His attitude, besides,

seems somewhat
unsociablehe seemed
totally indifferent to his
surroundingsSensei was
always alone (5)

Sensei is described as very introverted

and closed off to himself.

But no matter how often I

experienced such trifling
disappointments, I never
felt any desire to part from
Sensei (8).

The narrator is very drawn to Sensei and

even follows him in the sea. He seems to
think that he knows him or met him
before but cant recall who he is
specifically. Maybe he just reminds him of
someone he knows. He yearns for a more
intimate friendship with Sensei. He
wants to be closer but Sensei doesnt
reciprocate which disappoints the
narrator. Sensei doesnt seem to be a
person who is open and would be really
close friends. His attraction to Sensei is
kind of creepy, like a girl.
After Sensei has passed away, the
narrator realizes that his coldness wasnt
because he didnt like him or wasnt
interested. Rather, he was unhappy with
himself and couldnt open up to others.
He seems to be suicidal.

His curt and cold ways

were not designed to
express his dislike of me,
but they were meant
rather as a warning to me
that I would not want him
as a friend. It was because
he despised himself that
he refused to accept
openheartedly the
intimacy of others (8).
You have never thought
seriously of the reality of
death, have you? (10)
A friend of mine happens
to be buried thereSensei
told me no more that day
(11).

A man incapable of love,

or I should say rather a
man who was by nature

This shows Senseis belief or fascination

with death and that he thinks about it
while others would not necessarily dwell
on this subject.
This is one instance at the cemetery in
which Sensei really opens up to the
narrator and lets him know just a little
more about his life. Before, he was
concerned about him knowing whos
grave he was visiting and actually didnt
want him to know but then he changed
his mind and divulged just a little.
The narrator doesnt tell why he says this
but only says that Sensei was unable to
accept other peoples love.

incapable of not loving; but

a man who could not
wholeheartedly accept the
love of anothersuch a
one was Sensei (12).
P 13
Sensei goes to the grave every month
alone and is annoyed that the narrator
wants to come with him. The narrator is
kind of obsessive and creepyhes
overbearing for someone like Sensei who
likes to be alone.
I am a lonely man..And is Sensei often tells the narrator that he is
it not possible that you are lonely and melancholy. He wonders why
also a lonely person? (15) the narrator wants to spend so much time
with a person like him
P 17
Senseis wife wants children but they said
they cant because of divine
punishment ???
If I were the sort of
The narrator has been observing Senseis
person she thinks I am, I
marriage since he has been over to his
would not suffer so (19)
house more often. In the first quote, it
seems that Sensei is suffering in the
In all the world, I know
marriage because his wife wants him to
only one woman. No
be someone he isnt. Furthermore, he
woman but my wife moves says they should be happy. From what
me as a woman. And my
the narrator has seen, the couple does
wife regards me as the
seem happy but there must be issues in
only man for her. from this their marriage that are behind closed
point of view, we should be doors.
the happiest of couples
(21)
I could not know that
Sensei was holding onto a dark secret
there had been in Senseis within himself, which is maybe why he
life a frightening tragedy,
was always so lonely and cold. In order to
inseparable from his love
protect his wife, he thought the only
for his wifeSensei died
solution was to kill himself.
keeping his secret from
her. Before he could
destroy his wifes
happiness, he destroyed
himself (24).
P 27
Sensei always tells the narrator that there
is guilt in loving and that he will seek
consolation in someone else
I dont even trust myself. Sensei reveals that he doesnt trust all of

And not trusting myself, I

can hardly trust others.
There is nothing I can do,
except curse my own soul
(30)

humanity, including himself. Maybe this is

from the modernization of Japan or a war
that has caused him to be disillusioned?
The issue is that he takes it very
personally and puts the blame on himself
so he always has a weight on his
shoulders. Maybe because of this he is
very removed from the world and his
surroundings. The narrator said he had no
job and wondered why he didnt
contribute his talents to the rest of
society. He has a pessimistic view of the
modern world and civilization.
Loneliness is the price we He regards independence and freedom as
pay for being born in this
a bad thing narrator says he thinks that
modern age, so full of
Senseis thoughts were forced upon him
freedom, independence,
by the nature of his experiences so bad
and our own egotistical
stuff mustve happened to him.
selves (30)
It seemed that Senseis
Because he said he was still in love with
misanthropic views which
his wife?
he had expressed to me
applied to the modern
Senseis wife was not so modern a
world in general, but not to woman as to take pride and pleasure in
his wife (32)
being able to display her mental prowess.
She valued far more that thing which lies
buried in the bottom of ones heart (35)
Then what was he like?
Senseis wife is describing the person he
The kind of person you
used to be before he became recluse and
wish him to be, the kind of weary of the world. This also shows how
person I wish him to be
she wants him to be this happy and
There was hope and
optimistic person and maybe this is why
strength in him then (38)
they quarreled earlier. As his wife, it pains
her to not know what caused him to
gradually change and he still wont tell
her.
But Tokyo had become a
This is a conflict because he adapts to his
part of me, and my parents environment (unlike Sensei) and brings
could not but notice that I
part of it with him back home because
had changed (50).
Tokyo becomes part of who he is. This is
troubling to his parents, like Sensei,
because they do not like the changes and
modernization of the country they grew
up in.
no matter how many
Sensei used to be an avid reader but he
books I may read, I shall
lost interest in books after he realized

never be a very much

better man than I am now
(54)

You seem to be under the

impression that there is a
special breed of bad
humans. There is no such
thing as a stereotype bad
man in this world. Under
normal conditions,
everybody is more or less
good, or at least, ordinary.
But tempt them, and they
may suddenly change
(61)
I had believed him to be a
rather weak person. And I
had loved Sensei for this
weakness, whether real or
imagined, no less than for
his virtues (66)
p. 67

71

75
82

that even if he is educated and

intelligent, it doesnt make him any better
of a person. He is sickened by humanity,
including himself and he thinks it isnt
reparable so there is no point. There is no
point in life either
Sensei despises all of humanity because
from his point of view, everyone is the
same and capable of the same evil. They
just need to be tempted and you will see
the bad sides of them. No man is immune
from temptation (which he clarifies is
money jokingly). He also says that this is
an obvious fact.

The narrator confronts Sensei for his open

ended conversations and how he never
clarifies himself but Sensei draws a line
between talking about his ideas and his
past. He is fine with talking about his
thoughts and ideas but isnt open to
talking about his past experiences.
The narrator finally graduated college
which at first the accomplishment was a
big deal to him but then he started
thinking like Sensei. He saw his diploma
and wondered whether it was just a
worthless piece of paper. Furthermore,
both Sensei and his wife didnt know
where Senseis own diploma was,
signaling how they dont place
importance in the diploma.
Sensei asked his wife what she would do
without him after he dies
The narrator is kind of annoyed that his
parents make a big deal out of him

88

91
I imagined this city, the
greatest of all in Japan,
immersed in gloom, yet
bustling with activity
despite the darkness.
There was but one light
shining, and that came
from Senseis house. I
could not know then that
this light too would be
swallowed up by the silent
whirlpool. I could not know
that very soon, this light
would be snuffed out, and
that I would be left in a
world of total darkness
(92)
My father had known for
some time that his disease
was fatal. But when at last
death was very close, he
seemed unable to
recognized it (103)
General Nogi died (108)
He found it impossible to
believe, and so did my
father, that a man who
was not known and did
nothing could amount to
very much (115)

graduating and his diploma but then he

finds out that his father is only happy
because he lived long enough to see his
son graduate. He thought he would die
earlier but he survived to see it. He is
happy for his own sake, not for his sons
which is what the narrator originally
thought. His father is preparing for his
death.
Emperor Meiji is ill
- made narrators father worry about his
own illness and had anxiety over his
death, depressed
EMPERORs DEATH`
I think this is foreshadowing Senseis
death. He was the light that kept the
narrator sane and not lonely but the world
and new Japan got the best of Sensei.

The narrator deeply respects Sensei even

though he doesnt have a job or
reputation which his family is bewildered
by. To them, idleness is a bad thing and
only people with no talent or ability are
idle. Men who refuse to make use of their
talents are worthless.

My mother, in her usual

way, failed to see what
had really happened
(118)

But now, I believe I am

free of the bonds that
prevented me from telling
you the truth about myself.
The freedom that I now
have, however, is no more
than an earthly, physical
kind of freedom, which will
not last forever(121)
You wished to cut open
my heart and see the
blood flow. I was then still
alive. I did not want to die.
That is why I refused you
and postponed the
granting of your wish to
another day. Now, I myself
am about to cut open my
own heart and drench your
face with my blood. And I
shall be satisfied if, when
my heart stops beating, a
new life lodges itself in
your breast (129)
There was, however, a
certain kind of admirable
simplicity in the life of the
student then which one
does not find today (132)
I sometimes wish that I
had never lost my old
innocence, and that once
more I could be the person
that I was (142)

The narrator often compares his family,

country people, to Sensei, city people. In
this instance, his father fell into a coma
but his mother just thinks that he is
sleeping peacefully. Before, when his
father vomited a yellow substance that
Sensei warned about, his mother merely
thought his stomach was upset because
he was laying in bed for so long. The
narrator kind of thinks she is ignorant but
she might just be in denial and unable to
accept that her husband is going to die.

He is referring to how the narrator was

persistent in asking Sensei to tell him
about his past. Back then, he didnt want
to die so he didnt want to tell the
narrator. I think it was too painful for him
to bring up his past so he tried to bury it.
Now that he is going to kill himself, he
says he will tell about his past and by
doing this he is cutting up his own heart
and showing his soul and true self to the
narrator. He wants the narrator to learn
from his past experiences, even though it
is at the expense of his life because he
just didnt have the courage to tell him
about his past when he was still alive.
Modern Japan always has noises, lights,
bustling people lacks simplicity of the
old Japan that he grew up in
Sensei says that he has been soiled by
life because of his experience with his
uncle who cheated him of his inheritance.
No wonder he asked the narrator if his
sick father had a will. Other relatives

I had come to distrust

people in money matters,
but I had not yet learned to
doubt love (150)
It was as though his heart
was encrusted with a layer
of black laquer, so thick
that no warm blood could
ever penetrate through it
(188)
Then for a moment or two
he is overcome by the
feeling that, in the midst of
a world that moves, he
alone is still. I was beset by
the same kind of fear,
though the others did not
know (201)
K, in his heavy way,
confessed to me his
agonized love for Ojosan
(204)

I noticed that his room

stepped in to help but it was too late

because he already became suspicious
and untrusting of everyone. This
experience caused him to open his eyes
to realitythe reality where his uncle
wasnt a kind and respectable man. His
uncle slept with prostitutes and took
advantage of him, a child, after his
parents already passed away and were
not there to protect him. He realized that
his uncle and his family werent who he
always thought they were and he became
hardened and bitter.
Love is pure (unlike money) and this was
an innocent aspect of his life back then.
Sensei is describing his friend K and this
is before he changed. It is ironic how Ks
description and coldness is how Sensei
could be described presently. Sensei, too,
is very closed up and would not divulge
his past or personal experiences to
anyone.
He felt like the world was moving
(modernization?) while he was the only
one who was stuck and was the same
person.

Sensei has struggled with the suspicion

and confusion surrounding whether K
likes Ojosan or not. He also struggled
many times trying to decide the right
time to tell K about his feelings for her. He
became jealous and at times even hated
K but then there were times when he
thought K didnt like her because he
showed no feelings or emotions. He is
very hurt to find out that K likes her and
also beat him to it. He became obsessive
over this and deeply regretted not saying
anything first.
The person K was back then seems like

was as quiet as ever. One

would have thought that
there was no one in it
(207)

On the other hand, I did

trust him in a strange way.
Even the fact of his having
deceived his foster parents
for three years had by no
means impaired my
confidence in him. Indeed,
I had come to trust him
more because of it.
Despite my suspicious
nature, then, I felt no
inclination to doubt his
word (211)
213

He was hovering
uncertainly between the
world of reality and the
world of his ideals (214)
It was a violent emotion
that I felt then. I think that
had K and I been alone in
the wilderness, I would
have listened to the cry of
my conscience. But there
were others in the house, I
soon overcame the
impulse of my natural self
to be true to K (225)
It was then that the great

the person Sensei is in the present. He

has mentioned many times the silence
from Ks room and I think that K killed
himself. This period around K and the
internal conflict is when Sensei started
really noticing and feeling the silence
around him which caused him to be an
isolated and lonely person.
Sensei trusts K, who has a secret, as the
student trusts Sensei.

K asks Sensei for help regarding the

situation with Ojosan and wants advice.
Sensei finds this odd because K usually
does whatever he wants without care,
such as lying to his foster parents. K
confesses that he is a weak man and is
ashamed, lost, and confused. He said he
cant bear the pain.
K believes in the true way which says
that everything must be sacrificed,
including love. It even called for
abstinence. K struggles between his
desires for Ojosan and his ideals
regarding the true way.
This is the only time that Sensei has had
real, true emotions because the person
the narrator knows is very cold and
emotionless. He feels very guilty and also
mentions his natural self.

Sensei reveals that his life has been

shadow that would for ever

darken the course of my
life spread before my
minds eye. And from
somewhere in the shadow
a voice seemed to be
whispering: Its too late
Its too late (229)
What truly frightened me
was my own destiny; it
seemed to have been
irrevocably shaped by this
friend of mine, who now
lay cold and lifeless before
me (231)
234
235
I realized that I was no
better than my uncle. I
became as disgusted with
myself as I had been with
the rest of the world (238)
I became aware of the
possibility that K had
experienced loneliness as
terrible as mine, and
wishing to escape quickly
from it, had killed himself
(240)
Then I would think of
death. Killing myself
seemed a just punishment
for my sins. Finally, I
decided to go on living as
if I were dead (243)
I felt as though the spirit
of the Meiji era had begun
with the Emperor and had
ended with him. I was
overcome with the feeling
that I and the others, who
had been brought up in

deeply affected because of his friends

suicide. This scene mirrors that of Sensei
and the student. When the narrator read
the letter from Sensei, he was also
thinking its too late. He didnt go to Tokyo
and was in the country with his family.

Sensei reveals that it is Ks grave that he

visits every month to beg for his
forgiveness.
He married Ojosan. He was happy but
wasnt really happy
He feels guilty and hates himself.

Sensei already felt like he didnt belong in

the world after Ks death and the end of
the Meiji era made him feel even more
out of place. He simply did not belong
anywhere, except in another world with K.
General Nogi commited suicide for junshi
(following the emperor to the grave) to

that era, were now left

behind to live as
anachronisms (245)
You and I belong to
different eras, and so we
think differently. There is
nothing we can do to
bridge the gap between us

redeem his honor through death. Sensei,

too, feels shame and guilt, and wants to
redeem himself with K through death too.