THE SIGNIFICANCE OF PORTRAYAL OF EASTERN AND WESTERN CULTURES IN SOUND OF WAVES

CONTENT

Background of author Portrayal of Setting Portrayal of Society Portrayal of Characters

YUKIO MISHIMA Romantic longing for the past Strong advocation for eastern culture At the same time, he admired the West and

studied Western art and literature avidly. References to western culture : 19th Century of Spring Snow The Sound of waves parallels Daphnis

and Chole, references Verliane Reflected the conflicted state of Japan’s

national consciousness

4

PORTRAYAL OF SETTING: UTA-JIMA

Sheltered • described as “some amorphous,

mysterious helmet”• The children had to “conceive, by

sheer force of imagination, such things as street cars, tall buildings, movie, subways”

• “ No matter how much times change, very bad things---very bad ways—will all always disappear before they get to our island.”

5

PORTRAYAL OF SETTING :UTA-JIMA

Romanticised Idealistic description• “surpassingly beautiful views” • Women are attractive “the healthy color of her skin was no

different from that of the other island girls”, men are strong.• “ That’s why there’s not a thief on the whole island—nothing

by brave manly people--people who always have the will to work truly and well and put up with whatever comes—people whose love is never double faced –people with nothing mean about them anywhere…”Perils of diving and deprivations of poverty are passed

over quickly• “shinji’s mother had scoffed at the story ( of the woman dying

after diving) and had dived to greater and greater depths to bring up the biggest catches of the season”

•“unable to remember a day of sickness in his life”•“felt boastful about her good health” .. “ still have four five children more”.

2/8/2010

PORTRAYAL OF SETTING UTAJIMA-MARU

“the prefrabricated houses for families of American military personnel were aglint with the color of new cement, while the patched roofs of the battered native houses were ugly blotches in the landscape”

2/8/2010

PORTRAYAL OF SETTING- CONTRASTS IN HARMONY WITH NATURE

UTA-JIMA UTAJIMA-MARU

Peaceful living, in harmony with nature and each other, untouched by war

Constant reference to naturePeople rely on nature: “ they

knew their direction from their mariner’s compass, and by watching the changing outline of the mountains on the far distant capes they could always tell their exact position”

Americans had “burned down every tree on the hills where they landed, fearing unexploded mines”

Landscape was a series of “desolate, barren hills”

“droning thunder of fighter planes practicing”, “various military vehicles” and houses for “American military personnel”.

PORTRAYAL OF PATRIARCHAL SOCIETYPatriarchal system-Teru’s dominance-Women referenced by position-Ideal revealed when Shinji prays for a “good

natured, beautiful bride”However impression that women in the novel

are empowered and not suffering under male dominance.

We are more ready to accept this traditional society

PORTRAYAL OF CHARACTERS

Shinji

Hatsue

Chiyoko

Yasuo

Main Character

s:

SHINJI

“a quatrain by Verlaine”

“ I know not whyMy mournful soulFlies to the seaFitfully, fitfullyOn restless, frantic

pinions”

Verliane was an infamous French poet

Accurately depicts Shinji’s new found emotions

However mocking of poem by other characters warns against the tumbling into the western pattern of extreme emotions

SHINJI

Shinji had always been very level headed. He had realised that he was only eighteen and it was too early to be thinking about women. Unlike the environment of city youths, always exploding with thrills, Utajima had not a single pin-ball parlor, not a single bar, not a single waitress. And this boy’s simple daydream was only to own his own engine powered boat some day and go into the coastal-shipping business with his younger brother.”

JUXTAPOSITION OF SHINJI AND YASU0

Associated

with…

Moral standing

Selfish vs

Selfless

ASSOCIATION WITH

Yasuo – Western culture

Influenced by western culture “Yasuo was hopelessly

addicted to the pulp magazines, which came from the city, with their frequent confessions of girls who had been ‘seduced’”

Associated with western items “puffed on a cigarette”,

“watch with a luminous dial”, “sneakers” , “leather jacket”

Shinji -- Eastern cultureEastern values Sacrifices self for good of

others. HumbleEastern characteristics Not very articulate “Of course the boy as

not so articulate, and his way of speaking was confused and disconnected..”

MORAL STANDING

ShinjiDesire to do what is right "Shinji had a sort of

haphazard respect for moral things. “

“remembered with shame how he had lain in wait for her a while ago, had given that whistled signal, had followed after her: even though his actions had been prompted by the circumstances, to him they still seemed to smack of evil. “

YasuoMorally crooked " watched the girl's strong

hands ... as she filled the buckets ... and the sight quickened his imagination with delightfully carnal pictures of her healthy young body...”.

“Yasuo was hopelessly addicted to the pulp magazines, which came from the city, with their frequent confessions of girls who had been ‘seduced’”

SELFLESS VS INDIVIDUALISM

Shinji Puts others before self

“those others had been selfish person who thought only of themselves” also, “there was his family to support”.

“but mighten’t the gods punish me for such a selfish prayer?”

Yasuo Individualistic “ became abundantly

clear to the crew that Yasuo was lazy. His attitude was that it was just to go through the motions of performing his duties.”

“When this voyage is over I’m going to become uncle Teru’s son. Then this ship will belong to me.”

HATSUE

Non conformist, western individualistic streak• Reflects changing attitudes, while Mishima holds fast to

his eastern mindset, he cannot help but acknowledge aspects of western culture that appeal to his idealised vision.Yamato Nadeshiko

• “Hatsue’s grown up to be a real beauty”• "The words which Hatsue spoke next were weighted with

virtue: 'It's bad. It's bad! . . . It's bad for a girl to do that before she's married.“

• “Hatsue would immediately begin clearing away the cups they had drunk their tea in---a thoughtful action that had never occurred to the other girls—and while she was at it she would go on to wash any other dirty dishes”

CHIYOKO

Symbol of modernising Japan• “Boston bag” • “wrist watch, fastened with its red leather strap”

Appearance• “unsociable girl” • “insisted upon thinking herself as

unattractive..result of ‘refinements’ she was learning at the university in Tokoyo.”

• “brooded over her commonplace face”• “influenced…by the movies and novels read in

Tokyo”

CHIYOKO

Loss of harmony with nature• automobiles went back and forth as usual, the elevators

went up and down, and the street cars bustled around”• “the city almost all nature had been put into uniform,

and the little power of nature that remained was an enemy”

• contrasts with: “islanders enthusiastically entered into an alliance with nature and gave it their full support”Erosion of values

• “classmate who had been seduced by the man she was in love with”

• Contrasted with Shinji and Hatsue who demonstrate self restraint and morality in the light house

BROTHER’S EXPERIENCE

“Those gleaming streetcars and automobiles that had come upon him so suddenly, flashed by, and disappeared, those towering buildings and neon lights that had so amazed him”

Influenced by western movies and had a new favourite game of “cowboys and indians”

In the novel, modernising Japan is associated with western culture as

Mishima and his generation grapples with enroaching westernism.

“The halibut had already been placed on a white enamelware platter, where it lay faintly gasping, blood oozing from its gills, streaking its smooth white skin.”

“ The girl’s eyes were turned intently toward the sky over the sea to the west. There a crimson spot of sun was sinking between piles of blackening clouds.”

IMAGERY

Mishima champions the eastern mentality. This stems from Mishima’s longing for past

traditions as he tries to convince the reader to want to subscribe to

this traditional way of life and mentality.