Osamu Dazai’s Understanding Of His Noble Identity

Osamu Dazai, the famous Japanese writer, is a representative personage of Bu Rai Ha. His work has made a great impact. Even though died at an early age of 39 by committing suicide, he had left a great deal of work.We cannot separate the life of Osamu Dazai from his noble identity. Born in a noble family, his father, Tsu Shi Ma Mo Toemon was a congressman and a senator. His family runs banks and railways. The spirit of nobility rooted deep into Osamu Dazai’s mind from the very beginning and never went away even when he experienced ups and downs in his life. However, he led a life of his own since high school and was separated from his parents, this given him the very reason of rebelling the noble life.Hatred grew after he left his family and lived his life of decadence. Therefore Osamu Dazai is a controversial writer who was born noble but despised his noble life.Osamu Dazai’s known as a writer of private novels, his works often originated from his own life and experiences. The Setting Sun and Human Lost are his most famous works. Nao Ji and Yozo Ooba are, in fact, pictures of his own. Besides, The Setting Sun was based on the journals of his mistress, Shizuo Oota. But unlike the journal, the role in the novel was a noble mother in The Setting Sun and Kazuko has a stronger sense of revolution. Human Lost is a autobiography. Yo Zo Ooba was born in a noble family and had a strong sense of nobility. His noble family influenced his whole life. However, He led a life of decadence and began rebelling against his family since high school. The current paper will work into the perception of noble identityfrom the sense of nobility and his rebellion based on The Setting Sun and Nin Gen Shi kkaku. There have been a lot of papers trying to analyze Osamu Dazai from two sides but rarely from the perception of noble identity.The methods in this thesis are analysis, induction and comparison. Materialistic dialectics are used to articulate the thesis. This thesis is to help understand the works of Osamu Dazai, especially from the side of noble identity.Chapter 1 probes into the importance and inter-relation of The Setting Sun and Human Lost. The Setting Sun is seen to be the Japanese version of Cherry Garden and Human Lost, his autobiography, is produced after the author have made up his mind to committing suicide. In the same time, these two works are the most controversial ones. Besides, Nao Ji and Yozo Ooba are created based on Osamu Dazai himself and are closely related. Other characters in The Setting Sun can be seen as reflections of the author. The vision of the two main roles in the novels on noble identity can be seen as the vision of the author.Chapter 2 analyzes how the author has reflected his sense of nobility by these two works. The mother in The Setting Sun, the last noble woman in the novel, lived in a noble family that has sank. By creating the scene of moving, the author has showed her sense of nobility by showing her reluctance of leaving her noble identity. In Human Lost, Yozo Ooba exchanges his comfort by playing up to his family. His sense of nobility is showed by despising normal life.Contrary to chapter 2, the third chapter analyzed the author’s rebellion of his identity. Kazuko is the most reflecting role in this novel. Even though she loves her mother, she doesn’t share the same sense of nobility and the revolution begins when she has lost her mother, she falls in love with Wehara and gives birth to a child. Human Lost continues with the analysis on Yozo Ooba. As Osamu Dazai, he is a very controversial role, on one hand, he rebels his identity by fighting against his family, on the other hand, the unwillingly resistance leads to his self destruction.In chapter 4, analysis is made to clarify the influence of his family on Osamu Dazai. Raised in a wealthy family, his nobility is natural. But the lack of lovefrom his parents gives the very reason to rebel his identity. And from high school to college, he takes part in the movement of communist party and falls in love with Katsu Yo, which makes his family get rid of him. Osamu Dazai is deeply influenced, but in the end, he returns to his family after getting fame. He then discovers his love for his family, stops fighting against his family and embraces his noble identity. Due to his complex experiences, he has a complicated state of mind mixed by love and rebellion. On one hand, he loves his family and noble identity, on the other hand, he rebels his family and his noble identity.