Kyoko's House
Encyclopedia
is a 1959 novel
by the Japan
ese writer Yukio Mishima
.
The book tells the interconnected stories of four young men who represent different facets of the author's personality. His athletic side appears as a boxer, his artistic side as a painter, his narcissistic
, performing side as an actor and his secretive, nihilistic
side as a businessman who goes through the motions of living a normal life while practicing "absolute contempt for reality".
Mishima's biographer and translator, John Nathan
, has called Kyoko's House "an unsettling, even a terrifying book", at least partly because it seems prophetic in its anticipation of developments in Mishima's own life: the boxer takes up right-wing politics and the actor becomes involved in a sado-masochistic sexual relationship which ends in double suicide for himself and his lover.
The novel was certainly important to Mishima personally. It took him fifteen months to write, which was by far the longest time he had ever taken on a novel. Also, he did not publish it in magazine installments as was customary, but kept it to himself until it was completed. Its indifferent sales and poor critical reception wounded him deeply.
The story of Osamu, the actor in Kyoko's House, was one of three Mishima works adapted by Paul Schrader
for his film Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters
. Although the novel has not been translated into English, Schrader used it because his original choice, Forbidden Colors
, was vetoed by Mishima's widow.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese writer Yukio Mishima
Yukio Mishima
was the pen name of , a Japanese author, poet, playwright, actor and film director, also remembered for his ritual suicide by seppuku after a failed coup d'état...
.
The book tells the interconnected stories of four young men who represent different facets of the author's personality. His athletic side appears as a boxer, his artistic side as a painter, his narcissistic
Narcissism
Narcissism is a term with a wide range of meanings, depending on whether it is used to describe a central concept of psychoanalytic theory, a mental illness, a social or cultural problem, or simply a personality trait...
, performing side as an actor and his secretive, nihilistic
Nihilism
Nihilism is the philosophical doctrine suggesting the negation of one or more putatively meaningful aspects of life. Most commonly, nihilism is presented in the form of existential nihilism which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value...
side as a businessman who goes through the motions of living a normal life while practicing "absolute contempt for reality".
Mishima's biographer and translator, John Nathan
John Nathan
John Nathan is the translator of Japanese works written by celebrated authors such as Yukio Mishima and Kenzaburō Ōe. Nathan is also an Emmy-award winning producer, writer and director of many films about Japanese culture and society and American business.He studied at University of Tokyo...
, has called Kyoko's House "an unsettling, even a terrifying book", at least partly because it seems prophetic in its anticipation of developments in Mishima's own life: the boxer takes up right-wing politics and the actor becomes involved in a sado-masochistic sexual relationship which ends in double suicide for himself and his lover.
The novel was certainly important to Mishima personally. It took him fifteen months to write, which was by far the longest time he had ever taken on a novel. Also, he did not publish it in magazine installments as was customary, but kept it to himself until it was completed. Its indifferent sales and poor critical reception wounded him deeply.
The story of Osamu, the actor in Kyoko's House, was one of three Mishima works adapted by Paul Schrader
Paul Schrader
Paul Joseph Schrader is an American screenwriter, film director, and former film critic. Apart from his credentials as a director, Schrader is most notably known for his screenplays for Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver and Raging Bull....
for his film Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters
Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters
Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters is an American/Japanese film co-written and directed by Paul Schrader in 1985. It was co-produced by Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas....
. Although the novel has not been translated into English, Schrader used it because his original choice, Forbidden Colors
Forbidden Colors
is a novel by Yukio Mishima, translated into English in 1968. The name kinjiki is a euphemism for homosexuality. The kanji 禁 means "forbidden" and 色 in this case means "erotic love", although it can also mean "color". The word "kinjiki" also means colors which were forbidden to be worn by people of...
, was vetoed by Mishima's widow.