Snow Country by Yasunari Kawabata, a prose novel hailed as a classic of Japanese literature
- ChungT.
- Feb 19
- 7 min read
「国境の長いトンネルを抜けると雪国であった。夜の底が白くなった。信号所に汽車が止まった。」
Even if you have not read Kawabata Yasunari's works, almost every Japanese has heard this passage, which roughly means "Passing through the long tunnel and across the border, we arrived at a country covered with snow. The bottom of the night sky disappears and turns white, and the train stops at the signal station." This is the opening statement, a short paragraph of text that constructs a complete time, place, people and events. It can be used as a beginning or a conclusion. The delicate and concise writing style shows Kawabata Yasunari's views on words and his feelings about things. It is also the beginning of Japan's "New Sensationalism" writing style at the time - using subjective feelings to lead to objective things, connecting life and reality.
![[2015] Snow Country (Second Edition) Author: Yasunari Kawabata | Translator: 葉渭渠 | Publisher: 木馬文化| Design: 林小乙](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a9cf98_5f90d94abcf6412497c1df1e52425757~mv2.webp/v1/fill/w_592,h_900,al_c,q_85,enc_avif,quality_auto/a9cf98_5f90d94abcf6412497c1df1e52425757~mv2.webp)
This novel is like prose, describing emotions, scenery, people and objects in a light and simple manner, with blank spaces left everywhere.
Kawabata Yasunari became famous with his short story "The Dancing Girl of Izu", and subsequently published works such as "Asakusa Red Dan" (Asakusa Red Dan, 1930), "Makeup and Flute" (Makeup and Flute, 1933), "Crystal Fantasy" (Crystal Fantasy, 1934), "Lyrical Song" (Lyrical Song, 1934), "Beast" (Beast, 1935), "Pure Voice" (Junki no Voice, 1936), and "Waltz of Flowers" (Hana no Waltz, 1936).
"Snow Country" was first published in a literary magazine in January 1935, and the completed chapters were published in several magazines and were completed in 1947. This novel does not criticize the war or praise Japan's militarism, but rather describes the doomed love between an intellectual from Tokyo and a geisha from Niigata Prefecture - it is far away from political texts and has gained worldwide recognition.
As Kawabata Yasunari's first representative novella, Snow Country, with less than 80,000 words (in Japanese), reflects the simplicity of traditional Japanese literature and the fusion of dynamic and static descriptions, such as in the dead silence of a winter night, suddenly hearing the whimpering of a distant stream; or hearing the sound of boiling water in a kettle in silence, and unconsciously hearing it as a woman's voice. When Yasunari Kawabata became the first Japanese to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1968, Snow Country, The Old Capital and Thousand Cranes were among the three novels mentioned by the prize committee.
![[2023] "Collection of Classic Works by Yasunari Kawabata" Author: Yasunari Kawabata | Translator: 劉子倩 | Publisher: 大牌出版 | Design: 許晉維](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a9cf98_5537652d8b88407fb011b4d62ce23436~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_994,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/a9cf98_5537652d8b88407fb011b4d62ce23436~mv2.jpg)
Kawabata Yasunari's speech at the Nobel Banquet at Stockholm City Hall, December 10, 1968:
Your Majesties, Your Royal Highnesses, Your Excellencies the President and Trustees of the Nobel Foundation, Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is the greatest honor of my life to be nominated for the 1968 Nobel Prize in Literature by the Swedish Academy and to be accepted by His Majesty the King himself.
The reason why this award is so glorious in history is that it is also awarded to foreigners.
It can be said that it has a global breadth.
Two Japanese doctors, Yukawa and Tomonaga, have become Nobel Prize winners in physics in recent years.
In the spirit of Alfred Nobel's poetry and prose in many languages, the Literature Prize has been awarded to writers from many countries.
It has been fifty-five years since the Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Oriental (Indian) Rabindranath Tagore in 1913.
Given the complexities that come with language differences, and given that my work undoubtedly needs to be read in translation more than anyone else’s, I must express deep and everlasting gratitude and respect for my determination.
I believe that this was the first award given to an Oriental in fifty-five years, and it made a great impression on Japan, and perhaps also on the rest of Asia, and all those countries whose languages were little known internationally.
I don’t think winning the award is just my happiness and luck.
My feelings are even deeper when I think about the new and broader significance it may have for world literature.
In fact, on this grand occasion, His Excellency the Nobel Foundation has honored me with the award and further honored me with the thanks, I almost think that here we have a symbol of understanding and friendship, that's how I feel. Literary exchanges between the East and the West will move from today to tomorrow.
My sincere thanks, thank you all.
(Original text in Japanese and translated into English)
Chinese writer Mo Yan said that when he read in "Snow Country" that "a big black dog from Akita stood on the stepping stones by the river, licking the hot water in the river with its tongue," he finally understood what a novel is. He put down the book, picked up the pen and wrote the famous line from "White Dog Swing": "The white, docile big dogs originally from Northeast Gaomi Township have been passed down for generations, and it is difficult to find a purebred one."
![[2023] Snow Country Author: Yasunari Kawabata | Translator: 劉子倩 | Publisher: 大牌出版 | Design: 許晉維](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a9cf98_87101aaa5fbe47539ee167e244f3425f~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_566,h_709,al_c,q_85,enc_avif,quality_auto/a9cf98_87101aaa5fbe47539ee167e244f3425f~mv2.jpg)
The story is set in Yuzawa Town, Minamiuonuma District, Niigata Prefecture (not mentioned in the novel). This place is located at the northern foot of the Mikuni Mountains, facing the Sea of Japan, and there is always a lot of snow in winter. Kawabata Yasunari visited Yuzawa five times when he was writing "Snow Country". Many hotels have been built in the famous hot spring area, and single men who come here for travel and vacation can enjoy the services of "geisha" companions.
The story tells about Shimamura, a freelancer who studies Western ballet in Tokyo. He comes from a wealthy family and has visited Yuzawa-cho three times to meet the geisha Komako. Komako has been to Tokyo, can play the shamisen, and has the habit of writing a diary. Komako, who lives in a culturally remote area but loves literature and art, can't help but feel fond of Shimamura, an outsider who can understand her topics. Komako's shamisen master's son Yukio suffered from tuberculosis, and the shamisen master's daughter Ye Zi accompanied him to treat the illness and returned to Yuzawa Town. They happened to sit opposite Shimamura who was going to meet Komako for the second time. This is the beginning of the novel: Shimamura was admiring the snow scene at dusk through the foggy car window, and saw Ye Zi's bright eyes reflected in the car window, and couldn't help but feel moved. Shimamura admires Komako's beauty and personality, especially after she stayed drunk one night, but he also can't let go of the innocent Ye Zi. Komako is sincere to Shimamura, but Shimamura just wants to enjoy this short-lived beauty.
"Snow Country" has been adapted into movies and TV series many times, attracting countless domestic and foreign tourists to visit the "Snow Country". It is recognized as a masterpiece that must be read to understand the cultural heritage of Japan. It can be said to be a work that represents Japanese aesthetics. The stage of "Snow Country" is the hot spring area of Japan. The heroine is a geisha. The haiku combines the contrast of movement and stillness. The purity behind the characters is the focus of the novel, as well as the transformation of the geisha Komako and the female archetype that Kawabata pursues. In the more than half a century since the novel was published, it has been the focus of literary criticism in Japan and abroad. The unique aesthetic views expressed by Yasunari Kawabata in "Snow Country" have often led to "Yasunari Kawabata" being equated with "Japanese tradition"/"Japanese aesthetics".
About the Author
川端康成 Kawabata Yasunari
Born in Osaka in 1899, his father was a highly educated doctor. After his parents died early, he was raised by his grandfather Sanhachiro Kawabata and attended a Japanese public school. When Kawabata was a child, his grandfather and father were both Chinese medicine practitioners. Under the influence of Chinese culture, Kawabata was deeply influenced by it. He liked nature and yearned for the "Zen" state. From 1920 to 1924, Kawabata Yasunari studied at the Imperial University of Tokyo and obtained a degree. After graduating from university, he served as an editorial member of Bungeishunju, a magazine that was a medium for a new movement in modern Japanese literature. Yasunari Kawabata made his debut as a writer with the short story "The Dancing Girl of Izu", published in 1927. In 1949, the serials "Thousand Cranes" and "Sound of the Mountain" began to be published. In 1953 he became a member of the Japan Academy of Art, and four years later he was named president of the Japan Pen Club. Kawabata was the Japanese representative of the club at several international conferences. The Lake (1955), Sleeping Beauty (1960) and The Ancient Capital (1962) are all among his later works. Yasunari Kawabata is the first Japanese to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, and the second Asian. The first was the British Indian poet Robindronāth Tagore. Tagore could write in English, which made it easier for Western judges to accept his works, but Kawabata only wrote in Japanese, so it is indeed a significant honor for him to receive this award.
The original text of "Snow Country" is in Japanese. Different translators will translate based on their understanding and feelings of the text. The words used in all translated versions may be slightly different from the original text, but the translators also try their best to make us understand and feel the writer's world.
Image 木馬文化／大牌出版
Source Books.com.tw/ Eslite Online /Nobel Prize
