The earth lay white under the night sky."(Kawabata, 1) This opening phrase of the novel is very revealing: the hero comes from the intimacy of darkness (the tunnel) into the open blankness of the Snow Country. The setting thus translates the sense of innocence but also that of emptiness and loneliness. Camus' Stranger also hints at solitude and alienation even from the title. Mersault is already a famous literary character, the modern alien in society. The main difference between him and Shimamura is the fact that the latter has a Romantic bent towards fantasy and a narcissism that keeps him locked in his own world. The common trait that they share is their permanent sense of anxiety. Mersault, unlike Shimamura, is literally afraid of the people that surround him. Incapable of empathy, Mersault feels like a complete stranger not only because he cannot connect with the others but because he find them always puzzling. He is always uneasy around other people, and he over-explains and justifies himself in front of the others. For instance, when he talks to his superior at work about taking two days off for his mother's funeral, Mersault uselessly justifies himself, pointing out that death of his mother is not his fault: "Still, I had an idea he looked annoyed, and I said, without thinking: "Sorry, sir, but it's not my fault, you know."(Camus, 1) This will be again echoed in the end of the novel, when he will actually be incriminated for deserting and neglecting his mother. Just like Shimamura, Mersault is in a permanent sense of alarm, only feeling at ease when he is by himself. The setting here is also important, as the novel is filled with the torrid landscape of Algeria. The almost desert-like setting accentuates the feeling of desolation. A telling example is Mersault's drowsiness all through his mother's funeral and even through the other events. He feels unable to focus because of the heat: "As a matter of fact, I had great difficulty in following his remarks, as, for one thing, the office was so stiflingly...
Thus, if the absolute emptiness of the Snow Country invaded the spirit of Shimamura, Mersault is terrorized from the beginning to the end of the book by the merciless, glaring sunshine: "The day on which my trial started was one of brilliant sunshine."(Camus, 103) the extreme heat and the bright light impose again a dream-like mood on the scenery. Because of the hot season, everything seems to have a sense of mirage or unreality about it, like that given by the desert. This is the most appropriate context for the alien hero of the novel, who always seems to have difficulty in concentrating and understanding what is happening to him. Again, as in the Snow Country, the opening paragraph is famous: "Mother died today. or, maybe, yesterday; I can't be sure. The telegram from the Home says: YOUR MOTHER PASSED AWAY. FUNERAL TOMORROW. DEEP SYMPATHY. Which leaves the matter doubtful; it could have been yesterday."(Camus, 1) the detached and odd way in which Mersault announces his mother's death without even paying attention to any details indicates the utter state of alienation in which the reader finds him. The death of the mother is chosen here as a trope precisely because it is supposed to move anyone at any time. Mersault however remains unfeeling in front of the tragedy as then in front of his own crime and death. His continuous puzzlement is enhanced by the desert-like setting with its torrid heat and blinding light.
Studying the girl's physical appearance, and smelling her scent, Eguchi was experiencing mixed emotions. The smell reminded him of babies, but he realized that a young woman approaching twenty could not smell like milk. He might have actually returned to his own age of the innocence, "a passing specter" (idem, 20). The author creates a very strong contrast between everything that old and young symbolize. Old age is represented only trough
Country" by Yasunari Kawabata "The Dead" by James Joyce and "Snow Country" by Yasunari Kawabata are literary works that uses the technique of imagery in depicting the occurrence of death. "The Dead" by Joyce is a short story that depicts life in Ireland and the unfulfilled love between Gabriel and Gretta Conroy. "Snow Country," meanwhile, illustrates the gloomy life of Shimamura and Komako, as they lead dissatisfying and unfortunate lives,
Country by Yasunari is a story that depicts a variety of diverse and rich imagery that is presented through symbolization of the natural setting. From the snow to the rocks and the cedar and the equally important presence of the human life the story takes on an allegorical form that touches the emotional psyche of the reader. Thus, this paper will explore the symbolic representation that has been lost
All is forgiven. Eventually, both of them disappear into one of the trees that the old man's ancestors have looked after, for hundreds of years. Is the story emotionally positive or negative in tone? On one hand, the old man was a failure in life, and drove a woman to suicide. Yet in death, everything seems to be forgiven, and he returns to her and the spiritual resting place of
Quality of Life An Analysis of a Life Well Lived The world is in a constant flutter of change. In the past few decades alone such inventions as cellular phones and the Internet have drastically altered many lives. Globalization is indeed, global, and with it, everything changes. Because of these facets, and sometimes perhaps in spite of them, humanity's definition of a good life, or a life well lived changes constantly as
person's perception changes their reality, by comparing the two stories "In a grove" from Rashomon by Ryunosuke Akutagawa and "A thousand cranes" by Yasunari Kawabata Akutagawa Ryunosuke, born in the year 1892, was a short story writer and a poet and an essayist, who was also one of the first few Japanese writers whose works happened to be translated into English. He was a perfectionist, and an extremely stylish one
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