No Longer Human

[Anonymous No.23266455]

Two things about this novel stick out to me when it is compared to many of the other "outcast/alienation" books in the canon.
The first is that No Longer Human seems to be the rare novel where the protagonist accepts their situation. Compared to works such as The Trial, Notes From Underground, The Stranger, Woman in the Dunes and so on, where the main character refuses to accept their situation to varying degrees, in this book Yozo begins by making it very clear that he acknowledges his worthlessness.
The second is that unlike the aforementioned novels and others, this book features more "soft conformity." In The Trial, for instance, Joseph K's existential crisis is forcefully imposed upon him by mysterious higher powers. But in No Longer Human, society isn't so harsh. Yes, it does dictate certain things and expect conformity, but Yozo's trials and his punishment are almost entirely self-imposed. This is an interesting part of the dichotomy drawn between society and the self in No Longer Human - while society, God, Yozo's father, and others are all referenced as imposing expectations on Yozo, at the same time it is very obvious that his problems stem from his own impositions of guilt and fear.
I think both of these elements could be seen as reflections of Eastern thought. While most western novels of this type end with a forceful event (Joseph K's death, Merseault's execution, etc.) books like No Longer Human and Woman in the Dunes end with acceptance by the protagonist.
It makes sense why this novel strikes a chord with people in the modern era, where moral authority and its source are often called into question.

[Anonymous No.23266500]

>ayyyyy i'm handsome and women throw themselves at me and also give me money, i'm so sad and depressed

[Anonymous No.23266533]

>>23266500
I could honestly tolerate it if it was just that, but knowing that it's a semi-autobiography just makes me cringe hard.

[Anonymous No.23266545]

>>23266455
>But in No Longer Human, society isn't so harsh. Yes, it does dictate certain things and expect conformity, but Yozo's trials and his punishment are almost entirely self-imposed.
This is not a good reading in my opinion. You are neglecting the fact that Yozo was sexually abused at a young age by some of the house servants. The impact this had on his development was almost certainly profound. Also the presence of the communist party and Yozo's involvement with them conveys some of the social upheaval that was going on at the time.

Regarding your second point wouldn't you say Crime and Punishment also has a strong theme of self punishment?

[Anonymous No.23266573]

>>23266545
>You are neglecting the fact that Yozo was sexually abused at a young age by some of the house servants
Nigga, the sexy JAV maid fucked him. You make it sounds as if he was raped by numerous guys.

[Anonymous No.23266607]

>>23266545
I haven't gotten around to Crime and Punishment yet, I'm sure it would have been a helpful read as it is very blatantly included in No Longer Human.
I think the sexual assault actually bolsters the first point in a way. Many victims of sexual assault blame themselves for what was done to them, even if it was no fault of their own and nobody is attempting to make them feel that way. However, I also see where you're coming from. In 1930s Japan a man would probably be heavily shamed for "letting such a thing" happen, even if it was in his youth. I suppose that event could contribute to either stance, which goes back to the dichotomy I mentioned, the questioning of whether judgement comes from the inside or outside that permeates the book. Shame from others vs guilt from inside.

[Anonymous No.23266614]

Good post. I relate to Yozo, not just for the themes in the book, but the particulars. Past, stays in psychiatric institutions, running away from women that showed direct interest despite desperately longing for love and intimacy, committing a crime with a long sentence but being forgiven by the law and people involved, attempting suicide and also damaging the body permanently, etc. Not a page went by that didn't describe me, sometimes extremely intimately. The only thing that didn't make me turn out exactly like Yozo was that I am not very attractive (read: pretty ugly) and never had a Horiki to teach me how to go places or parents that would support independent living, so I lived isolated and sometime homeless. The book was honestly terrifying to read the first time around, because it seemed too coincidental to be an accident.
>>23266545
>You are neglecting the fact that Yozo was sexually abused at a young age by some of the house servants. The impact this had on his development was almost certainly profound.
Honestly, it doesn't matter if something shameful happened to Yozo, bad events happen to everyone. In Yozo's case, the rest of his life is ostensibly normal and relatively privileged; Whatever his past was, he is continuously imposing punishments and suffering on himself. OP's point is that if Yozo were to decide to give in to society, he could live essentially normally. He is running away from everything and every problem, he is punishing himself for things nobody even cared about, he is assuming the worst when a normal person would just go on, etc. Yozo destroyed himself.
>Also the presence of the communist party and Yozo's involvement with them conveys some of the social upheaval that was going on at the time.
The book made a point that Yozo didn't care and the social upheaval was a non-factor for him.

[Anonymous No.23266624]

>>23266614
>Whatever his past was, he continuously imposed*
VGH...

[Anonymous No.23266885]

>>23266455
I found it interesting that Dazai seems to reference western cultural works a lot more than eastern ones in this. It may be that the references to Eastern things are more subtle and I am more unfamiliar though. But he mentions Van Gogh, Dostoevsky, Christian thinking, and much more.
I wonder if that's supposed to contribute to his alienation. A western cultural outlook in an eastern society would certainly be a clash. Especially in terms of sel-expression.

[Anonymous No.23266912]

>>23266885
Japanese people at that time were Europhiles, and Mishima specifically wrote a lot about the experience of seeing western culture everywhere while traditional Japanese culture was trampled upon. It was the norm to go to a museum full of reproductions of western artifacts, read a book about the west or set in the west full of western references, etc. I doubt the Westernism contributed anything to alienation because of the pervasiveness of western culture in Japan.

[Anonymous No.23267076]

>>23266912
Interesting thoughts. Wouldn't that be a different period than Dazai wrote this in though? Yozo would've been living in between the First and the Second World War, and Dazai would've written it right after the latter. I'm not sure if either era would be primed for loving the West due to political circumstances but I'm no expert.

[sage No.23267363]

>>23266614
>The book was honestly terrifying to read the first time around, because it seemed too coincidental to be an accident.
I identify a lot with his feelings, but not his actions. I never did anything illegal or dramatic, but I understand how he feels in terms of loneliness and relation to other people. I was still surprised by the similarity. I figured if he was born when I was, he'd end up like me and many people like us.

[Anonymous No.23267460]

>>23267363
>I figured if he was born when I was, he'd end up like me and many people like us.
Yes. Modern society enables NEETdom, and Yozo definitely would have become a NEET if he were able— in fact, before meeting Horiki, he was slipping into that.

[Anonymous No.23267902]

>>23266455
After reflecting on the book more, Yozo almost seems like an antithesis to Stephen Daedalus from Portrait.
Yozo longs for artistic creation and seems to view it as his path to true self-expression. Yet he only captures it for a moment with those self portraits (funnily enough, this is Dazai's most acclaimed work and a self-portrait). After that he perverts his artistic talents for cartoons and pornography because he feels he can't overcome his tribulations.
Compare that to Daedalus, who also has a fair number of trials and sees art as his pinnacle. But instead of succumbing under the issues (father's disapproval like Yozo, being forced to use a language that isn't even his own, guilt towards god similar to Yozo) he breaks through and goes to create his own art.
Of course one could argue that Daedalus had a much easier time due to the lesser degree of his trauma. Still interesting.

[Anonymous No.23267908]

>>23266455
Some girl told me she liked this book and related to the main character, is this a red flag?

[Anonymous No.23267923]

>>23267908
Yeah it means she has a shit reading comprehension.
>Sometimes I don't tell people my feelings
>OMG I'M LITERALLY YOZO!!

[Anonymous No.23268098]

>Crime and punishment are... LE ANTONYMS!? AIIIIIEEE I'M FUCKING GOING INSAAANEE