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A review by withlovejoy
The Life of a Stupid Man by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
⋆｡°✩ "I may wear the skin of an urbane sophisticate, but in this manuscript I invite you to strip it off and laugh at my stupidity."
i’m having a really hard time rating this book so don’t mind me changing the rating in the future. all i can say, however, is that ryūnosuke akutagawa has led a very sad life but also did not always make the best decisions, aka cheated on his wife which is not okay.
⋆｡°✩ "He could think of nothing in life that he especially desired, but those purple sparks - those wildly-blooming flowers of fire - he would trade his life for the chance to hold them in his hands."
while the first story was kind of a murder mystery told out of seven different perspectives and was semi interesting in my opinion, the other two stories were autobiographical pieces which - for me - served as a way to get to know the author, his life, his suffering. i do not view them as stories but merely retellings and because of that it’s hard for me to properly rate them.
⋆｡°✩ "He wanted to live life so intensely that he could die at any moment without regrets."
the first autobiographical piece is basically a list of all the people that have died in the author’s life, not really my cup of tea as it really felt like some kind of record he was trying to keep. the second one however really stood out to me. this story felt way more personal, more like a door to the author’s thoughts and feelings. seeing how he has suffered all his life, how he slowly fell into a pit of darkness and especially the chapters in which he describes his attempts of taking his life felt disturbing to read.
⋆｡°✩ "I am living now in the unhappiest happiness imaginable. Yet, strangely, I have no regrets. I just feel sorry for anyone unfortunate enough to have had a bad husband, a bad son, a bad father like me."
i’m having a really hard time rating this book so don’t mind me changing the rating in the future. all i can say, however, is that ryūnosuke akutagawa has led a very sad life but also did not always make the best decisions, aka cheated on his wife which is not okay.
⋆｡°✩ "He could think of nothing in life that he especially desired, but those purple sparks - those wildly-blooming flowers of fire - he would trade his life for the chance to hold them in his hands."
while the first story was kind of a murder mystery told out of seven different perspectives and was semi interesting in my opinion, the other two stories were autobiographical pieces which - for me - served as a way to get to know the author, his life, his suffering. i do not view them as stories but merely retellings and because of that it’s hard for me to properly rate them.
⋆｡°✩ "He wanted to live life so intensely that he could die at any moment without regrets."
the first autobiographical piece is basically a list of all the people that have died in the author’s life, not really my cup of tea as it really felt like some kind of record he was trying to keep. the second one however really stood out to me. this story felt way more personal, more like a door to the author’s thoughts and feelings. seeing how he has suffered all his life, how he slowly fell into a pit of darkness and especially the chapters in which he describes his attempts of taking his life felt disturbing to read.
⋆｡°✩ "I am living now in the unhappiest happiness imaginable. Yet, strangely, I have no regrets. I just feel sorry for anyone unfortunate enough to have had a bad husband, a bad son, a bad father like me."