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4.04 AVERAGE
4.04 AVERAGE
My first Mishima but maybe not my last. Such an interesting story. It took like 150 pages for me to get fully invested but then i couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen. Plenty of twist and turns. Lots of character development and character devolvement. The ending is everything I could have wanted. There were a few parts that were a bit slow but overall I very much enjoyed it.
Spring Snow reminded me a lot of Thomas Mann's 'The Magic Mountain', with its focus on a wealthy young man coming of age under the reader's gaze, and its frequent philosophical excursions. Fascinating reflections on free will, transmigration of souls, natural law, e.g.
Mishima writes with that classically Japanese sensitivity to the natural, and seamlessly blends in some profound points of symbolism.
This book was also an interesting insight into Japanese high society at the end of the Meiji era. The attractions of the West were clear, while maintaining a very strong sense of Japan's unique identity. It has a lot to say about the place of personal duty to one's family, state or emperor. We are given elegant portraits of what it looks like to promote oneself at the expense of the other/collective, and the opposite (especially in the recurring image of the soldier). This is certainly relevant to the author, given the manner of his death.
Makeup, and its dual ability to enhance one's looks and to breed disease, is another frequent symbol. It allows individuals to dissemble, but also to better play the role assigned to them in the game (or stage) of life in imperial Japan. Interesting too how we are given so little insight into the thoughts of any female character, in contrast to the superfluity we receive of Kiyo's.
The tone throughout was measured, meticulous, and beautiful, though still with a forward impetus retaining the reader's interest, and avoiding the book slipping into mere sentimentality (as much as Kiyo himself is guilty of this).
Having finished the book, I was left with the impression of having encountered an epic, perhaps because of the seriousness of its subject matter, but more (I think) because of its beautiful proportions. Mishima's characters will certainly stay with me.
Mishima writes with that classically Japanese sensitivity to the natural, and seamlessly blends in some profound points of symbolism.
This book was also an interesting insight into Japanese high society at the end of the Meiji era. The attractions of the West were clear, while maintaining a very strong sense of Japan's unique identity. It has a lot to say about the place of personal duty to one's family, state or emperor. We are given elegant portraits of what it looks like to promote oneself at the expense of the other/collective, and the opposite (especially in the recurring image of the soldier). This is certainly relevant to the author, given the manner of his death.
Makeup, and its dual ability to enhance one's looks and to breed disease, is another frequent symbol. It allows individuals to dissemble, but also to better play the role assigned to them in the game (or stage) of life in imperial Japan. Interesting too how we are given so little insight into the thoughts of any female character, in contrast to the superfluity we receive of Kiyo's.
The tone throughout was measured, meticulous, and beautiful, though still with a forward impetus retaining the reader's interest, and avoiding the book slipping into mere sentimentality (as much as Kiyo himself is guilty of this).
Having finished the book, I was left with the impression of having encountered an epic, perhaps because of the seriousness of its subject matter, but more (I think) because of its beautiful proportions. Mishima's characters will certainly stay with me.
The author and some of his hagiographers refer to the tetralogy as his masterwork. Having read only the first novel in the series so far, I am not yet convinced. My sense of Mishima is often the balance between the inner world of his characters and "the plot." Some of his novels lean more heavily to the one side or the other. "Spring Show" strikes me as rather balanced, although leaning toward the latter. One is more likely compelled to read by the unfolding story of Kiyoaki and Satoko, than by the inner life of any of the characters, nor the philosophical threads woven through characters and story. The narrative here, in lesser hands, would devolve into soap opera -- a potboiler period romance -- but Mishima's keen line drawings of characters lifts it. A third aspect of his skill as an author are the frequent lyrical passages, often describing scenes of nature.
One point that stood out for me was the use of images in the novel, often to create a supernatural or surreal view of characters or narrative: the sepia photo of the massed soldiers at the Russo-Japanese war dead memorial, the oil painting of the Matsugae patriarch in the billiard room, the (seemingly hand-tinted) photograph of the monastery of Wat-Po in Thailand, the pornographic scroll, and even the briefly described screen at Gesshu. All have somewhat mystical, or eerie qualities to the characters seeing them.
The soldiers in the first are as "like figures in a renaissance painting" -- an image described by another image. The photograph is later recalled on the carriage ride with Satoko through the snow, an illusion that creates a grotesque amid this otherwise blissful journey.
The portrait is tied to a paranormal story, its falling from the wall when the patriarch died.
The Thai photograph leads directly into a discussion (and rumination) on dreams: "For everything sacred has the substance of dreams and memories, and so we suddenly experience the miracle of of what is separated from us by time or distance, suddenly being made tangible." Images do that as well.
Later, Kiyoaki describes Satoko: "he felt he was looking at a fine painting whose colors, once brilliant, were fading horribly before his very eyes." Another somewhat supernatural way of seeing, as with the war photo and the portrait, connected with death or decay.
Finally... Mishima often ends his chapters with a haiku-like jolt, often a sound.
One point that stood out for me was the use of images in the novel, often to create a supernatural or surreal view of characters or narrative: the sepia photo of the massed soldiers at the Russo-Japanese war dead memorial, the oil painting of the Matsugae patriarch in the billiard room, the (seemingly hand-tinted) photograph of the monastery of Wat-Po in Thailand, the pornographic scroll, and even the briefly described screen at Gesshu. All have somewhat mystical, or eerie qualities to the characters seeing them.
The soldiers in the first are as "like figures in a renaissance painting" -- an image described by another image. The photograph is later recalled on the carriage ride with Satoko through the snow, an illusion that creates a grotesque amid this otherwise blissful journey.
The portrait is tied to a paranormal story, its falling from the wall when the patriarch died.
The Thai photograph leads directly into a discussion (and rumination) on dreams: "For everything sacred has the substance of dreams and memories, and so we suddenly experience the miracle of of what is separated from us by time or distance, suddenly being made tangible." Images do that as well.
Later, Kiyoaki describes Satoko: "he felt he was looking at a fine painting whose colors, once brilliant, were fading horribly before his very eyes." Another somewhat supernatural way of seeing, as with the war photo and the portrait, connected with death or decay.
Finally... Mishima often ends his chapters with a haiku-like jolt, often a sound.
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Spring Snow by Yukio Mishima did not appeal to me. The portrait of society, culture, and thought patterns in Japan during the early 1900’s was interesting. My biggest complaint is the novel contains honor and passion, however it was heavy on masculine libido and light on likable characters and emotion.
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes