the freedom of the mind.”
and
“Desire is a frightening thing.”
Regardless of these pessimistic statements, Soseki still believed in literature:
“Literature is neither technique or business. It is a motive force of society, a force that is more in touch with the fundamental principles of human life. That is why we study literature.”
And that is also why we read Soseki with such abundant pleasure.
November 19, 2022
I guess every nation that went through a very rapid industrialisation stage has a coming of age story like this: a young man from rural area comes to the big noisy modern capital to encounter larger world. The City by Pidmohylny comes to mind, here it's Sanshiro going to the university in Tokyo during Meiji era.
Soseki feels lost, he's in-between the worlds. His traditional way of life encounters modern ways of Tokyo that is influenced by westernisation at that time. Some characters think Japan is doomed and western influence is not good. Now that I'm thinking of it, I don't think any character opposed this view in the book.
So Japan is changing and so do women of Japan, becoming more independent or so it seems to the male characters. And yet not one of them is brave enough to embrace a new way to be in relationship and the potential love story never gets to develop because they both cowardly and can't overcome tradition. They want to be "stray sheep", they think they are "stray ship" but they are not.
This whole story felt very confused to me and perhaps it's the point, because Sanshiro is nothing but confused by everything. But it was not a pleasant read. The prose was just painful for me to get through.
Sanshirō felt something heavy and oppressive, as though the distant future were closing in on him, but he forgot about it soon enough.
Seeing her face from the front, he thought it the most feminine of feminine faces.
Unfortunately, as a scientist, her brother could not help viewing her as an object of study, which was unkind of him, because the more he studied his sister, the more his love for her would decrease. Great scholar though he was, however, Nonomiya still showed great love for his sister. Conclusion: he must be the best person in all of Japan.
Sanshirō felt as if he were hearing the punch line of a comic story.
One of them mentioned Hirota, which started a discussion about why Hirota was still a bachelor. The opinion was expressed that he probably did not hate women, because he had a nude picture hanging on his office wall. Of course, it was a Western nude, so that didn’t prove anything.
If a solution was necessary for Sanshirō’s peace of mind, it involved nothing more than exploiting this chance to see Mineko in order to allow himself one final, precarious judgment based on her behavior toward him. Tomorrow’s interview would supply him with indispensable data for that judgment.
The touch of Mineko’s flesh was like a throb of pain in a dream.
Nonomiya’s face took on an itchy look. He turned to Sanshirō. “My sister is an idiot, you know.”
Sanshirō produced a dutiful smile.
“I am not an idiot. Am I, Sanshirō?”
He smiled again, but inside he was sick of smiling.
“We haven’t had our talk yet,” her brother reminded her.
“That’s quite all right,” she declared.
“It is not all right.”
“Yes it is. I just don’t know.”
Nonomiya stared at his sister.
You see? The experience was like reading a story generated by computer about android main character. At first I though it might be translator, but then he translated other books that I didn't have this experience with so I must conclude it's Soseki.
Anyway, not interesting in reading something else by him.
Soseki feels lost, he's in-between the worlds. His traditional way of life encounters modern ways of Tokyo that is influenced by westernisation at that time. Some characters think Japan is doomed and western influence is not good. Now that I'm thinking of it, I don't think any character opposed this view in the book.
So Japan is changing and so do women of Japan, becoming more independent or so it seems to the male characters. And yet not one of them is brave enough to embrace a new way to be in relationship and the potential love story never gets to develop because they both cowardly and can't overcome tradition. They want to be "stray sheep", they think they are "stray ship" but they are not.
This whole story felt very confused to me and perhaps it's the point, because Sanshiro is nothing but confused by everything. But it was not a pleasant read. The prose was just painful for me to get through.
Sanshirō felt something heavy and oppressive, as though the distant future were closing in on him, but he forgot about it soon enough.
Seeing her face from the front, he thought it the most feminine of feminine faces.
Unfortunately, as a scientist, her brother could not help viewing her as an object of study, which was unkind of him, because the more he studied his sister, the more his love for her would decrease. Great scholar though he was, however, Nonomiya still showed great love for his sister. Conclusion: he must be the best person in all of Japan.
Sanshirō felt as if he were hearing the punch line of a comic story.
One of them mentioned Hirota, which started a discussion about why Hirota was still a bachelor. The opinion was expressed that he probably did not hate women, because he had a nude picture hanging on his office wall. Of course, it was a Western nude, so that didn’t prove anything.
If a solution was necessary for Sanshirō’s peace of mind, it involved nothing more than exploiting this chance to see Mineko in order to allow himself one final, precarious judgment based on her behavior toward him. Tomorrow’s interview would supply him with indispensable data for that judgment.
The touch of Mineko’s flesh was like a throb of pain in a dream.
Nonomiya’s face took on an itchy look. He turned to Sanshirō. “My sister is an idiot, you know.”
Sanshirō produced a dutiful smile.
“I am not an idiot. Am I, Sanshirō?”
He smiled again, but inside he was sick of smiling.
“We haven’t had our talk yet,” her brother reminded her.
“That’s quite all right,” she declared.
“It is not all right.”
“Yes it is. I just don’t know.”
Nonomiya stared at his sister.
You see? The experience was like reading a story generated by computer about android main character. At first I though it might be translator, but then he translated other books that I didn't have this experience with so I must conclude it's Soseki.
Anyway, not interesting in reading something else by him.
August 13, 2017
There are many, more complete reviews of this novel here on GR. Below you will find little more than my thoughts.
Sanshirō is another classic Japanese novel about cultural change. But like the other Natsume Sōseki book I have read, Kokoro, the reader is presented with a main character who never really catches on to the world of change into he has moved to study at the university. Sanshirō remains throughout the novel the "lost sheep", the appellation bestowed upon him by Mineko, the beautiful young woman with whom he falls in love.
The story revolves around Sanshirō's experiences with the ever changing life in modern (early 20th century) Tokyo and with his frustrations and confusions involving Mineko, a seemingly modern young woman who displays a great deal of freedom and independence from old values.
As with the main character in Kokoro, I too was frustrated by Sanshirō's inability to learn, to speak and to react. This time, however, I came to see things through Sanshirō's eyes. Twenty three years of living a rural, traditional life had instilled in Sanshirō, not only a strong set of values and beliefs, but a naivety about the possibility of change and a certain gullibility which left him unable to sort the real from the false. Perhaps it would be better to suggest that whatever culture one happens to stumble into, including the somewhat sophisticated, intellectual group he finds himself in, is not what it seems.
This final perspective is the one which, perhaps, Sanshirō realizes in identifying Mineko, too, as a "lost sheep" in the new Japan. A good book for thinking about.
With thanks to Marita for her wonderful reviews of both Kokoro and Sanshirō which encouraged me to read them.
Sanshirō is another classic Japanese novel about cultural change. But like the other Natsume Sōseki book I have read, Kokoro, the reader is presented with a main character who never really catches on to the world of change into he has moved to study at the university. Sanshirō remains throughout the novel the "lost sheep", the appellation bestowed upon him by Mineko, the beautiful young woman with whom he falls in love.
The story revolves around Sanshirō's experiences with the ever changing life in modern (early 20th century) Tokyo and with his frustrations and confusions involving Mineko, a seemingly modern young woman who displays a great deal of freedom and independence from old values.
As with the main character in Kokoro, I too was frustrated by Sanshirō's inability to learn, to speak and to react. This time, however, I came to see things through Sanshirō's eyes. Twenty three years of living a rural, traditional life had instilled in Sanshirō, not only a strong set of values and beliefs, but a naivety about the possibility of change and a certain gullibility which left him unable to sort the real from the false. Perhaps it would be better to suggest that whatever culture one happens to stumble into, including the somewhat sophisticated, intellectual group he finds himself in, is not what it seems.
This final perspective is the one which, perhaps, Sanshirō realizes in identifying Mineko, too, as a "lost sheep" in the new Japan. A good book for thinking about.
With thanks to Marita for her wonderful reviews of both Kokoro and Sanshirō which encouraged me to read them.
January 27, 2021
Second Review:
I found rereading this highly-acclaimed Japanese classic worth spending my time with some new remarks I obviously didn't take into account in my first reading. First, on the term 'stray sheep' first uttered by Mineko to Sanshiro around the middle of the story, coming to think about its tone of her seeming jest, contempt, or humor, etc., I would like to redefine it as 'kiddingly speaking'; in other words, she's making Sanshiro as the target of a jest. I don't know what she really means or thinks in mind, probably, she may be curious about his verbal reaction or a sort of IQ testing to him as a country boy from Fukuoka.
Second, I admire Sanshiro's friend, Yojiro, for his practically sophisticated ways of solving the protagonist's seemingly heart-broken sickness due to his lingering love to Mineko as well as Sanshiro himself for his determination and honesty in returning the borrowed 30 yen to Mineko (who later refuses to accept it, saying she means to give him from which she makes him feel ill at ease, that is, when he has the money from his mother).
Third, it's quite ambiguous to identify Mineko's husband in the last chapter, let alone his name or any trace of her cordial intimacy with him in which we can't help wondering where or when her husband-to-be has shown up. It's a secret kept by Mineko alone. Surprisingly, her outgoing acquaintances all along the story are relatively polite and reserved at Mineko's painting exhibition.
Finally, in the last chapter, when asked on how he likes the Mineko painting by Haraguchi entitled, 'Woman in Forest', Sanshiro stoically and heartlessly replies the title is no good and repeatedly mutters a new one 'Stray sheep. Stray sheep.' implying as his mocking term meant as a sweet revenge to call Mineko to be one as well since it isn't fair to be one-sided fate sufferer due to her unwelcome verbal annoyance. In other words, Mineko herself would have felt more or less degraded if teased as a stray sheep; therefore, such words inappropriate in the context should be left at that.
First Review:
When I first saw this novel's title, I thought it's the story as depicted as a cartoon or movie series on television that our children enjoyed watching some 15-20 years ago. I was then reading Natsume Soseki's excerpts in the pocketbook compiled by Donald Keene. Indeed it was my misunderstanding since it's a story about Sanshiro, a provincial protagonist dictated by fate to pursue his university life in Tokyo some 100 years ago ( this novel first published in 1908-9).
There are a few points I'd like to say after reading his "gentle humour and doomed innocence" (back cover) as narrated lively and matter-of-factly. First, this is another fine translation by Jay Rubin because, I think, we can readily follow and clearly understand nearly most of what the author wants to say so that his readers can visualize the plot, the atmosphere and the context as related to each character. By the way, I first enjoyed reading Haruki Murakami's "Kafka On the Shore" translated into English by Prof. Rubin years ago.
Second, I liked the Tokyo description in which I can compare to what I saw from out visit last May and thus it helps create my admiration as one of the most technologically-advanced capitals in the world (4G for the time being while Thailand's bidding for 3G). For example, "What startled him most of all was Tokyo itself, for no matter how far he went, it never ended. ... Everything looked as if it were being destroyed, and at the same time everything looked as if it were under construction. The sheer movement of it all was terrible." (p. 17) Moreover, I also liked its natural setting as narrated in the novel, for instance, "That night, in its true form, was dark. Passing beyond this place illuminated by the power of men, he thought he could feel an occasional drop of rain. The wind sighed in the trees. ..." (p. 216)
Third, I liked Sanshiro from what he does, says and reacts. I mean the author's done his best to create him as human as possible, therefore, we simply can't expect any miracle during his stay in Tokyo to study. You'd be disappointed if you want to read a thrilling story of a godlike hero. In fact, Sanshiro is a 23-year-old student sometime fascinated by Mineko's beauty and appeal. However, he is true to himself and does his best by returning the 20 yen to Mineko successfully, unlike mischievous Yojiro with his unthinkable and ungrateful loan from Sanshiro of course.
I agreed with its citation, that is, "... it has come to be a perennial classic in Japan." (back cover). I think Haruki Murakami's fans would be delighted to read his interesting preface and I found the chronology informative. Finally, we have to feel sorry for Sanshiro who seems unlucky in love but he deserves our respects due to his unwavering natural character as well as his ways of looking at the world. The two words, 'Stray sheep' first mockingly used to tease him by Mineko were repeated by Sanshiro in the last sentence. I wonder if he means to be partly amused and partly angry, and who the real stray sheep is.
I found rereading this highly-acclaimed Japanese classic worth spending my time with some new remarks I obviously didn't take into account in my first reading. First, on the term 'stray sheep' first uttered by Mineko to Sanshiro around the middle of the story, coming to think about its tone of her seeming jest, contempt, or humor, etc., I would like to redefine it as 'kiddingly speaking'; in other words, she's making Sanshiro as the target of a jest. I don't know what she really means or thinks in mind, probably, she may be curious about his verbal reaction or a sort of IQ testing to him as a country boy from Fukuoka.
Second, I admire Sanshiro's friend, Yojiro, for his practically sophisticated ways of solving the protagonist's seemingly heart-broken sickness due to his lingering love to Mineko as well as Sanshiro himself for his determination and honesty in returning the borrowed 30 yen to Mineko (who later refuses to accept it, saying she means to give him from which she makes him feel ill at ease, that is, when he has the money from his mother).
Third, it's quite ambiguous to identify Mineko's husband in the last chapter, let alone his name or any trace of her cordial intimacy with him in which we can't help wondering where or when her husband-to-be has shown up. It's a secret kept by Mineko alone. Surprisingly, her outgoing acquaintances all along the story are relatively polite and reserved at Mineko's painting exhibition.
Finally, in the last chapter, when asked on how he likes the Mineko painting by Haraguchi entitled, 'Woman in Forest', Sanshiro stoically and heartlessly replies the title is no good and repeatedly mutters a new one 'Stray sheep. Stray sheep.' implying as his mocking term meant as a sweet revenge to call Mineko to be one as well since it isn't fair to be one-sided fate sufferer due to her unwelcome verbal annoyance. In other words, Mineko herself would have felt more or less degraded if teased as a stray sheep; therefore, such words inappropriate in the context should be left at that.
First Review:
When I first saw this novel's title, I thought it's the story as depicted as a cartoon or movie series on television that our children enjoyed watching some 15-20 years ago. I was then reading Natsume Soseki's excerpts in the pocketbook compiled by Donald Keene. Indeed it was my misunderstanding since it's a story about Sanshiro, a provincial protagonist dictated by fate to pursue his university life in Tokyo some 100 years ago ( this novel first published in 1908-9).
There are a few points I'd like to say after reading his "gentle humour and doomed innocence" (back cover) as narrated lively and matter-of-factly. First, this is another fine translation by Jay Rubin because, I think, we can readily follow and clearly understand nearly most of what the author wants to say so that his readers can visualize the plot, the atmosphere and the context as related to each character. By the way, I first enjoyed reading Haruki Murakami's "Kafka On the Shore" translated into English by Prof. Rubin years ago.
Second, I liked the Tokyo description in which I can compare to what I saw from out visit last May and thus it helps create my admiration as one of the most technologically-advanced capitals in the world (4G for the time being while Thailand's bidding for 3G). For example, "What startled him most of all was Tokyo itself, for no matter how far he went, it never ended. ... Everything looked as if it were being destroyed, and at the same time everything looked as if it were under construction. The sheer movement of it all was terrible." (p. 17) Moreover, I also liked its natural setting as narrated in the novel, for instance, "That night, in its true form, was dark. Passing beyond this place illuminated by the power of men, he thought he could feel an occasional drop of rain. The wind sighed in the trees. ..." (p. 216)
Third, I liked Sanshiro from what he does, says and reacts. I mean the author's done his best to create him as human as possible, therefore, we simply can't expect any miracle during his stay in Tokyo to study. You'd be disappointed if you want to read a thrilling story of a godlike hero. In fact, Sanshiro is a 23-year-old student sometime fascinated by Mineko's beauty and appeal. However, he is true to himself and does his best by returning the 20 yen to Mineko successfully, unlike mischievous Yojiro with his unthinkable and ungrateful loan from Sanshiro of course.
I agreed with its citation, that is, "... it has come to be a perennial classic in Japan." (back cover). I think Haruki Murakami's fans would be delighted to read his interesting preface and I found the chronology informative. Finally, we have to feel sorry for Sanshiro who seems unlucky in love but he deserves our respects due to his unwavering natural character as well as his ways of looking at the world. The two words, 'Stray sheep' first mockingly used to tease him by Mineko were repeated by Sanshiro in the last sentence. I wonder if he means to be partly amused and partly angry, and who the real stray sheep is.
February 1, 2025
5 * for Haruki Murakami’s Introduction. 2.5* rounded up for Sanshiro. Most appropriate for Soseki complete-ists. The audiobook narrator is excellent, but the thin plot and uninteresting, flat main character make this a lesser work.
June 23, 2022
Note on Japanese Name Order and Pronunciation
Chronology
Introduction
Further Reading
Translator's Note
--Sanshirō
Notes
Chronology
Introduction
Further Reading
Translator's Note
--Sanshirō
Notes
November 16, 2024
Reseña en mi canal: https://youtu.be/KsBWgMWgWJQ?si=VVQbU...
May 21, 2017
Cuốn tiểu thuyết tự thuật “Sanshirō” của Natsume Sōseki, ra đời năm 1908 sau khi “Tôi là con mèo,” và “Botchan,” đã tạo lập danh tiếng cho tác giả, được viết bằng thứ văn xuôi tràn ngập thị-xúc-thính giác, là tác phẩm bao chứa những quan sát và trải nghiệm tuổi trẻ của một cá nhân mà từ đó phản ánh cả một lớp người và đất nước Nhật Bản những năm đầu thế kỷ 20 sũng trong chuyển giao và mâu thuẫn, giữa cũ và mới, Đông và Tây, truyền thống và hiện đại. “Sanshirō” không chỉ là một thanh xuân tràn thơ ngây tiếp diễn, mà còn cả băn khoăn choáng ngợp, và quan trọng hơn, là một bước dận nhảy vào vỡ mộng, của thời kế tiếp.
Toàn bộ câu chuyện diễn ra trong khoảng 5 tháng học kỳ năm học đầu tiên của Sanshirō: chàng sinh viên 23 tuổi vừa tốt nghiệp trường cao đẳng từ tận Kyushu, bắt tàu lên thủ đô học văn chương ở trường đại học Tokyo. Truyện bắt đầu từ giây phút anh nhắm mắt mơ màng ngủ rồi mở ra trên tàu, để rồi xộc vào anh, là cả một thế giới không chút tương đồng với cuộc sống cũ. Chỉ trong chuyến tàu dài 3 ngày đêm ấy (và anh phải ngủ lại ở dọc đường 2 lần), tương lai như thu gọn lại trong những gặp gỡ tình cờ, mà đầy giật nảy, và tiên báo cho cả thời gian sau đó. Độc giả, những người từng trải qua một lần xê dịch mất nơi ở, từng tham gia một chuyến tàu hỏa từ quê nhà lên thành phố học đại học sau khi tốt nghiệp cấp ba, đặc biệt là những người từng là sinh viên văn khoa, ắt hẳn sẽ tìm thấy bóng dáng mình trong hành trình của nhân vật chính.
Xem nốt: https://www.facebook.com/phianhaz/pos...
Toàn bộ câu chuyện diễn ra trong khoảng 5 tháng học kỳ năm học đầu tiên của Sanshirō: chàng sinh viên 23 tuổi vừa tốt nghiệp trường cao đẳng từ tận Kyushu, bắt tàu lên thủ đô học văn chương ở trường đại học Tokyo. Truyện bắt đầu từ giây phút anh nhắm mắt mơ màng ngủ rồi mở ra trên tàu, để rồi xộc vào anh, là cả một thế giới không chút tương đồng với cuộc sống cũ. Chỉ trong chuyến tàu dài 3 ngày đêm ấy (và anh phải ngủ lại ở dọc đường 2 lần), tương lai như thu gọn lại trong những gặp gỡ tình cờ, mà đầy giật nảy, và tiên báo cho cả thời gian sau đó. Độc giả, những người từng trải qua một lần xê dịch mất nơi ở, từng tham gia một chuyến tàu hỏa từ quê nhà lên thành phố học đại học sau khi tốt nghiệp cấp ba, đặc biệt là những người từng là sinh viên văn khoa, ắt hẳn sẽ tìm thấy bóng dáng mình trong hành trình của nhân vật chính.
Xem nốt: https://www.facebook.com/phianhaz/pos...
May 27, 2025
Déchirement
Ce roman porte propose une exploration du décalage culturel terrible qui peut exister entre un jeune homme tout frais sorti de sa province de Kyūshū et les comportements qui ont cours parmi les étudiants de l'Université Impériale de Tōkyō dans les derniers temps de l'ère Meiji.
Le personnage éponyme Sanshirō en fait le constat amer à son arrivée à la capitale et tout du long. Jeune homme de bonne volonté, il cherche très tôt à se mettre au diapason mais à mesure que les semaines passent et qu'il fréquente camarades étudiants, le professeur Hirota et le peintre Haraguchi, il prend une plus juste mesure du gouffre qui le sépare des nouvelles valeurs en vogue.
Et pourtant, les traditions ont la vie dure... notamment en matière d'unions matrimoniales entre familles.
J'ai trouvé ce portrait d'une génération tout à fait déchirant. Son héros - et d'autres - se trouvent écartelés entre Japon ancien et moderne, entre province et capitale, enfance et âge adulte, carriérisme étudiant et vie adolescente. Comme un passage terrible du roman ne manque pas de l'expliciter, catégoriquement:
See also:
Stoner
Runaway Horses
Japanese Tales of Mystery & Imagination
The Nightfarers
The Trial
Le tatouage et autres récits
White Nights
'Le monde était en pleine révolution autour de lui ; il le regardait bouger, mais il était impuissant à se mêler au mouvement. Bien qu'alignés dans un même plan, le « monde réel » et celui dans lequel il vivait ne parvenaient pas à se rejoindre. Le premier poursuivait sa course folle sans se préoccuper de lui, et l'impression qu'il retirait de cet abandon au bord du chemin l'angoissait plus particulièrement.'
Ce roman porte propose une exploration du décalage culturel terrible qui peut exister entre un jeune homme tout frais sorti de sa province de Kyūshū et les comportements qui ont cours parmi les étudiants de l'Université Impériale de Tōkyō dans les derniers temps de l'ère Meiji.
Le personnage éponyme Sanshirō en fait le constat amer à son arrivée à la capitale et tout du long. Jeune homme de bonne volonté, il cherche très tôt à se mettre au diapason mais à mesure que les semaines passent et qu'il fréquente camarades étudiants, le professeur Hirota et le peintre Haraguchi, il prend une plus juste mesure du gouffre qui le sépare des nouvelles valeurs en vogue.
Et pourtant, les traditions ont la vie dure... notamment en matière d'unions matrimoniales entre familles.
J'ai trouvé ce portrait d'une génération tout à fait déchirant. Son héros - et d'autres - se trouvent écartelés entre Japon ancien et moderne, entre province et capitale, enfance et âge adulte, carriérisme étudiant et vie adolescente. Comme un passage terrible du roman ne manque pas de l'expliciter, catégoriquement:
'Trois mondes distincts avaient fini par prendre forme dans l'esprit du jeune homme. Le premier était un monde lointain qui fleurait bon le parfum de ces « temps anciens du début de l'ère Meiji », comme disait Yojirō. Tout y était serein et comme engourdi de sommeil, mais c'était un lieu ouvert, dans lequel il pourrait retourner quand bon lui semblerait. Sanshirō, cependant, ne pensait se résoudre à cette solution que contraint et forcé. Ce monde-là était en effet pour lui comme une sorte de grenier où il avait relégué tout ce qui appartenait au passé. Un remords soudain l'envahit à la pensée qu'il y avait enfermé jusqu'au souvenir de sa mère, et que le seul moment où il consentît à s'y aventurer de nouveau était celui où il recevait une lettre d'elle.
Dans le deuxième de ses mondes, se dressait un bâtiment aux murs de brique qu'avait envahis la mousse. À l'intérieur, il y avait une salle de lecture si vaste que l'on ne pouvait distinguer clairement le visage des gens qui se trouvaient assis au fond. Des livres y étaient entassés en piles si hautes qu'on ne pouvait les atteindre sans l'aide d'une échelle : livres noircis par le contact des mains et la crasse des doigts, et dont les titres luisaient dans l'ombre en caractères d'or. Reliures en maroquin ou en vachette et vélins vieux de deux siècles étaient recouverts d'une épaisse couche de poussière à laquelle une lente accumulation, patiemment poursuivie au fil de vingt ou trente ans, au milieu d'un silence plus impressionnant encore que celui de la fuite du temps, avait conféré un caractère sacré.
Fait notable, la plupart des hommes qui hantaient ces lieux portaient une barbe de plusieurs jours. Les uns marchaient les yeux levés au ciel, d'autres avaient la tête baissée, mais tous sans exception étaient pauvrement accoutrés, et semblaient mener une existence misérable. Ils n'en avaient pas moins l'air serein, et malgré le va-et-vient incessant des tramways, ils ne semblaient pas hésiter à respirer à pleins poumons l'air de tranquillité qui régnait autour d'eux. Si ces gens-là souffraient de ne rien savoir des choses de ce bas-monde, ils avaient la chance d'ignorer le malheur qui est le lot commun des mortels. Hirota et Nonomiya vivaient dans ce monde-là. Quant à Sanshirō, il y occupait une place qui lui permettait d'embrasser du regard tout ce qui l'entourait. Il était libre de partir si tel était son désir, mais il aurait trouvé dommage de le faire au moment même où il commençait à s'y mouvoir à son aise.
Le troisième des mondes de Sanshirō avait l'exubérance et l'éclat du printemps. On y trouvait pêle-mêle les lumières électriques et des cuillers d'argent, des rires et des cris de joie, des coupes de champagne débordantes de mousse et, pour couronner le tout, de très jolies femmes. Sanshirō avait adressé une seule fois la parole à l'une d'entre elles; il en avait rencontré une autre à deux reprises. De ses trois mondes, c'était ce dernier qu'il sentait le plus proche de lui, proche à le toucher, mais en même temps aussi inaccessible que l'éclair qui traverse le ciel. Il l'observait de loin, et il avait l'impression étrange que jamais celui-ci ne pourrait atteindre à sa perfection, s'il demeurait lui-même à l'extérieur. Il lui semblait posséder toutes les qualités requises pour être admis en son sein et pourtant, loin de s'ouvrir à lui pour combler le vide que créait son absence, ce troisième monde continuait à se dérober à lui et à lui interdire tout accès.'
See also:
Stoner
Runaway Horses
Japanese Tales of Mystery & Imagination
The Nightfarers
The Trial
Le tatouage et autres récits
White Nights
September 5, 2017
Soseki's prose is opalescent, just like he cumulus of clouds which appear so often in 'Sanshiro', there is something ethereal and captivating about the atmosphere which Soseki is able to create in 'Sanshiro', a kind of wistfulness hovers over the characters as the reader is caught up in the wan beauty of Soseki's prose style. One can easily distinguish the influence on (especially early) Murukami not only with the prose style (although Soseki is more poetic, but also with their preoccupation with the isolating effect of city life and the disaffected and diffident protagonists. Out of all the great Japanese novelists of the early and mid 20th century; Akutagawa, Kawabata, Mishima and Tanizaki, Soseki is probably the one whose themes and concerns most resonate with modern readers, whilst retaining a quintessentially Japanese sense of aesthetics.
The story follows Sanshiro, a young student who moves to Tokyo from the country-side. The novel captures the disorientating nature of this change to Sanshiro, the sense of torpor which over-takes him as he tries to accustom himself to the fast-pace of city life, its endless dissonance and the duplicitous nature of its inhabitants.
"The sun, now sinking in the West, illuminated the broad slope at an angle. The windows of the Engineering buildings flanking the top slop were sparkling as if on fire. Pale red flames of burning sun swept back from the horizon into the sky's deep clarity, and their fever seemed to rush down upon him"
In contrast to this, is the sense of beauty awakened in Sanshiro's heart by two female characters, the vivacious Mineko and the pallid yet beautiful Yoshiko. The image most often associated with Mineko is her kimono and kaleidoscope of colours which blaze forth from it, it is as if her kimono-which the painter Haraguchi finds so difficult to capture in his portrait of her, is symbolic of the brightness which emanates from Mineko is the eyes of her narrator, her febricity contrasting with Sanshiro's own feebleness and lighting up his own colourless inner life. By contrast, the sad and somnolent Yoshiko is more similar in terms of personality with Sanshiro, and although she is beautiful, her beauty is too familiar, too similar when contrasted with the enigmatic Mineko. In many ways, in addition to being a coming of age novel, the story is about Sanshiros choice between these two types of beauty.
Other central themes of the novel include societal dynamics in late Meiji era Japan under the increasing sense of Westernization, the incipient blooming of Japanese literature under Western influences and the changing role of women in Japanese society-in many ways Sanshiro captures Japan just as it is on the cusp of modernisation, as the old traditions of Japan are being over-taken and over-whelmed by the modern world, just as Sanshiro is over-whelmed by Tokyo. Yet beneath this, a sense of beauty blooms and blazes forth from the pages of the novel, from the white rose in Mineko's hair, to the reflections of a setting sun on the windows of a building, Soseki is able to imbue the world with a brilliant beauty;
"The morning sunlight streamed in form the eastern window behind her, and where the sunlight touched she wore a violet-flame, living halo. The face and forehead were in deep shadow, pale in darkness. The eyes had a far off look. A high cloud never moves in the depths of the sky, yet it must."
The story follows Sanshiro, a young student who moves to Tokyo from the country-side. The novel captures the disorientating nature of this change to Sanshiro, the sense of torpor which over-takes him as he tries to accustom himself to the fast-pace of city life, its endless dissonance and the duplicitous nature of its inhabitants.
"The sun, now sinking in the West, illuminated the broad slope at an angle. The windows of the Engineering buildings flanking the top slop were sparkling as if on fire. Pale red flames of burning sun swept back from the horizon into the sky's deep clarity, and their fever seemed to rush down upon him"
In contrast to this, is the sense of beauty awakened in Sanshiro's heart by two female characters, the vivacious Mineko and the pallid yet beautiful Yoshiko. The image most often associated with Mineko is her kimono and kaleidoscope of colours which blaze forth from it, it is as if her kimono-which the painter Haraguchi finds so difficult to capture in his portrait of her, is symbolic of the brightness which emanates from Mineko is the eyes of her narrator, her febricity contrasting with Sanshiro's own feebleness and lighting up his own colourless inner life. By contrast, the sad and somnolent Yoshiko is more similar in terms of personality with Sanshiro, and although she is beautiful, her beauty is too familiar, too similar when contrasted with the enigmatic Mineko. In many ways, in addition to being a coming of age novel, the story is about Sanshiros choice between these two types of beauty.
Other central themes of the novel include societal dynamics in late Meiji era Japan under the increasing sense of Westernization, the incipient blooming of Japanese literature under Western influences and the changing role of women in Japanese society-in many ways Sanshiro captures Japan just as it is on the cusp of modernisation, as the old traditions of Japan are being over-taken and over-whelmed by the modern world, just as Sanshiro is over-whelmed by Tokyo. Yet beneath this, a sense of beauty blooms and blazes forth from the pages of the novel, from the white rose in Mineko's hair, to the reflections of a setting sun on the windows of a building, Soseki is able to imbue the world with a brilliant beauty;
"The morning sunlight streamed in form the eastern window behind her, and where the sunlight touched she wore a violet-flame, living halo. The face and forehead were in deep shadow, pale in darkness. The eyes had a far off look. A high cloud never moves in the depths of the sky, yet it must."
October 9, 2022
4.5 ⭐️. Sanshirō portrays the 23-year-old homonymous protagonist as he leaves quiet rural life to attend a university in the constantly moving "real world" of Tokyo. Perplexed and excited by traffic, academics and, above all, women, Sanshirō seeks to find his way in his new life. Sanshirō presents an incisive social and cultural commentary as well as a subtle portrayal of first love, tradition and modernization, and the idealism of youth versus the cynicism of middle age. In Sanshirō, Soseki captures the fear, arrogance, and confusion of a young man experiencing independence for the first time.
The life and work of Natsume Sōseki were indelibly marked by the intersection of late Tokugawa influences and the ambitious modernization project that marked the Meiji period, aspect that becomes the backdrop in Sanshirō, embodying all the doubt, excitement and paranoia of the Era.
It is a coming of age story and a study of love in a changing world, commenting on the changing social and moral customs of 20th century Japan. Sōseki's style achieves the mastery of the novel, clearly capturing the multifaceted aspects of the transmuting psyche and sociological dynamics, marked by a caricatured humor and simultaneously beautiful writing that make reading this work an aesthetic delight.
The life and work of Natsume Sōseki were indelibly marked by the intersection of late Tokugawa influences and the ambitious modernization project that marked the Meiji period, aspect that becomes the backdrop in Sanshirō, embodying all the doubt, excitement and paranoia of the Era.
It is a coming of age story and a study of love in a changing world, commenting on the changing social and moral customs of 20th century Japan. Sōseki's style achieves the mastery of the novel, clearly capturing the multifaceted aspects of the transmuting psyche and sociological dynamics, marked by a caricatured humor and simultaneously beautiful writing that make reading this work an aesthetic delight.
November 24, 2018
Sanşiro, roman tanımı içerisinde, Natsume Soseki’!nin okuduğum en güzel kitabı. Bununla birlikte, felsefi açıdan Ben Bir Kediyim kitabını daha çok beğendim. Hikaye, evvelce okuduğum Haruki Murakami’nin, İmkansızın Şarkısı kitabını anımsattı. Sanşiro da küçük bir kasabadan Tokyo’ya okumaya gelen, naif bir gencin hikayesi. Hatta karakterleri de birbirine benzer buldum. Gençlik heyecanı ve -her alanda yaşanan- acemilik sorunlarının eşsiz bir hikayesi.
Kitapta, dönemin modernleşme sancıları, sanatsal dönüşümün ortaya çıkardığı tartışmalar, eğitim problemleri, kadınların sosyal hayat içindeki konumları ve kabulleri gibi birçok konuyu da, okuyucuyu rahatsız etmeden, sıkmadan irdelemekte.
Çok beğendim.
“... Resim iyi miydi, kötü müydü; genç adam bunu bilmiyordu tabii. Ressamın kabiliyeti üzerine yorum yapamayan Sanşiro, sadece kabiliyetin uyandırdığı hissi duyuyordu. Bu his bile, tecrübesizlikten ötürü, tam hedefi tutturamayacak gibiydi. Ama sanatın tesirine karşı tümden duyarsız bir insan olmadığını kendini ispatlama çabasıyla da olsa, Sanşiro sanatsever sayılırdı...”, sf; 215.
Kitapta, dönemin modernleşme sancıları, sanatsal dönüşümün ortaya çıkardığı tartışmalar, eğitim problemleri, kadınların sosyal hayat içindeki konumları ve kabulleri gibi birçok konuyu da, okuyucuyu rahatsız etmeden, sıkmadan irdelemekte.
Çok beğendim.
“... Resim iyi miydi, kötü müydü; genç adam bunu bilmiyordu tabii. Ressamın kabiliyeti üzerine yorum yapamayan Sanşiro, sadece kabiliyetin uyandırdığı hissi duyuyordu. Bu his bile, tecrübesizlikten ötürü, tam hedefi tutturamayacak gibiydi. Ama sanatın tesirine karşı tümden duyarsız bir insan olmadığını kendini ispatlama çabasıyla da olsa, Sanşiro sanatsever sayılırdı...”, sf; 215.
September 12, 2018
"Böyle bir göğün altında olunca, insanın kalbi ağırlașsa da ruhu hafifliyor."
//
Ortada bariz bir konu olmadığı için özellikle giriş kısmında anlamadan okuyormușum gibi hissettirdi fakat hep çok akıcıydı. Yazarın dilini epey keyifli buldum ayrıca çevirmen çok iyi bir iş çıkarmış. (👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼)
Kitabı okudukça Japon kültürüne özellikle geleneksel döneme öyle ya da böyle vakıf olmaya başlıyorsunuz zira kitapta detaydan bol bir şey yok.
Sonuç olarak kararım șu yönde: Japon Edebiyatı okurları sevecektir, sıradan bir okura hitap edeceğini sanmıyorum.
//
Ortada bariz bir konu olmadığı için özellikle giriş kısmında anlamadan okuyormușum gibi hissettirdi fakat hep çok akıcıydı. Yazarın dilini epey keyifli buldum ayrıca çevirmen çok iyi bir iş çıkarmış. (👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼)
Kitabı okudukça Japon kültürüne özellikle geleneksel döneme öyle ya da böyle vakıf olmaya başlıyorsunuz zira kitapta detaydan bol bir şey yok.
Sonuç olarak kararım șu yönde: Japon Edebiyatı okurları sevecektir, sıradan bir okura hitap edeceğini sanmıyorum.
November 4, 2020
Şimdiye kadar Japon edebiyatından okuduğum en güzel romanlardan biriydi Sanşiro.
Dönemini böylesi güzel anlatan bir eser okumak çok etkileyici. Batı etkisinde kalmaya başlayan bir doğu ülkesi olarak Japonya'nın nasıl bir geçiş sürecinde olduğunu hiç düşünmemiştim. Bu süreci, köyden Tokyo'ya üniversite okumak için giden bir genç üzerinden anlatıyor olması Batılı gözden değil de saf bir Doğulu gözden bakmasını sağlıyor okurun sürece. Sanşiro'nun bilime, felsefeye ve bunlara dair uzun naralar atıp aralara İngilizce kelimeler serpiştiren insanları köylü olduğu için anlamadığını düşünmesi Türk edebiyatında sıklıkla konuştuğumuz "Yanlış Batılılaşma"yı getirdi aklıma. Sanşiro roman boyu sevdiği kadının onunla köylü olduğu için alay ettiğini düşünmesi roman boyu -aslında hiçbir konuda- hayatını tamamlamak için yeterli adımları atmasının zor olduğunu gösteriyor. Ki bu açıdan gerçekliğine, samimiyetine inanması en kolay karakterlerden, dolayısıyle en başarılı kitaplardan biriydi.
Ayrıca kitabın çevirmeni Alper Kaan Bilir'i nasıl tebrik etsem azdır. Neredeyse her sayfadaki dipnotlarıyla ve kitabın önsözünde Natsume Sõseki'nin kitapta anlattığı dönemdeki sosyo-ekonomik durumu anlatmasıyla beni kendisine hayran bıraktı. Zira sayesinde kitabı okumak daha keyifli, daha doyurucu hale geldi.
Dönemini böylesi güzel anlatan bir eser okumak çok etkileyici. Batı etkisinde kalmaya başlayan bir doğu ülkesi olarak Japonya'nın nasıl bir geçiş sürecinde olduğunu hiç düşünmemiştim. Bu süreci, köyden Tokyo'ya üniversite okumak için giden bir genç üzerinden anlatıyor olması Batılı gözden değil de saf bir Doğulu gözden bakmasını sağlıyor okurun sürece. Sanşiro'nun bilime, felsefeye ve bunlara dair uzun naralar atıp aralara İngilizce kelimeler serpiştiren insanları köylü olduğu için anlamadığını düşünmesi Türk edebiyatında sıklıkla konuştuğumuz "Yanlış Batılılaşma"yı getirdi aklıma. Sanşiro roman boyu sevdiği kadının onunla köylü olduğu için alay ettiğini düşünmesi roman boyu -aslında hiçbir konuda- hayatını tamamlamak için yeterli adımları atmasının zor olduğunu gösteriyor. Ki bu açıdan gerçekliğine, samimiyetine inanması en kolay karakterlerden, dolayısıyle en başarılı kitaplardan biriydi.
Ayrıca kitabın çevirmeni Alper Kaan Bilir'i nasıl tebrik etsem azdır. Neredeyse her sayfadaki dipnotlarıyla ve kitabın önsözünde Natsume Sõseki'nin kitapta anlattığı dönemdeki sosyo-ekonomik durumu anlatmasıyla beni kendisine hayran bıraktı. Zira sayesinde kitabı okumak daha keyifli, daha doyurucu hale geldi.
October 18, 2025
tokyo’ya üniversiteye gelen sanşiro, şehrin kalabalığına hem hayran kalıyor hem de bir yabancılık hissediyor. tren yolculuğunda tanıştığı o gizemli kadın, sanki onun ilerideki hayatını özetler; fırsat karşısında bile hareketsiz kalması, onun pasifliğinin ilk işareti.
tokyo'da tanıştığı yojiro, profesör hirota, nonomiya ve mineko, sanşiro’nun dünyasını yavaş yavaş değiştirir. mineko’yla aralarında, söze hiç dökülmeyen bir yakınlık var. yine de, ikisi içten içe bildikleri o adımı atmak yerine, toplumun ve ailelerin çizdiği sınırlar içinde kalmayı tercih ediyorlar.
sōseki, insanın kendi istekleriyle toplumun yüklediği roller arasındaki çatışmayı anlatıyor bize. tokyo’nun gürültüsü, batılılaşmanın getirdiği yabancılık ve birbirini anlayamamanın bıraktığı hüzün adeta sayfaların arasına sinmiş. kitap bittiğindeyse ister istemez keşke o adımı atsalardı diyoruz.
tokyo'da tanıştığı yojiro, profesör hirota, nonomiya ve mineko, sanşiro’nun dünyasını yavaş yavaş değiştirir. mineko’yla aralarında, söze hiç dökülmeyen bir yakınlık var. yine de, ikisi içten içe bildikleri o adımı atmak yerine, toplumun ve ailelerin çizdiği sınırlar içinde kalmayı tercih ediyorlar.
sōseki, insanın kendi istekleriyle toplumun yüklediği roller arasındaki çatışmayı anlatıyor bize. tokyo’nun gürültüsü, batılılaşmanın getirdiği yabancılık ve birbirini anlayamamanın bıraktığı hüzün adeta sayfaların arasına sinmiş. kitap bittiğindeyse ister istemez keşke o adımı atsalardı diyoruz.
August 22, 2021
"Sanşiro, benim en sevdiğim kitaplardan biri." diyor Haruki Murakami. O böyle söylediği için de okumak kaçınılmaz oldu benim için. Sanşiro, taşradan kalkıp Tokyo'ya üniversite okumaya giden bir genç. Onun adaptasyon sürecini, şaşkınlıklarını, insan ilişkilerini okuyoruz kitapta. Sanşiro çok saf bir bey. Bu haliyle sanırım okuyan herkesin sıcaklık duyacağı bir karakter. Mutlaka okunmalı mı? Bence hayır. Japon merakınız yoksa bırakın. Çünkü dönemin Japonyasını çok iyi yansıttığı söyleniyor.
July 8, 2018
Belirgin bir konusu olmamasına, bol dialog içermesine ve biraz ağır ilerlemesine rağmen taşradan gelen bir gencin kendini bulma çabalarını eski Japonya atmosferinde veren bir kitap olarak ilgi çekici idi. Uzakdoğu edebiyatına ilgi duyanlara önerilir.
June 25, 2015
#JapaneseJune Book #3.
It took me a lot longer to read this book than it really should have, especially as it was on the Kindle. Thank goodness for long train journeys to and from work otherwise I might never have got to the end of this before the end of June!
I thought that Sanshiro would be right up my alley but unfortunately it wasn't. For a classic, I couldn't really understand the hype this time around. It follows the character of Sanshiro, who has moved from the countryside to the big city of Tokyo to study at university. We follow him through his various new experiences, such as riding public transport for the first time, meeting new people, his first experiences with women, intellectual stimulation, etc. Unfortunately I didn't feel like I really got to know Sanshiro, despite being stuck with him the entire book.
For the most part, I found the characters quite uninteresting and devoid of individual personality (apart from Sanshiro's closest friend Yojiro), and didn't particularly warm to any of them. Sanshiro's love interest, Mineko, I also found to be quite unappealing. Her moods irritated me, and I didn't understand Sanshiro's romantic obsession with her. It bored me more than anything else.
Not to say that this is a badly-written book - some of the descriptions and passages were very pretty and lovely to read, and there were points where I did get quite involved with certain events that happened throughout the course of the novel. However, ultimately I felt they didn't really lead to anywhere, and I was more relieved than anything else to find I'd finished the book. I actually prefered the introduction in this volume (written by the one and only Haruki Murakami!)
I wouldn't really recommend this, but I'm sure many others will find a lot more to appreciate in this book than I did.
It took me a lot longer to read this book than it really should have, especially as it was on the Kindle. Thank goodness for long train journeys to and from work otherwise I might never have got to the end of this before the end of June!
I thought that Sanshiro would be right up my alley but unfortunately it wasn't. For a classic, I couldn't really understand the hype this time around. It follows the character of Sanshiro, who has moved from the countryside to the big city of Tokyo to study at university. We follow him through his various new experiences, such as riding public transport for the first time, meeting new people, his first experiences with women, intellectual stimulation, etc. Unfortunately I didn't feel like I really got to know Sanshiro, despite being stuck with him the entire book.
For the most part, I found the characters quite uninteresting and devoid of individual personality (apart from Sanshiro's closest friend Yojiro), and didn't particularly warm to any of them. Sanshiro's love interest, Mineko, I also found to be quite unappealing. Her moods irritated me, and I didn't understand Sanshiro's romantic obsession with her. It bored me more than anything else.
Not to say that this is a badly-written book - some of the descriptions and passages were very pretty and lovely to read, and there were points where I did get quite involved with certain events that happened throughout the course of the novel. However, ultimately I felt they didn't really lead to anywhere, and I was more relieved than anything else to find I'd finished the book. I actually prefered the introduction in this volume (written by the one and only Haruki Murakami!)
I wouldn't really recommend this, but I'm sure many others will find a lot more to appreciate in this book than I did.
November 17, 2022
ก่อนจะไปพูดถึงเนื้อหา ผมคิดว่าเป็นมติเอกฉันท์ว่า เรื่องนี้ อ่านไม่ได้สนุกเลยยย (ขอโทษคุณปู่โชเซกิด้วยครับ)
เวลาผมเจอวรรณกรรมที่ไร้พล็อต (ในความหมายที่ว่าไม่ได้มีทิศทางการเล่าเรื่องที่ชัดเจนว่าจะไปในทางไหน) ผมคาดเดาได้เลยว่าทุกอย่างจะเป็นไปอย่างเเเช่มช้า เปรียบเหมือนการเดินจงกรมที่กว่าจะได้ก้าวไปเเต่ละก้าวนี่มันช่างช้าเสียนี่กระไร ซึ่งซันชิโร่เล่มนี้ก็ตรงตามคอนเซปนี้เป๊ะๆ
ความไร้พล็อตของซันชิโร่ ผมว่าโชเซกิตั้งใจให้เป็นอย่างนั้น คนอ่านจะไม่อาจทราบได้ว่าซันชิโร่ของเรากำลังจะทำอะไร อะไรจะเกิดขึ้น เหมือนกับที่ซันชิโร่ เด็กหนุ่มจากบ้านนอกคอกนาก็ไม่อาจทราบได้ว่าวันที่เขาก้าวเท้าเข้ามาเรียนมหาลัยในโตเกียวนี้อะไรจะเกิดขึ้น
การนำขั้วตรงข้ามอย่างวิถีต่างจังหวัดเเละวิถีชีวิตคนเมืองมาใช้เป็นฉากหลังของเรื่อง อาจจะไม่ได้เป็นอะไรที่เเปลกใหม่มากนักหากเรามองบ่อวรรณกรรมในทุกวันนี้ เเต่หากมองย้อนกลับไปในช่วงเวลาที่เรื่องนี้เขียนขึ้น ซึ่งนับกันคร่าวๆก็น่าจะ 100 ปีได้เเล้ว พล็อตลักษณะนี้ก็ไม่ได้เห็นมากมายนัก
สิ่งที่ผมสังเกตเเละคิดว่าเป็นองคืประกอบที่ชอบมากในเรื่องคือ โชเซกิ เขียนตัวละครออกมาได้ชัดเจนดีจริงๆ ตัวละครเเต่ละคนเหมือนเป็นภาพเเทนของอะไรซักอย่างที่มาอยู่รายล้มตัวของซันชิโร ซึ่งภาพเเทนเหล่านี้ผมมองว่ามันคือสัญลักษณ์ที่โชเซกิมองเห็นถึงความเป็นคนเมืองที่ดูเเตกต่างจาก คนซื่อๆอย่างซันชิโร
โยจิโร่ คือ ภาพเเทนของความเอาเเน่เอานนอนไม่ได้ เเละการคลั่งไคล้ในสิ่งใดจนมากล้น
อ.ฮิโรตะ คือ ภาพเเทนของความเป็นวิชาการที่ด้านนึงดูสูงส่ง เเต่อีกด้านคือความอิเหละเขละขละ ไม่สนใจสิ่งใดนอกจากตัวเอง
มิเนโกะ คือ ภาพเเทนของความลึกลับน่าหยั่งรู้ที่ทำให้เรารู้สึกลุ่มหลง ซึ่งสุดท้ายเเล้วมันอาจเป็นเเค่เปลือกนอกที่ข้างในก็ไม่ได้มีอะไรที่เเตกต่างออกไปเลย
สามตัวละครสำคัญนี้ คือ ภาพเเทนของความเป็นเมืองที่โชเซกิยกมาให้เห็นชัด ���ึ่งปรากฎชัดมากจากลักษณะเเละวิธีการพูด (อันนี้ยอมรับว่าเขียนออกมาได้เก่งมาก) ยิ่งเมื่อนำมาเทียบกับซันชิโร่ที่โชเซกิวางภาพเเทนเป็นความเรียบง่าย ไม่มีเลห์กล ซื่อตรงเเละจริงใจ ก็ทำให้ความเป็นขั้วตรงข้ามของความเป็นเมืองเเละต่างจังหวัด เด่นชัดขึ้นมา ต่างฝ่ายต่างสะท้อนตัวตนของกันเเละกัน
นอกจากตัวละครเเล้ว หากสังเกตุจะพบว่าบทสนทนาที่ใช้ในเมืองนั้น จะพูดกันเเต่เรื่องความสวยงาม ความรู้ วิชาการ ความสูงส่งต่างๆเเละเรื่องราวของตนเอง เเต่เมื่อบทสนทนากลับไปยังบ้านนอกผ่านจดหมายของเเม่ซันชิโร่เเล้ว จะพบว่ามีเเต่เพียงความเรียบง่าย เรื่องราวของผู้คนข้างบ้าน ชีวิตเกษตรกร เก็บผักผลไม้ ในส่วนนี้ยิ่งทำให้เห็นถึงความต่างมากเข้าไปอีก ซึ่งเป็นอะไรที่เขียนออกมาได้ดีมาก ผมชอบมากๆเลย
นอกจากนั้นเเล้ว สิ่งที่ชอบอีกอย่างหนึ่งคือ ความไม่เปลี่ยนเเปลงไปในตัวตนของซันชิโร่ เรามักจะเห็นว่าเมื่อคนบ้านนอกเข้ามาในเมือง เรื่องราวมักพาตัวละครเอกให้เปลี่ยนเเปลงไปผ่านชีวิตคนเมือง ความเรียบง่ายถูกเเทนที่ด้วยความซับซ้อน ความซื่อตรงเปลี่ยนเเปลงไปเป็นความเจ้าเลห์ไม่ไว้ใจใคร เเต่ในเรื่องนี้ไม่เป็นไปเเบบนั้นเลย ซันชิโร่ยังเป็นซันชิโร่อยู่เสมอ เป็นเหมือนเดิมกับคนที่ขึ้นรถไฟเข้าสู่โตเกียวเป็นครั้งเเรกคนนั้น
วิถีชีวิตของผู้คนในช่วงเวลานั้น สังคมวัฒนธรรม ถูกบันทึกไว้อย่างชัดเจนในเรื่องนี้ มันเลยเป็นเหมือนไดอารี่ที่หยุดกาลเวลาในห้วงนั้นมาใส่ไว้ภายใตตัวอักษรเพื่อให้คนอ่านได้ลองสัมผัสมัน ผ่านสายตาของหนุ่มน้อยคนหนึ่งที่ต้องพบเจอกับความเปลี่ยนเเปลงของชีวิต ความเปลี่ยนเเปลงที่เราทุกคนต้องเจอ
เวลาผมเจอวรรณกรรมที่ไร้พล็อต (ในความหมายที่ว่าไม่ได้มีทิศทางการเล่าเรื่องที่ชัดเจนว่าจะไปในทางไหน) ผมคาดเดาได้เลยว่าทุกอย่างจะเป็นไปอย่างเเเช่มช้า เปรียบเหมือนการเดินจงกรมที่กว่าจะได้ก้าวไปเเต่ละก้าวนี่มันช่างช้าเสียนี่กระไร ซึ่งซันชิโร่เล่มนี้ก็ตรงตามคอนเซปนี้เป๊ะๆ
ความไร้พล็อตของซันชิโร่ ผมว่าโชเซกิตั้งใจให้เป็นอย่างนั้น คนอ่านจะไม่อาจทราบได้ว่าซันชิโร่ของเรากำลังจะทำอะไร อะไรจะเกิดขึ้น เหมือนกับที่ซันชิโร่ เด็กหนุ่มจากบ้านนอกคอกนาก็ไม่อาจทราบได้ว่าวันที่เขาก้าวเท้าเข้ามาเรียนมหาลัยในโตเกียวนี้อะไรจะเกิดขึ้น
การนำขั้วตรงข้ามอย่างวิถีต่างจังหวัดเเละวิถีชีวิตคนเมืองมาใช้เป็นฉากหลังของเรื่อง อาจจะไม่ได้เป็นอะไรที่เเปลกใหม่มากนักหากเรามองบ่อวรรณกรรมในทุกวันนี้ เเต่หากมองย้อนกลับไปในช่วงเวลาที่เรื่องนี้เขียนขึ้น ซึ่งนับกันคร่าวๆก็น่าจะ 100 ปีได้เเล้ว พล็อตลักษณะนี้ก็ไม่ได้เห็นมากมายนัก
สิ่งที่ผมสังเกตเเละคิดว่าเป็นองคืประกอบที่ชอบมากในเรื่องคือ โชเซกิ เขียนตัวละครออกมาได้ชัดเจนดีจริงๆ ตัวละครเเต่ละคนเหมือนเป็นภาพเเทนของอะไรซักอย่างที่มาอยู่รายล้มตัวของซันชิโร ซึ่งภาพเเทนเหล่านี้ผมมองว่ามันคือสัญลักษณ์ที่โชเซกิมองเห็นถึงความเป็นคนเมืองที่ดูเเตกต่างจาก คนซื่อๆอย่างซันชิโร
โยจิโร่ คือ ภาพเเทนของความเอาเเน่เอานนอนไม่ได้ เเละการคลั่งไคล้ในสิ่งใดจนมากล้น
อ.ฮิโรตะ คือ ภาพเเทนของความเป็นวิชาการที่ด้านนึงดูสูงส่ง เเต่อีกด้านคือความอิเหละเขละขละ ไม่สนใจสิ่งใดนอกจากตัวเอง
มิเนโกะ คือ ภาพเเทนของความลึกลับน่าหยั่งรู้ที่ทำให้เรารู้สึกลุ่มหลง ซึ่งสุดท้ายเเล้วมันอาจเป็นเเค่เปลือกนอกที่ข้างในก็ไม่ได้มีอะไรที่เเตกต่างออกไปเลย
สามตัวละครสำคัญนี้ คือ ภาพเเทนของความเป็นเมืองที่โชเซกิยกมาให้เห็นชัด ���ึ่งปรากฎชัดมากจากลักษณะเเละวิธีการพูด (อันนี้ยอมรับว่าเขียนออกมาได้เก่งมาก) ยิ่งเมื่อนำมาเทียบกับซันชิโร่ที่โชเซกิวางภาพเเทนเป็นความเรียบง่าย ไม่มีเลห์กล ซื่อตรงเเละจริงใจ ก็ทำให้ความเป็นขั้วตรงข้ามของความเป็นเมืองเเละต่างจังหวัด เด่นชัดขึ้นมา ต่างฝ่ายต่างสะท้อนตัวตนของกันเเละกัน
นอกจากตัวละครเเล้ว หากสังเกตุจะพบว่าบทสนทนาที่ใช้ในเมืองนั้น จะพูดกันเเต่เรื่องความสวยงาม ความรู้ วิชาการ ความสูงส่งต่างๆเเละเรื่องราวของตนเอง เเต่เมื่อบทสนทนากลับไปยังบ้านนอกผ่านจดหมายของเเม่ซันชิโร่เเล้ว จะพบว่ามีเเต่เพียงความเรียบง่าย เรื่องราวของผู้คนข้างบ้าน ชีวิตเกษตรกร เก็บผักผลไม้ ในส่วนนี้ยิ่งทำให้เห็นถึงความต่างมากเข้าไปอีก ซึ่งเป็นอะไรที่เขียนออกมาได้ดีมาก ผมชอบมากๆเลย
นอกจากนั้นเเล้ว สิ่งที่ชอบอีกอย่างหนึ่งคือ ความไม่เปลี่ยนเเปลงไปในตัวตนของซันชิโร่ เรามักจะเห็นว่าเมื่อคนบ้านนอกเข้ามาในเมือง เรื่องราวมักพาตัวละครเอกให้เปลี่ยนเเปลงไปผ่านชีวิตคนเมือง ความเรียบง่ายถูกเเทนที่ด้วยความซับซ้อน ความซื่อตรงเปลี่ยนเเปลงไปเป็นความเจ้าเลห์ไม่ไว้ใจใคร เเต่ในเรื่องนี้ไม่เป็นไปเเบบนั้นเลย ซันชิโร่ยังเป็นซันชิโร่อยู่เสมอ เป็นเหมือนเดิมกับคนที่ขึ้นรถไฟเข้าสู่โตเกียวเป็นครั้งเเรกคนนั้น
วิถีชีวิตของผู้คนในช่วงเวลานั้น สังคมวัฒนธรรม ถูกบันทึกไว้อย่างชัดเจนในเรื่องนี้ มันเลยเป็นเหมือนไดอารี่ที่หยุดกาลเวลาในห้วงนั้นมาใส่ไว้ภายใตตัวอักษรเพื่อให้คนอ่านได้ลองสัมผัสมัน ผ่านสายตาของหนุ่มน้อยคนหนึ่งที่ต้องพบเจอกับความเปลี่ยนเเปลงของชีวิต ความเปลี่ยนเเปลงที่เราทุกคนต้องเจอ
December 9, 2016
Sanshirō là hiện thân của tất cả các nghi ngờ, hứng thú và hoang đường của thời kỳ Minh Trị. Sanshirō là chân dung toàn hảo nhất về lớp trẻ Nhật Bản trong giai đoạn giao thời, là hình ảnh kiêu ngạo ngây thơ nhưng lại rất tinh tế sâu sắc của một thanh niên trong thời điểm xã hội giao tranh cũ mới; trước những truyền thống tập tục và đạo đức cũng đang dần phải thích ứng với những biến động của đất nước, một Nhật Bản đang trở mình trước bình minh phương tây.
July 28, 2018
El inocente Sanshiro llega del pueblo para estudiar en la universidad y va descubriendo los entresijos de la vida. Su amigo es un liante de cojones.
June 2, 2023
this needs to be a series or something like i still want to know what happened next
April 3, 2015
Lo primero que hay que destacar de este libro es que es de hace 100 años, de un país al otro lado del mundo, Japón, y que al leerlo parece que está pasando a tu lado, ahora. La historia en si es sencilla: chico de pueblo entra en la universidad, hace amigos, conoce a una chica, se enamora...el resto os toca leerlo.
Pero lo sorprendente es la actualidad de la forma de pensar de los personajes. En 1908 Japón acaba de derrotar a la flota Rusa, en cuarenta años ha pasado de ser un reino feudal encerrado en si mismo a una pujante nación industrial. Si no fuera por los paseos tranquilos por los parques, el uso de telegramas y la inexistencia de teléfonos móviles casi podriamos olvidar de en que año esta pasando la acción. Y no es una novela histórica en la que la recreación de detalles cotidianos es la forma en la que el autor nos introduce en el mundo íntimo de los personajes; para el autor era su momento, su mundo cotidiano. Un mundo que para mi, un pueblerino provinciano que fue a la universidad a buscar cultura (alguna encontré, pero muy escondida entre capas de relleno) es, con algunos matices, la universidad que conocí hace veinte años.
Duele pensar que los "Jóvenes Japoneses" que reclaman su modernidad frente a los usos caducos del pasado y la necesidad de valorar sus propios puntos de vista frente a la imposición de los clichés literarios extranjeros serán los que empujen veinte años mas tarde a Japón hacia la guerra.
En resumen: un buen libro, ameno, con momentos divertidos y acertadas reflexiones sobre el valor de los estudios universitarios (SI, ya se quejaban que no valían para encontrar trabajo), los grandes intelectuales y los enamorados cobardes. Y una gran traducción (algo necesario para los que no sabemos japonés). Que lo disfruteis.
Pero lo sorprendente es la actualidad de la forma de pensar de los personajes. En 1908 Japón acaba de derrotar a la flota Rusa, en cuarenta años ha pasado de ser un reino feudal encerrado en si mismo a una pujante nación industrial. Si no fuera por los paseos tranquilos por los parques, el uso de telegramas y la inexistencia de teléfonos móviles casi podriamos olvidar de en que año esta pasando la acción. Y no es una novela histórica en la que la recreación de detalles cotidianos es la forma en la que el autor nos introduce en el mundo íntimo de los personajes; para el autor era su momento, su mundo cotidiano. Un mundo que para mi, un pueblerino provinciano que fue a la universidad a buscar cultura (alguna encontré, pero muy escondida entre capas de relleno) es, con algunos matices, la universidad que conocí hace veinte años.
Duele pensar que los "Jóvenes Japoneses" que reclaman su modernidad frente a los usos caducos del pasado y la necesidad de valorar sus propios puntos de vista frente a la imposición de los clichés literarios extranjeros serán los que empujen veinte años mas tarde a Japón hacia la guerra.
En resumen: un buen libro, ameno, con momentos divertidos y acertadas reflexiones sobre el valor de los estudios universitarios (SI, ya se quejaban que no valían para encontrar trabajo), los grandes intelectuales y los enamorados cobardes. Y una gran traducción (algo necesario para los que no sabemos japonés). Que lo disfruteis.
February 15, 2015
"I'm shy boy!"
I don't know where it came from, but saying "I'm shy boy!" in English and moving your hands to a cutesy under the chin pose was something some young men did (do?) in Japan. One time, the male teachers were drunk and talking about going to a girly bar. One of those that wasn't saying "I'm shy boy!" kept saying "It's paradise in the earth! It's paradise in the earth!" but his pronunciation was such that us two native English speakers thought he was saying, "It's paradise in the arse! It's paradise in the arse!" We weren't quite sure what was going on ...
Anyway, Sanshiro is a very adorable tale about your average Japanese shy boys. It's cute because there are 120 million Japanese people but reading Sanshiro makes such a feat seem impossible.
Bits I liked:
"'How do you feel? What is it, a headache? It must have been the crowd. There were some pretty low-class men in the doll shed - did one of them do something?'"
Hmmm.
"Lately, Sanshiro had become the captive of a woman. He had surrendered himself to her. It would be pleasant enough if they were lovers, but this was an incomprehensible kind of surrender. He did not know if he was being loved or laughed at, whether he should be terrified or contemptuous, whether he should end it or keep going."
I love that "terrified or contemptuous" are the two options.
"'No, thanks. I'd rather take up the Noh drum. I don't know, when I hear the plop of that little drum, I feel I'm not in the twentieth century anymore. I like that.'"
I don't know where it came from, but saying "I'm shy boy!" in English and moving your hands to a cutesy under the chin pose was something some young men did (do?) in Japan. One time, the male teachers were drunk and talking about going to a girly bar. One of those that wasn't saying "I'm shy boy!" kept saying "It's paradise in the earth! It's paradise in the earth!" but his pronunciation was such that us two native English speakers thought he was saying, "It's paradise in the arse! It's paradise in the arse!" We weren't quite sure what was going on ...
Anyway, Sanshiro is a very adorable tale about your average Japanese shy boys. It's cute because there are 120 million Japanese people but reading Sanshiro makes such a feat seem impossible.
Bits I liked:
"'How do you feel? What is it, a headache? It must have been the crowd. There were some pretty low-class men in the doll shed - did one of them do something?'"
Hmmm.
"Lately, Sanshiro had become the captive of a woman. He had surrendered himself to her. It would be pleasant enough if they were lovers, but this was an incomprehensible kind of surrender. He did not know if he was being loved or laughed at, whether he should be terrified or contemptuous, whether he should end it or keep going."
I love that "terrified or contemptuous" are the two options.
"'No, thanks. I'd rather take up the Noh drum. I don't know, when I hear the plop of that little drum, I feel I'm not in the twentieth century anymore. I like that.'"
July 3, 2019
"You are nothing but typewriters, greedy typewriters."
"Take the lid off something that stinks, and you find a manure bucket."
I love reading a really great book that you just never want to end. You want to stretch out the machinations and goings-on of the characters so that it lasts forever. You even find yourself reading it slower to make it last longer. Natsume will always have this power for me, but there was something sad and funny about this one that really sticks with me. It's basically your typical country mouse tries to become city mouse story. Sanshiro transfers to the university in Tokyo and meets a motley crew of characters, all of whom are endlessly fascinating and one of whom he thinks he's falling in love with. The running theme of this novel is twofold: clarity should never be taken for granted; clarity does not belong to the young. While the older characters berate their younger peers for their apathy and modern idleness, the younger characters, including Sanshiro wander around life in a daze, uncertain and uncertain whether they need to be certain.
Genius stuff!
"Take the lid off something that stinks, and you find a manure bucket."
I love reading a really great book that you just never want to end. You want to stretch out the machinations and goings-on of the characters so that it lasts forever. You even find yourself reading it slower to make it last longer. Natsume will always have this power for me, but there was something sad and funny about this one that really sticks with me. It's basically your typical country mouse tries to become city mouse story. Sanshiro transfers to the university in Tokyo and meets a motley crew of characters, all of whom are endlessly fascinating and one of whom he thinks he's falling in love with. The running theme of this novel is twofold: clarity should never be taken for granted; clarity does not belong to the young. While the older characters berate their younger peers for their apathy and modern idleness, the younger characters, including Sanshiro wander around life in a daze, uncertain and uncertain whether they need to be certain.
Genius stuff!
February 7, 2022
sad as he’ll. 3.5
November 30, 2025
ชีวิตวุ่นๆ ของวัยรุ่นเมจิ เอาจริงๆ รู้สึกว่าตัวเนื้อเรื่องไม่มีอะไรดึงดูดความสนใจเลย คือเป็นเรื่องของเด็กหนุ่มคนนึงที่เดินทางจากบ้านนอกเข้ามาเรียนในโตเกียวเลยได้พบเจอผู้คนต่างๆ ซึ่งคนเขียนเล่าเรื่องคนนั้นนิด คนนี้หน่อย จนรู้สึกว่ามันไม่มีเรื่องราวของคนไหน engaging เลยสักเรื่อง
แต่สิ่งที่ชอบมากๆ ในเล่มนี้คือกลิ่นอายของยุคเมจิ ด้วยความที่มีตัวละครหลากหลาย มันเลยเป็นการสะท้อนภาพสังคมยุคเมจิจากหลายๆ แง่มุม มีแนวคิดต่างๆ ในยุคนั้นโผล่มาเต็มไปหมด ซึ่งสิ่งเหล่านี้ทำให้รู้สึกว่ายุคเมจิที่ญี่ปุ่นเพิ่งเปิดประเทศจนแนวคิดตะวันตกไหลเข้ามาปะปนกับตะวันออกนี่มันมีเสน่ห์จริงๆ ถึงจะมองว่าเป็นงานของนักเขียนยุคนั้นโดยตรงก็ยังรู้สึกว่าโซเซกิเป็นคนที่ถ่ายทอดเสน่ห์ในยุคสมัยของเขาได้เด่นชัดเป็นพิเศษอยู่ดี
แต่สิ่งที่ชอบมากๆ ในเล่มนี้คือกลิ่นอายของยุคเมจิ ด้วยความที่มีตัวละครหลากหลาย มันเลยเป็นการสะท้อนภาพสังคมยุคเมจิจากหลายๆ แง่มุม มีแนวคิดต่างๆ ในยุคนั้นโผล่มาเต็มไปหมด ซึ่งสิ่งเหล่านี้ทำให้รู้สึกว่ายุคเมจิที่ญี่ปุ่นเพิ่งเปิดประเทศจนแนวคิดตะวันตกไหลเข้ามาปะปนกับตะวันออกนี่มันมีเสน่ห์จริงๆ ถึงจะมองว่าเป็นงานของนักเขียนยุคนั้นโดยตรงก็ยังรู้สึกว่าโซเซกิเป็นคนที่ถ่ายทอดเสน่ห์ในยุคสมัยของเขาได้เด่นชัดเป็นพิเศษอยู่ดี
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