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4.04 AVERAGE
4.04 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
No words can do justice to the genius with which Mishima portrayed complex human emotions. Understanding human psyche is one thing, but being able to adeptly capture its essence in writing and that too in a way that doesn't make you hate humans for doing stupid things but rather sympathise and come to terms with the reality of being human, is not a simple task. But Mishima still managed to seamlessly create worlds and situations that were so different in tone and yet so powerful, at such a young age. It's hard not to marvel at his gift.
Every book that I read by him solidifies my love for his provocative writing. Just when I think it can't get any better, I am hit with another engrossing literary masterpiece.
Every book that I read by him solidifies my love for his provocative writing. Just when I think it can't get any better, I am hit with another engrossing literary masterpiece.
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
One of the most beautifully written books I’ve ever read. His way of describing things, so unusual, so sensual, so sublime.
If love were about possession instead of respect, then this book would be a portrayal of love indeed. But Kiyoaki is difficult to sympathize with, not the least because of his callousness towards the precarious social condition of women in general and the woman he "loves" in particular. Women are the problem, apparently: it's a woman's fault if a man can't control himself; it's a woman who 'breaks the friendship of men'; it's certainly also a woman's fault that he can't make up his mind about what he wants because she 'confuses him.' Women are described here like ripe fruits for consumption and nothing more. Although Mishima is certainly a very skilled writer and that skill is on showcase with this book's beautiful prose, the content itself is hard to swallow. The tragic part is that I can see how this book directly informs the writing of more contemporary Japanese writers, like Haruki Murakami.
“In his heart, he always preferred the actuality of loss to the fear of it. (...)
He was empty now, his soul a desert swept by parching winds. He had never felt more estranged from elegance and from beauty as well. Yet perhaps all this was essential to his attaining true beauty - this inner emptiness, this loss of all joy, even this utter inability to believe that the oppressive weight of each moment was something real, that his pain, at least, was something that was his. The symptoms of a man afflicted by true beauty are much like those of leprosy."
He was empty now, his soul a desert swept by parching winds. He had never felt more estranged from elegance and from beauty as well. Yet perhaps all this was essential to his attaining true beauty - this inner emptiness, this loss of all joy, even this utter inability to believe that the oppressive weight of each moment was something real, that his pain, at least, was something that was his. The symptoms of a man afflicted by true beauty are much like those of leprosy."
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book changed my life. It's been a long time since I felt such an uncontrollable rush of emotions and I can't get it out of my mind.
Terribly beautiful.
Terribly beautiful.