A review by diaday333
No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai

dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

Poor Yoshiko is all I have to say. I don’t really find this book dark, but I can see what it would be said. Some parts were good at appealing to my emotions, but overall, the book is quite forgettable to me. The misogyny is wild tho, if it wasn’t for that, I might give this book a higher rating. Also it’s hard to feel bad for Yozo, mostly, I think it’s his characterization. When you see how he acts and what he thinks when he’s not talking about how miserable he is, it’s a yikes. It’s possible to right unlovable characters well and while I think he’s written well, he’s not interesting, at least in the way he should be. He doesn’t have to redeeming qualities to be interesting, but his whole character is unsavory in a way that isn’t interesting to read. The only people I feel bad for are particularly the women he meets. But I will say some parts are written very well where I can feel his despair, it’s just not enough. I guess the most emotional part for me is when he
tried to drown himself and no one cared and he even got disowned and tried for a crime. That was actually sad.
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