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A review by trin
Patriotism by Yukio Mishima
3.0
Reading this book is sort of what I’d imagine watching a snuff film would be like. The story is a simple one: a young soldier in ’30s Japan comes home and informs his wife that in order to preserve his honor, he must commit seppuku before the night is through. The wife proves her love and devotion by agreeing to go with him, so they calmly organize their affairs, make love one last time, and then kill themselves. All of this is beautifully, and in fact, lovingly described. Parts of it, especially as the couple take comfort in each other’s bodies a final time, are moving in a mournful, bittersweet way. I’ve written some apocalyptic fiction and I’d love to be able to capture that sort of mood so well.
However, all of this is sort of spoiled by the fact that what the couple is doing is completely ridiculous. The idea of ritualistic suicide is bizarre to me, and in the case of this book, you can’t even fool yourself into thinking that the author might be subtly critiquing the practice, as Mishima himself later committed seppuku. Think about that for a moment. Read Mishima’s incredibly detailed description of ritual disembowelment and think about that. Or, you know, don’t. I won’t judge you. I spent several hours after I finished reading this slim novella feeling sick to my stomach, it’s so graphic—and I say this as someone who read [b:Exquisite Corpse|15320|Exquisite Corpse|Poppy Z. Brite|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266451246s/15320.jpg|17209] while munching on a burrito. It’s the rare piece of literature that can achieve that level of effectiveness.
So yeah, it’s a snuff film. But it’s an unusually stylish and well-directed one.
However, all of this is sort of spoiled by the fact that what the couple is doing is completely ridiculous. The idea of ritualistic suicide is bizarre to me, and in the case of this book, you can’t even fool yourself into thinking that the author might be subtly critiquing the practice, as Mishima himself later committed seppuku. Think about that for a moment. Read Mishima’s incredibly detailed description of ritual disembowelment and think about that. Or, you know, don’t. I won’t judge you. I spent several hours after I finished reading this slim novella feeling sick to my stomach, it’s so graphic—and I say this as someone who read [b:Exquisite Corpse|15320|Exquisite Corpse|Poppy Z. Brite|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266451246s/15320.jpg|17209] while munching on a burrito. It’s the rare piece of literature that can achieve that level of effectiveness.
So yeah, it’s a snuff film. But it’s an unusually stylish and well-directed one.