Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Kokoro

"A man capable of love, or I should say rather a man who was by nature incapable of not loving; but a man who could not wholeheartedly accept the love of another--such a one was Sensei." p.12

A university student comes across an older gent---a prickly and mysterious man. The narrator's curiosity (and ideas) about Sensei make it a formative summer, becoming a secondary father figure (and someone to impress).

"I learned to judge others harshly, but not myself. I thought that, in the midst of a corrupt world, I had managed to remain virtuous." p.238

Masculine loneliness, self-centeredness, and (old-fashioned) misogyny; women are seen an object of contempt, but also a pure ideal removed from the "sins" of man.

...true love is not so far removed from religious faith. Whenever I saw Ojosan's face I felt that I had myself become beautiful. Whenever I thought of her, I felt a new sense of dignity welling up inside me. If this incomprehensible thing that we call love can either bring out the sacred in man or, in it's lowest form, merely excite one's bodily passions, then surely my love was of the highest kind. I am not saying that I was not like other men. I am made of flesh too. But my eyes which gazed at her, and my mind which held thoughts of her, were innocent of bodily desire." p.155

Loneliness, compounded by guilt and resignation from one's self-induced punishment, is a hell of a drug. Voluntarily isolating yourself and not owning up to your actions have long-lasting consequences; lessons from young to old in a transitionary time. There are plenty of insightful bits scattered throughout all three parts.

"I have decided that no matter how many books I may read, I shall never be a very much better man that I am now."

"I used to consider it a disgrace to be found ignorant by other people. But now, I find that I am not ashamed of knowing less than others, and I am less inclined to force myself to read books. In short, I have grown old and decrepit." p.54

"When a man dies suddenly, his estate causes more trouble than anything else." p.60

Note to self: get started on a last will and testament.

Content Warnings

akira_outofthegravity's review

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dark emotional sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Thoughts to come

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jellyjilli's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

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phantomeyer's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Read in Tokyo. Definitely helped me gain a bit of an understanding of the Japanese cultural mindset, because despite this being written over 100 years ago, the attitudes and themes seemed relevant to what this outsider observed of the social beliefs and behaviours of modern Japan. Beyond that, I’m finding it difficult to describe what I felt reading this. Would highly recommend to those planning to visit Japan.

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slrsnz's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

“Though I had resolved to live as if I were dead, my heart would at times respond to the activity of the outside world, and seem almost to dance with pent-up energy. But as soon as I tried to break my way through the cloud that surrounded me , a frightening powerful force would rush upon me from I know not where, and grip my heart tight until I could not move. A voice would say to me: You have no right to do anything. Stay where you are.
Whatever desire I might have had for action would suddenly leave me. Arter a moment the desire would come back, and I would once more try to break through. Again, I would be restrained. In fury and grief I would cry out: Why do you stop me?
With a cruel laugh, the voice would answer: You know very well why.
Then I would bow in hopeless surrender.”

The ending hit hard. I have to say I was very uninterested in the main character’s life, his naive outlook on life, being that of a young man stressed me. What kept me going was the wall Sensei had built between him and the characters, and the third part was what made me unable to put this book down. There were several instances in which one knew how the story would flow, but, what made it stand out was the way Sensei handled it all: the guilt, the heavy conscience, the way he wanted his wife to have an unsullied memory of him, just like the night everything happened. Mclellan’s inclusion of “How can I escape, except through faith, madness, or death” in his foreword gives the book a new light after you analyze the different characters ways of handling life.

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potterpav's review

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dark mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

genuinely gutted im only giving this two stars. i always feel bad dunking on classics but then in the next breath i must be true to myself. i had such high hopes for this book at the start and really enjoyed the first part! when it got to part 2 i started to lose interest and when part 3 started, i had hope it would pick up again .. sadly i was mistaken. i think its because what was going to happen was pretty obvious as soon as he started talking abt the woman's daughter that it just stopped interesting me. this book is a classic but in my experience, classics aren't really my thing LOL! anyway yeah this book is gonna pass by with a "omg i forgot i read that!" at the end of the year x

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vampireph4ze's review against another edition

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reflective relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

truly, what got me was the title of this book. after reading the final paragraph, i went back to the foreword lovingly written by Edwin McClellan and reread it. i had forgotten what he'd said about it, and it even spoils the ending a little bit, but not enough so that it ruins the experience of reading it. Kokoro - the heart of things. what a beautiful title for a book about beautiful things, even if on the surface they are ugly. this isn't a particularly happy or sad book, overall i've felt a sense of calm wash over me reading it, but it definitely made my heart ache towards the end.

it's simple, it's easy to read and well-paced but so fruitful when it comes to human nature. the two main characters, the unnamed protagonist and Sensei, both have incredible flaws but never really gave enough cause to dislike them. they seemed so real. their actions and behaviors, though admittedly coming from an unreliable narrator, seem justified and real - like something you could see yourself doing if you were put in their shoes. Sensei's letter really wraps the title up into the story, "the heart of things" is the happiness and beauty of the world but also the pain and loneliness.

unfortunately, Sensei was not able to move past this (accompanied by what i take to he his immense guilt or maybe at the end of it all, a heavy heart) but the book does not leave me depressed.

it is hopeful, it is a lesson. it makes me appreciate all that i have had and will have and have.

i'm also realizing that this is the second book of Natsume Soseki's i've read and both of them have ended in the protagonist dying. i cannot wait to see what comes next.

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