mathias_arvidsson 's review for:

Spring Snow by Yukio Mishima

3.0

slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Spring snow is an elegantly written romance novel, that in parts reaches the great heights I experienced in Confessions of a Mask. Mishima’s writing is flowery, yet energetic, and the language can also be quite difficult. This book was hard to penetrate, as it is full of traditional ceremonies, references to art, religion, and literature, and set in the, for me, more obscure historical time of the start of the 20th century. Even for someone who doesnt usually enjoy romance, this managed to keep my interest, and even breached amazement in certain moments, such as the first kiss. I believe one of the books greatest strengths is the characters and just how much they change and grow throughout the book, all the while embodying the central concepts of elegance, melancholy, and austerity. 

 

Spring snow is yet another book that I’ve done deep reading for. This vastly changes the experience of reading. Most importantly the reading is continuously interrupted, I pause to take notes on the text. The pages become covered in ink. Whenever unfamiliar names or events or objects come up, I pause and look up what they mean. This includes historic texts or artworks, for example “Precepts of a Bodhisattva”, cultural traditions or items such as “Otachimachi” and even large historical events like “The Russo-Japanese war” which frames the story. This type of reading does get me closer to the text and events, but honestly it is kind of tedious, because there’s a lot of extra work, especially in dense and long texts like this one. 
 Overall the effects of this extra work are not yet noticeable. The reason why I am doing all of this is from what I heard conveyed by Benjamin McEvoy that “rereading is more important than reading”. I guess in a way I feel like I am too young to be doing this, like I am not exactly sure what I should be getting out of it, and it ends up being frustrating. I still get a lot out of writing reviews for books though, and will continue doing so. 

 

I love Yukio Mishima’s writing. Confessions of a mask is one of my favourite books, because I’ve never been to enthralled by the descriptions or felt the emotions of a book as clearly as then. I would say Spring Snow has similar moments, and the quality of the writing is exceptional. That being said, this story didn’t come alive to the same degree for me, partly because I couldn’t really relate to the Kiyoaki, and also because the conflict didn’t really interest me. I don’t read much romance, and this is a romance in the truest sense, while also mixing in high-society customs, and youthful nervousness. There are still moments that absolutely captured me, I am reminded of the dog on the waterfall, the first kiss, Hondas philosophical exploits, the Marquis’ fury, Iinuma’s sentiments, the arduous ending. 
 
The language is somewhat complicated. You really do need a dictionary at your side, which contributed to slowing my pace down. Mishima’s vocabulary is exceptional, employing words like: agog, haughty, austere, vestige, obstetrician, incumbent, cornice, reticence, orotund, inure, ostentation, and so on. The writing is a unique mix of these old and complicated words and energetic descriptions of nature. 

 

Here’s a small paragraph that exemplifies the writing I enjoyed: His tears soaked his pillow and he called her name again and again through the night in helpless frustration. As he did so, there were moments when her image was suddenly beside him, somewhere between dream and reality. His dreams ceased to tell stories objective enough to be recorded in his journal. Hope and despair, dream and reality, now came together to cancel each other out, the border between them as vague as the shoreline against which the rolling waves break without cease.

Throughout the book the concepts of Elegance, Melancholy, and Austerity are repeated. Each of the main characters seem to embody one of these concepts. Satoko clearly captures elegance, in everything from her movements, to way of speaking, to how she goes after her desires. She is graceful, mature, and uses restraint, never overstepping. Describing what is elegant is surprisingly hard, and probably very cultural. Elegance seems rooted in traditions, yet also exclusively those of nobility. 

 Melancholy is given shape in Kiyoaki, who is trapped in a whirling haze of emotions which control his every action. He doesn’t know what he wants, which leaves him constantly feeling incomplete. As it turns out, he only wants what he can’t have, creating an endless cycle of melancholy. It isn’t until he’s made Satoko hate him that she becomes irresistible to him. From there their love blossoms, but it is only under the ever growing threat of her imperial betrothal. Towards the end, Kiyo goes to great lengths because of the impossibility of their love. To be fair to Kiyo, he goes through a lot of growth in the novel, but can never seem to break free of a sense of longing, and sadness.

Lastly the concept of austerity isn’t perfectly described by any of the characters, but I suppose Honda is meant to capture it, and also Iinuma but he isn’t a main character. Honda is a rational, diligent, and discerning counterpart to Kiyoaki, who takes his responsibilities very seriously. He is strict with his studies, endlessly loyal to his friend, emotionally intelligent yet reserved. While Honda appears quite friendly, he is strict with himself, and denies himself pleasures. Satoko also makes a journey from elegance to austerity, but for melancholic reasons. So the book intertwines these concepts throughout. 

 

Furthermore the book twists all of these concepts to show their downsides. For example Satoko’s father the Count, has taken elegance too far, becoming passive and listless, waiting for others to come along and solve his troubles for him. There is Iinuma who has taken austerity too far, becoming sexually repressed, and holding onto old Japanese ideas of glory. As for melancholy, Kiyo is the one who takes it too far, wallowing in his destructive feelings, and letting it ruin his relationships. Satoko and Tadeshina take elegance too far by becoming devious, working stealthily for their own agendas. The book doesnt seem to favour any of the concepts, but to me the most respectable character is Honda, who shows more of balance between everything. 

 

While there is a lot to like in the novel, including the continuously growing characters, the energetic writing style, and some exquisite moments, there were also parts that didn’t really interest me. My main issue was that I didn’t really relate to the main character, neither his desires or struggles, and I also am not terribly interested in the secret love life of these youthful nobilities. Combine this with some of the tedium I experienced from deep reading this novel, which has yet to become noticeably rewarding, and my enjoyment was held back a little. While this book didn’t touch me personally I still have to commend and appreciate the quality of the writing. Perhaps when I return to this book in the future, the contents will resonate more deeply.