Reviews - No Longer Human | The StoryGraph

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13.5k reviews for:

No Longer Human

Osamu Dazai

3.81 AVERAGE

isamaateos's review against another edition

5.0

reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Será posible que los seres humanos no se comprendan?
El hombre como corriente de agua; para qué inquietarse?

doorman's review against another edition

4.0

dark fast-paced

arianaareads's review against another edition

3.5

challenging dark reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

no1ne's review against another edition

3.75

dark reflective fast-paced

gidge2's review against another edition

4.5

dark sad tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

jk60's review against another edition

4.0

Deze semi-autobiografische roman uit 1948 en onlangs in vertaling uitgebracht, gaat over iemand die niet in staat is om onderdeel van de samenleving te zijn en hoe hij daarmee omgaat. Hij meet zich een rol als clown aan en later zoekt hij zijn heil in alcohol en pillen. Bijzonder meeslepend verhaal door de stijl, de structuur en de fascinerende, zelfdestructieve hoofpersoon.
Ik had nog nooit van deze schrijver gehoord, maar dit is wel een van de grote verrassingen van dit jaar!

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lucidalumina's review against another edition

2.5

dark reflective sad medium-paced

I'm so glad that this wasn't my first Osamu Dazai book, despite it being on my TBR the longest, because I'm not sure I would've tried out his other work if this had been my first experience. The first two I read, The Flowers of Buffoonery and Self-Portraits, were also semi-autobiographical, but I enjoyed them much more. The Flowers of Buffoonery has the same protagonist as No Longer Human, but ten years before, and maybe the narrower subject matter and timeline made it more enjoyable. Self-Portraits is an autobiographical short story collection, which I hadn't ever tried before, and it had a distinct narrative voice that made both the depressing and mundane aspects of life easier to stomach.

I did also enjoy the writing of No Longer Human, but I couldn't find it in me to consistently care about the characters or themes. It felt a bit like watching a man hurt the people around him, especially women, over and over again without significant change. This idea that the protagonist doesn't understand society, and that society doesn't understand him, is a fine enough theme when done well. Sayaka Murata is the first author that comes to mind. Our protagonist here, however, seems to think of himself as an exceptional case, whereas Sayaka Murata's characters seek connection, at least in my opinion. I don't think it's enjoyable to read a man say that society doesn't understand him while hurting people!

I think I enjoyed the beginning of the book the most. Reading about a child who hides his complex feelings by acting silly so that other people like him is interesting! That youthful confusion and struggle felt so much more real than woman after woman being strangely drawn to a depressed man who mistreats them. Other people clearly get more out of this book than I do, but I don't quite know how. The explorations of selfhood and human nature just didn't do much for me.