Yasunari Kawabata

In the short story “The Grasshopper and the Bell Cricket” the author, Yasunari Kawabata, is telling a story about finding a group of children who all have beautifully made lanterns. This story seems to have no meaning until the reader comes to the end and the author explains what he sees in the situation of two young children inspecting the bell cricket. The children are on an insect hunt and the narrator has decided to watch them. Like the children, he was drawn to the ridge by an “insects voice”. The children come out every night to search for bugs and each night they craft a new lantern. While the narrator is watching them, a young boy begins to yell, “Who wants a grasshopper?” Soon, several children are surrounding him, but the boy waits…

At the end of part one of the novel Snow Country by Yasunari Kawabata, Shimaura decides to leave for Tokyo the very next morning after spending the night with Komako. His reason for leaving was purely based on Komako. As Shimamura comes back from his bath, he and Komako get into a little discussion. Komako was to leave and go home and Shimamura calls her out by telling her she is being difficult. From here, he comes to a conclusion Komako is feeling guilty for having a relationship with a…

“I was considering always in my room of the lodging house and besides, felt that it is vain to try. Because reading a lot of books doesn’t indulge my appetite actually, then, I gave it up. At the same time, gradually I couldn’t catch the meaning even myself that what I read the books so much for.” Souseki Natsume wrote this in his essay ‘My individualism’, which retrospect the prehistory of shaping ‘A theory of literature’ and it was the description when he was studying abroad in England in…

thread was spun in the snow, and the cloth woven in the snow, washed in the snow everything, from the first spinning of the thread to the last finishing touches was done in the now.” (150). This quote was to show how much effort was put into making this cloth. However, Shimamura thought all of the effort put into creating this cloth was just wasted. “The infinite care and labor required to produce the cloth can perhaps be justified, despite the wasted effort involved, because of the love that…

In the novel Snow Country by Yasunari Kawabata, alcohol plays a big role throughout the entire book. The substance and the act of intoxication increase the physical relationship between Shimamura and Komako. However, Komako is the only one who drinks throughout the book. Shimamura in turn has to care for her actions and becomes responsible for Komako’s safety. Throughout the entire book, there was only one incidence when Shimamura took a drink. Komako is a party entertainer, a geisha, and what…

In the novel Snow Country by Yasunari Kawabata, the phrase of “wasted effort” occurs multiple times by the character Shimamura. Shimamura has many meanings behind the phrase “wasted effort”, he uses it when he thinks someone is committing an action without being aware of the results. Another reason he uses it is when he thinks there is no purpose to doing an action. Shimamura does not see “beauty” in things that are “wasted effort”. The phrase is used throughout the novel, two main times the…

1.“Kikuji did not know whether or not he would go to the tea ceremony” (Kawabata 3). In this passage, Chikako invites Kikuji to a tea ceremony that she is holding, she also had an affair with his father. This is the reason why Kikuji is questioning going to the tea ceremony. Kikuji is the main character of Thousand Cranes and this passage is relevant to analyzing his character because he does not want to be anything like his father, including getting involved with those close to his father.…

In the story, “The Grasshopper and the Bell Cricket” the author is speaking in first person at a local school playground. As the narrator observes from a distance, he or she speaks from his own experience as though preparing the children for a sight they may not see because of their youth. Colorful lantern was everywhere throughout the playground while countless children chase after insects. One night, one kid heard an insect sing on the slope, so he went outside to find it. The insect singing…

Herein I will discuss the various ways in which Mitani Kikuji veers from normality in Yasunari Kawabats 's Thousand Cranes. Primarily focusing upon the sociological, psychological and gender based aspects of the text in relation to the norm; pertaining to the archetypal Japanese male. More precisely I will cover the underlying source of Kikuji 's obsessive behaviour. The social implications this had. As well as the ways in which he differs from the standard male gender role. As it is presently…

Richard III and Yasunari Kawabata’s The White Horse rely heavily on dreams and how they convey or affect how one is feeling by delving into the unconscious mind, much like one does today. Dream interpretation is a widely recognized concept through the world. People have analyzed and interpreted dreams throughout history in many civilizations that had different cultures and religions. It is referenced in traditional Chinese medicine as well. By definition, dreams are the mental activity…