情人

by Jun'ichi Watanabe, 渡辺淳一, 侯為 (Translator)

片桐修子是美丽能干的都市白领，却与事业有成的已婚中年男子远野始终保持着“情人”关系。独立聪慧而又善解人意，如此纯粹爱着自己的修子令远野越来越着迷，终于决定抛弃家庭，与修子结婚。然而，修子却在此时提出了分手……

Genres: Fiction

332 pages, Paperback

First published December 10, 1994

About the author

Junichi Watanabe ( 渡辺淳一, Watanabe Jun'ichi, October 24, 1933 – April 30, 2014) was a Japanese writer, known for his portrayal of the extra-marital affairs of middle aged people.

His 1997 novel 'A Lost Paradise' became a bestseller in Japan and over Asia, and was made into a film and a TV miniseries. He has written more than 50 novels in total, and won awards including Naoki Prize in 1970 for 'Light and Shadow' (Hikari to kage), New Current Coterie magazine prize for Makeup, the Yoshikawa Eiji Prize in 1979 for 'The Setting Sun in the Distance' (Toki rakujitsu) and 'The Russian Brothel of Nagasaki' (Nagasaki roshia yujokan).

He was born in Sunagawamachi (present-day Kamisunagawa) and died on April 30, 2014 of prostate cancer in Tokyo.

Reviews

[Léna · Rating 2 out of 5]

As I finally finished reading this book, it made me realize how uncomfortable and angry it makes me feel. It’s disgusting.
Shuko is a ridiculously selfish hypocrite. The author has described Shuko’s inner thoughts more than once - “I’ve never thought of stealing Toono away from his wife.” Does this supposed to mean “two women sharing a man can coexist peacefully”?
When Shuko met Toono’s wife for the first time and was mocked by her, she felt humiliated and hesitated about her relationship with Toono. The author was very sly for not describing any psychological activities about his wife, so we took it for granted, and thought Toono’s wife would not care about her husband’s affair. Of course, the author also slyly deceives the reader and says that Shuko is an independent and free woman. She has always said that she doesn’t like to accept money that Toono gave her. It’s just an illusion that makes her “love” seem noble.
The ending explained Shuko’s fascination with the fearful, sneaky relationship, and even more so, the author unabashedly wrote that Shuko fell in love with Toono because Toono is married.

[meganzh4ng · Rating 4 out of 5]

渡边淳一描写婚外恋情的作品很多，这本“情人”被认为是其中的经典之一。女主人公片桐修子魅力十足（怕不是色诱到了男主），有着自己独特的生活准则。她在追求事业上进、经济独立的同时，深爱着有妇之夫远野昌平。虽说两人的关系相当密切，但修子始终刻意保持着一定距离：“喜欢是喜欢，可不想介入他在与自己之外的生活。只要在一起时两人感到快乐、幸福，这就足够了。”相比之下，远野昌平对修子的爱更显得世俗许多。修子的活力与独立令远野欣赏，两人充满激情的性爱更是为隐秘的恋情锦上添花。但始终挥之不去的是男女之间的占有欲，以及男人面对精神世界无法掌控的女人时，从内心里透露出的无力感和一厢情愿。在修子33岁生日的时候，远野突然送上一本存折，这样的做法虽然出于男人“给所爱女人经济保障”的一番好意，却让修子无法接受：“难道每个月给我二十万日元，就把我——一个女人的将来给买下来了？”真正的、纯洁的、超凡的爱情应该不是维系于金钱，这是修子作为一个女人的自尊。相比所谓的经济保障，修子更认可的是男人在两性关系中表现出的勇气。“要是真正的男人，就应该收起存折，堂堂正正地向自己说一声‘请与我结婚吧。’即使是不现实的，也应该讲些类似的情话。”

这么说
小三光明正大上位？？？？？

[Zhrj · Rating 5 out of 5]

曼特莱斯情人

[CC Li · Rating 3 out of 5]

这本书并不会让男人读懂女人，反而是通过男人眼中的女人，让女人读懂男人。

[Linda Sheng · Rating 5 out of 5]

Astonishingly accurate description of a very nuanced romance. Love it