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A review by fletcherflute
Naomi by Jun'ichirō Tanizaki
4.0
4 stars-
A really interesting product of modernist Japanese history where the original boundaries of chastity, social behavior, and ethics were no longer clear.
The narrator, Joji, takes in Naomi, a 15 year old girl, as his “maid,” but really with the design of making her his wife. It’s a Lolita-esque setup of manipulation and grooming.
There’s a lot here about 20th century westernization, and the craze surrounding western clothing, behaviors, cinema, and education. Joji grooms Naomi into this idealistic western woman, but when Naomi becomes closer and closer to that ideal, things start to fly off the rails for him.
It’s a story of about power. About who has traditionally had it, who wants it, and how to lose it. Naomi becomes a master manipulator, and has Joji on his hands and knees willing to sacrifice his morality, money, and dignity.
Side note:
Is this book feminist? I think maybe it can be read that way (though I don’t think it normally is). But if you think about it, Naomi WINS. She gets everything she ever aspired to, and has all of the power she wanted.
I think the main thing that makes this reading difficult is that it is hard to find Tanizaki’s position in this novel, especially with the close first person reading. An alternate translation of the title is “Fool’s Love,” so it’s clear that Tanizaki agrees that Joji is an idiot. However it’s a little bit harder to dissect his thoughts on Naomi as a character.
All that said, I’d pick this one up. It’s a fairly quick read, and there’s a lot to unravel and think on.
A really interesting product of modernist Japanese history where the original boundaries of chastity, social behavior, and ethics were no longer clear.
The narrator, Joji, takes in Naomi, a 15 year old girl, as his “maid,” but really with the design of making her his wife. It’s a Lolita-esque setup of manipulation and grooming.
There’s a lot here about 20th century westernization, and the craze surrounding western clothing, behaviors, cinema, and education. Joji grooms Naomi into this idealistic western woman, but when Naomi becomes closer and closer to that ideal, things start to fly off the rails for him.
It’s a story of about power. About who has traditionally had it, who wants it, and how to lose it. Naomi becomes a master manipulator, and has Joji on his hands and knees willing to sacrifice his morality, money, and dignity.
Side note:
Is this book feminist? I think maybe it can be read that way (though I don’t think it normally is). But if you think about it, Naomi WINS. She gets everything she ever aspired to, and has all of the power she wanted.
I think the main thing that makes this reading difficult is that it is hard to find Tanizaki’s position in this novel, especially with the close first person reading. An alternate translation of the title is “Fool’s Love,” so it’s clear that Tanizaki agrees that Joji is an idiot. However it’s a little bit harder to dissect his thoughts on Naomi as a character.
All that said, I’d pick this one up. It’s a fairly quick read, and there’s a lot to unravel and think on.