“I am a lonely man,' Sensei said. 'And so I am glad that you come to see me. But I am also a melancholy man, and so I asked you why you should wish to visit me so often.” LonelinessJapanJapanese LiteratureJapanese Book:Kokoro Source: Kokoro
“From then on, my thesis hung over me like a curse, and with bloodshot eyes, I worked like a madman.” JapanJapanese LiteratureJapaneseStudying Book:Kokoro Source: Kokoro
“Something very odd has come into fashion since the start of this twentieth century of ours, a convoluted tactic of fulfilling the needs of altruism through egoism.” PhilosophyClassicComing Of AgeJapanese LiteratureMeiji Era Author:Natsume Sōseki
“Whatever you do or think or say is finally unrelated to the urgent life force of a changing society. And that is how you shall always be: Empty-headed until death! Empty-headed until death!” Japanese Literature Book:Sanshirō Source: Sanshirō
“A person who enjoys looking at twisted plants or bamboo might as well just be proud of having a hunchbacked lover or lame husband.” JapanJapanese LiteratureJapaneseBotchanIkebana Book:Botchan Source: Botchan
“...He said defensively, "But from now on, Japan is sure to develop." "Japan's headed for a fall," the man said coolly. Say a thing like that in Kumamoto and you'd get a punch in the nose, or be called a traitor. The atmosphere Sanshiro grew up in left no room in his head for such an idea. Just because he was young, was the man having some fun at his expense? The man kept on grinning. Yet his way of talking was perfectly composed. Not knowing what to think, Sanshiro held his tongue. His companion went on, "Tokyo is bigger than Kumamoto. Japan is bigger than Tokyo. And what's bigger than Japan is..." He paused and looked at Sanshiro, who was listening intently. "...the inside of your head. That's bigger than Japan. Don't let yourself get bogged down. You may believe your way of thinking is for the good of the nation, but you could actually be bringing it down." When he heard this, Sanshiro felt he had indeed left Kumamoto. And he realized, too, what a small person his Kumamoto self had been.” JapanModernismJapanese LiteratureMeijiTurn Of The Century Book:Sanshirō Source: Sanshirō