| NOTA |
(★)(Translated by Donald Keene)(Titulo original : 斜陽 [Shayoo]／ This powerful novel of a nation in social and moral crisis in the early postwar years probes the transition from a feudal Japan to an industrial society. The influence of this book, often considered Dazai´s masterpiece, made the term ´people of the setting sun´ --the declining aristocracy-- a permanent part of the Japanese language.／ Dazai´s heroine, Kazuko, the strong-willed young aristocrat who deliberately abandons her class, stands as a symbol of the anomie that pervades so much of the modern world. The distinguished translator Donald Keene has said of the author´s work : ´His world ... suggests Chekhov or possibly postwar France ... but there is a Japanese sensibility in the choice and presentation of the material. A Dazai novel is at once immediately intelligible in Western terms and quite unlike any Western book.´／ ◆Osamu Dazai [1909-1948] was the pen name of Shuji Tsushima [津島修治], the tenth of eleven children born to a wealthy landowner and politician. Dazai studied French literature at the University of Tokyo, eventually leaving without a degree. He first attracted attention in 1933 when magazines began to publish his work. Between 1930 and 1937 he made three suicide attempts, a subject he dealt with in many of his short stories. Despite his troubled life and rebellious spirit, Dazai wrote in a simple and colloquial style, conveying his own experiences in his best work. Dazai´s life ended early in a double suicide with a married lover.／ Donald Keene is University Professor Emeritus and Shincho Professor Emeritus at Columbia University. Among his many other translations are Dazai´s ´No Longer Human´ and books by Kobo Abe and Yukio Mishima. Dr. Keene received the Order of the Rising Sun 3rd Class (1975) and 2nd Class (1993) for his services to Japanese literature.) |
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