Scan barcode
A review by wolfdan9
The Story of Tomoda and Matsunaga by Jun'ichirō Tanizaki
3.0
”To the West! Where a world existed that was the very opposite of this land of subtle hints and things left unsaid....”
The Story of Tomoda and Matsunaga is an early novella by Junichiro Tanizaki, one of my all-time favorite writers. In typical fashion, the story explores Tanizaki's fascination/obsession with the West, particularly focusing on the tension he feels between desiring the hedonistic western lifestyle and traditional Japanese values. The novella is presented as a mystery, although it is quite self aware that it is one (and is narrated by Tanizaki himself -- an insertion of author into fiction, which is always a technique I enjoy.) To briefly summarize, a woman writes Tanizaki a letter about her missing husband. He leaves and returns every 4 years to their quiet Japanese village. Enclosed in the letter is a picture and a ring, which contain a name that Tanizaki realizes he is familiar with. The wife, who suspects her husband is living a double life as this Tomoda, spurs Tanizaki to investigate.
I found the writing a bit inconsistent; for the first 60% or so of the novella it felt like the translator was attempting to ape one of Murakami's translators. For me, that isn't a bad thing as I enjoy Murakami's novels, but it felt odd to read. The rhythm of the dialogue mimicked some of Murakami's typically stilted interlocutors and the humor even came off the page a lot like Murakami's. Also the element of a mystery with an invested yet emotionally detached protagonist was strikingly similar to Murakami (keep in mind, I've read all of Murakami's novels and most of Tanizaki's work, so I'm only making this comparison because it struck me as bizarre and not because I'm conflating two Japanese writers because they're both Japanese).
Ironically, the character of Tomoda is equally representative of Tanizaki as Tanizaki himself is in the story. In a very fun and entertaining but quite simple sort of way, Tanizaki writes this story about Tomoda who travels back and forth from his quiet Japanese village to "western" hubs in Japan and elsewhere for wild sex, parties, drink, etc. His body physically changes so he is completely unrecognizable between one place to another (oh right, the story delves a bit into magical realism in this way too). He is an entirely different person, both physically and personality-wise, in his Eastern and Western lives. Tanizaki illustrates the east and west in starkly different, and frankly hyperbolic, terms that really suggests more about himself than the realities of the differences of Japan and the West. It's clear, especially with the context of his other works, that the "West" is an outlet, or an excuse, for Tanizaki's sexual urges, which he feels are repressed by Japanese culture.
I found it interesting that Tanizaki -- who as mentioned -- throughout his career revealed himself as somewhat of a sexual obsessive, portrays the Japanese Matsunaga as weak, meager, frail, polite, etc. (all stereotypes) and the western Tomoda as confident, fat, outgoing, boorish, lustful, etc. (also all stereotypes). It's hard for me to decide whether the polarity of Matsunaga's two sides was Tanizaki's way of making his point clear or if he illustrated this difference so starkly because his own inner conflict was based on such an exaggerated way of viewing the two cultures. The simplicity and directness of Tanizaki's analogy is offset by the meta-narrative that he is expressing himself through Tomoda, not through himself in the story. It creates a layer of humor and self-awareness that pairs well with the ridiculousness and impossibility of the narrative. In this way, Tanizaki's writing talents shine.
The narrative (sort of hilariously) devolves into Tomoda admitting to being Matsunaga in the last chapter. It's clear that Tanizaki is projecting his own feelings in Tomoda's confession, and the story ends with Tanizaki concluding in a tongue-in-cheek-way that Tomoda still looks "three or four years younger." It is a brilliant way to end the story, and in a very simple comment highlights Tanizaki's expectation that he (Tanizaki himself) will continue to be torn between east and west, and that all of Tomoda's feelings had (also) applied to himself all along.
Very nice introduction to Tanizaki, but he will later eclipse this work exploring the same themes with stories like Naomi.
I found the writing a bit inconsistent; for the first 60% or so of the novella it felt like the translator was attempting to ape one of Murakami's translators. For me, that isn't a bad thing as I enjoy Murakami's novels, but it felt odd to read. The rhythm of the dialogue mimicked some of Murakami's typically stilted interlocutors and the humor even came off the page a lot like Murakami's. Also the element of a mystery with an invested yet emotionally detached protagonist was strikingly similar to Murakami (keep in mind, I've read all of Murakami's novels and most of Tanizaki's work, so I'm only making this comparison because it struck me as bizarre and not because I'm conflating two Japanese writers because they're both Japanese).
Ironically, the character of Tomoda is equally representative of Tanizaki as Tanizaki himself is in the story. In a very fun and entertaining but quite simple sort of way, Tanizaki writes this story about Tomoda who travels back and forth from his quiet Japanese village to "western" hubs in Japan and elsewhere for wild sex, parties, drink, etc. His body physically changes so he is completely unrecognizable between one place to another (oh right, the story delves a bit into magical realism in this way too). He is an entirely different person, both physically and personality-wise, in his Eastern and Western lives. Tanizaki illustrates the east and west in starkly different, and frankly hyperbolic, terms that really suggests more about himself than the realities of the differences of Japan and the West. It's clear, especially with the context of his other works, that the "West" is an outlet, or an excuse, for Tanizaki's sexual urges, which he feels are repressed by Japanese culture.
I found it interesting that Tanizaki -- who as mentioned -- throughout his career revealed himself as somewhat of a sexual obsessive, portrays the Japanese Matsunaga as weak, meager, frail, polite, etc. (all stereotypes) and the western Tomoda as confident, fat, outgoing, boorish, lustful, etc. (also all stereotypes). It's hard for me to decide whether the polarity of Matsunaga's two sides was Tanizaki's way of making his point clear or if he illustrated this difference so starkly because his own inner conflict was based on such an exaggerated way of viewing the two cultures. The simplicity and directness of Tanizaki's analogy is offset by the meta-narrative that he is expressing himself through Tomoda, not through himself in the story. It creates a layer of humor and self-awareness that pairs well with the ridiculousness and impossibility of the narrative. In this way, Tanizaki's writing talents shine.
The narrative (sort of hilariously) devolves into Tomoda admitting to being Matsunaga in the last chapter. It's clear that Tanizaki is projecting his own feelings in Tomoda's confession, and the story ends with Tanizaki concluding in a tongue-in-cheek-way that Tomoda still looks "three or four years younger." It is a brilliant way to end the story, and in a very simple comment highlights Tanizaki's expectation that he (Tanizaki himself) will continue to be torn between east and west, and that all of Tomoda's feelings had (also) applied to himself all along.
Very nice introduction to Tanizaki, but he will later eclipse this work exploring the same themes with stories like Naomi.