Synopses & Reviews
"The subject of 'Kokoro,' which can be translated as 'the heart of things' or as 'feeling,' is the delicate matter of the contrast between the meanings the various parties of a relationship attach to it. In the course of this exploration, Soseki brilliantly describes different levels of friendship, family relationships, and the devices by which men attempt to escape from their fundamental loneliness. The novel sustains throughout its length something approaching poetry, and it is rich in understanding and insight. The translation, by Edwin McClellan, is extremely good."
Anthony West, The New Yorker
Review
"One of the honorable ancestors of a brilliant generation of novels." --Donald Barr, New York Times
Synopsis
"The novel sustains throughout its length something approaching poetry, and it is rich in understanding and insight. The translation, by Edwin McClellan, is extremely good." --Anthony West, The New Yorker Kokoro, which means "the heart of things," explores emotions familiar to everyone--love and hate, hope and despair, companionship and loneliness.
Sensei, a man seen against the rich background of old Japan entering the modern era, is outwardly successful. He has position, wealth, a charming wife. But deep in the heart of things, he is harried with a profound sense of isolation whose cure lies only in "faith, madness, or death."
His long-hidden secret, divulged to a young friend who faces a similar dilemma, is told with mounting intensity. Sensei confesses the crime of his young manhood, a crime in which, with all the appearance of innocence, he destroyed his best friend, the woman he loved--and himself.
The genius of Natsume Soseki, Japan's greatest modern novelist, lies in his ability to express universal emotions with the beautiful restraint of the Japanese spirit. Under his pen, themes which have become almost hackneyed take on new fascination and vigor.
About the Author
Natsume Soseki (18671916) is one of the great writers of the modern world. Educated at Tokyo Imperial University, he was sent to England in 1900 as a government scholar. As one of the first Japanese writers to be influenced by Western culture, his various works are widely read in Japan, and contemporary authors in Japan continue to be influenced by his oeuvre, which also includes
The Gate,
I Am a Cat,
Sanshiro, and
The Three Cornered World.
Edwin McClellan is Professor of Japanese Literature at Yale University. His translation of Kokoro, presented here, has been selected for the UNESCO Collection of Representative Works.