# Tayama Katai and His Novel Entitled Futon/Chapter 4

Chapter IV
A Comparison of Futon and Einsame Menschen
In undertaking this comparison I will not seek to establish parallels between Futon and Einsame Menschen, but I will compare the works of these two writers according to their common elements, namely, the themes that the authors intended to develop in their stories, and the characters, who are the vehicles for development of these themes, together with techniques that unite their themes and characters in a synthesized relationship to form complete stories. In doing so, I can discuss profitably what Katai learned from Hauptmann's Einsame Menschen and discover to what extent Katai applied this new knowledge when he was writing Futon. Following out my plan I shall take the first step toward ascertaining Hauptmann's theme for Einsame Menschen, then compare and evaluate how Katai adopted Hauptmann's prevailing theme in Futon.
1. A Comparison of Themes
Johannes Vockerat, the protagonist of Einsame Menschen, is studying to be a theologian, when a trend to the modern scientific era of Darwin and Haeckel's theories forcibly attracts his attention. Johannes forsakes theology and becomes a philosopher of the psycho-physiological school. His parents, who are wealthy farmers, grieve at their son's change in his religious beliefs. Their domestic tragedy centers around a parents-and-son relationship that derives from their different religious faiths. In the following passage between Johannes and his mother, Hauptmann presents the confrontation of traditional value with modern scientific skepticism through his observation of the religious views of Johannes and his mother.
   | John: | Religion, religion! I certainly don't believe that God looks like a man, and acts like one, and that He has a son, and so on. |
   | Mrs. Vockerat: | But, John, we must believe that. |
   | John: | No, mother! We can have a religion without believing such things. [In a rather declamatory tone.] Whoever seeks to know Nature seeks to know God. God is Nature. "What were a God who ruled his world only from without? In space mechanically whirled the universe about? 'Tis in the heart of things that He must live and move and rule." That's what Goethe says, mammy, and he knew more about it than all the pastors and priests in the world put together. |
   | Mrs. Vockerat: | O boy, boy! When I hear you talk like that, I...It's a sad pity that ever you gave up the Church. |
As the quotation from Goethe's discourse gives us a clue, Hauptmann condemns dogmatic Christianity which belittles human Nature. Here in the above passage, the theme of Einsame Menschen seems to spring to life, as Hauptmann, for the first time, champions Johannes's side of the issue, "Whoever seeks to know Nature seeks to know God. God is Nature." The above statement contains all that is required of a well-constructed theme: characters, conflict and conclusion. In other words, it seems to allude to the theme of Einsame Menschen which we are seeking: the contrast and tension between the natural and the unnatural, with a strong implication that nature is best, or at least that it is preferable to follow nature. Will this be the theme of Einsame Menschen? We are unable to reach a definite conclusion until we read to the end of the story. Let us examine ​whether this possible theme will fit into the further development of this story.
For years Johannes has been very discouraged about his inability to complete a psycho-physiological treatise; however, concerning his literary work, his family offers no assistance to him whatsoever. Johannes' mother, on her part, positively hates the very sight of his manuscript. Nothing would give her greater pleasure than to put it into the fire. His manuscript also causes his father to be distressed. Johannes' wife, Käthe, tries very hard to assist him, but Johannes knows that her help is of no great value. Taking everyone into account, he cannot expect to get any encouragement from his family. As a matter of fact, his family hinders rather than helps him in his work. And in addition to this family trouble, even his childhood friend, Braun, does not show the slightest appreciation for Johannes' work.
Under these distressing circumstances Johannes meets Anna Mahr, the heroine of Einsame Menschen. Anna is a "new woman" who is intelligent and emancipated. She, like Johannes, has been studying psycho-physiological philosophy at a university in Zürich. Johannes' appreciation and respect for Anna's understanding of his work grows into love. As time goes on, the relationship between Johannes and Anna develops into "a new and a nobler state of fellowship between a man and a woman."
Johannes' love for Anna is initiated when she becomes an intellectual ally in his struggle for social recognition. His interest in Anna is, at first, only to forward his career. However, Johannes' ​parents regard the relationship between their son and Anna as unforgivable. To their way of thinking, "He that looks on a woman to lust after her," is committing adultery and Johannes has forgotten his duty and the honor bestowed on him as the head of his household. They regret that they have looked on in silence and have allowed their son gradually to stray further and further from God and the right path. Now they feel that they are being punished by God. Their solution to the problem is to pray to God humbly in the hope of bringing back their son into God's grace according to the traditional doctrines of Christianity. But Johannes takes his stand on quite different grounds as we have observed in the exchange between Johannes and his mother. He denies his parents' conventional doctrines. Johannes declares to his parents that he has a pure, platonic relationship with Anna and that he has determined to continue this friendship with her in spite of all their arguments to the contrary. In Johannes' last confrontation with his father he desperately tries to convince his father of his stand and of his firm beliefs.
   | John: | Well, father, I differ from you. We don't understand each other. In this matter I don't suppose we ever shall. |
   | Vockerat: | [Struggling to maintain a friendly tone.] It's not a question of understanding. You mistake the position--yes, yes! That's not the position in which we stand to each other at all, as you used to know very well. It's no question of coming to an understanding. |
   | John: | Excuse me, father, then what is it a question of? |
   | Vockerat: | Of obeying, it seems to me. ​ |
   | John: | You think that I should do what you wish, even if it seems wrong to me? |
   | Vockerat: | You may be sure that I'll not advise you to do anything wrong. I'm sorry that it should be necessary to say this to you. . . to remind you. . .how we brought you up--not without toil and trouble and many a sleepless night. . . we did it all willingly, gladly. |
   | John: | Yes, father, and I am grateful to you for it. |
   | Vockerat: | So you say, but these are words, and I want to see deeds, deeds. Be a good, a moral man, and an obedient son--that is real gratitude. ••••••••••••• |
   | John: | Your love has been my destruction. |
   | Vockerat: | I don't recognize you, John--I can't understand you. |
   | John: | You are right there, father. None of you ever did or ever will understand me. |
Due to the obviously strained relationship between Johannes and his parents, Anna decides to leave Johannes' home earlier than planned. The only feeling left in Johannes' heart after Anna leaves is that of disgust for life. Johannes can no longer face life and in despair drowns himself.
From the above outline of Einsame Menschen it became clear to us that the development of the whole story verifies this theme. Therefore, we conclude that the theme of Einsame Menschen is "the contrast and tension between the natural and the unnatural, with a strong implication that nature is best, or at least that it is preferable to follow nature." Now, let us proceed to the next step comparing and evaluating to what extent Katai adopted the prevailing theme of Hauptmann's Einsame Menschen in his Futon.
​Tokio Takenaka, the principal character of Futon, is a novelist. He is assisting in the editing of geographical books as a part-time employee of a publishing company. Although he engages in this work by claiming to have an interest in geography, in his mind he does not feel at ease with this kind of employment. Needless to say, when he reflects on his lagging literary career, he cannot help but feel bitter about his job. Tokio realizes that he is sacrificing his literary ambition solely to earn a living for his family; however, it worries him to know that his wife does not understand his work nor does she take time to appreciate what he is trying to accomplish. Their children are the main concern of his wife and she, in turn, is the only one who is loved by their children. Tokio cannot find peace in his home nor contentment in his work. This situation results in his being unable to throw himself wholeheartedly into his lifework, writing.
This outline of Futon shows that Katai has adopted conditions for his character, Tokio, similar to those used by Hauptmann in creating Johannes Vockerat before Johannes met Anna Mahr. The difference is in their treatment of themes. Hauptmann treats emotional conflicts among individual members of the Vockerat family with equal weight, while Katai solely describes the mental state of his principal character Tokio. In delineating Tokio's lonely life, Katai seems to be trying to demonstrate that ambition and striving for fulfillment are quite natural and that the constant drudgery imposed upon a bread-winner is very unnatural and depressing. He asserts that if a man is compelled to take a job for the support of his family, and if his wife never shows any appreciation for his efforts on their behalf, then it is a natural consequence for him to start looking for consolation from others.
​The following excerpt from Futon implies Katai's tacit agreement with Hauptmann's concept of natural human emotions, as described in the relationship between Johannes and Anna.
   Not that he [Tokio] was comparing himself with Johannes, he was deeply moved by Johannes' love for Anna and thought that if there were such a girl as Anna, it would be a natural consequence to fall into such a tragedy.
Tokio falls in love with Yoshiko who has shown respect for his literary work. In the following passage, Katai reiterates his previous comments relating to the natural behavior of a lonely man.
   As was the case with Johannes in Einsame Menschen he began to realize that having a 'housewife' was pointless. His loneliness--this lonely situation was broken by Yoshiko. Who would not fail to be moved by such a beautiful and stylish pupil who honored him by calling him "Sensei" "Sensei!" as if he were the greatest person in the world.
Katai seems to justify Tokio's admiration for Yoshiko by taking Tokio's side of the issue: "Who could not fail to be moved by such a beautiful and stylish pupil who honored him. . . as if he were the greatest person in the world." But unlike Johannes, Tokio was restrained by the traditional ethics which prohibit him, as her mentor, from openly expressing his affection to Yoshiko. Tokio is only able to love Yoshiko in a platonic manner. While Tokio is pondering how to overcome this obstacle, Yoshiko falls in love with a young student named Tanaka. On being informed of her love affair Tokio was filled with mixed emotions and felt as if a burning fire was raging through his mind and body. He became unable to control himself and cried out: "Nonsense! How can love discriminate between a mentor and his pupil!"
​Tokio's above outburst discloses in a sudden flash the potential theme of Futon: a mentor falls in love as others do, and if a mentor falls in love with his pupil, how can love be prohibited between them? This statement contains all that is required for a theme: characters, conflict and conclusion. The question that should be asked now is whether this tentative theme is justified by the rest of the story of Futon or not. All indications lead us to conclude this is the theme of Futon.
Our next step is to evaluate to what extent Katai adopted the theme of Hauptmann's Einsame Menschen in his Futon. On the surface these two themes appear to embody different conceptions, but careful examination indicates that they are in reality closely attuned to each other. The ensuing comment by Johannes to Anna gives a clue to this similarity.
   | John: | . . . And is one really to sacrifice everything that one gained to this cursed conventionality? Are people incapable of understanding that there can be no crime in a situation which only tends to make both parties better and nobler? Do parents lose by their son becoming a better, wiser man? Does a wife lose by the spiritual growth of her husband? |
Is this comment by Johannes in accord with the convictions of Tokio: "Nonsense! How can love discriminate between a mentor and his pupil!"? Yes, it is. Both statements were made by married men who believe in new theories of a naturalistic philosophy which does not inhibit friendship with another woman, and who are attempting to destroy the conventional conception which disapproves of their opinions.
​From the foregoing analysis, it becomes evident that Katai did indeed adopt a portion of Hauptmann's principal theme of Einsame Menschen: "The contrast and tension between the natural and the unnatural, with a strong implication that nature is best, or at least that it is preferable to follow nature." Katai differs noticeably from Hauptmann in his treatment of naturalistic philosophy by confining himself to "microcosm," whereas Hauptmann applies his new ideas to "macrocosm," and criticizes dogmatic Christianity through the tragedy brought about in the Vockerat family.
2. A Comparison of Characterizations
In this section we shall examine how the characters of Futon are related to the characters of Einsame Menschen, indicating their similarities and differences, after which we shall interpret reasons why Katai made changes.
The ensuing list of characters of Futon and Einsame Menschen suggests that their relationships in each story are nearly identical.
| Futon | Einsame Menschen |
| Tokio Takenaka (hero) a novelist an individualist | Johannes (John) Vockerat (hero) a philosopher an individualist |
| Mrs. Takenaka wife of Tokio a traditional woman | Käthe (Kitty) Vockerat wife of Johannes a traditional woman |
| Yokoyama Yoshiko (heroine) a student | Anna Mahr (heroine) a student |
| Mr. & Mrs. Yokoyama Yoshiko's parents well-to-do provincial banker traditional and religious people | Mr. & Mrs. Vockerat Johannes' parents well-to-do farmer traditional and religious people ​ |
| Tanaka Hideo Yoshiko's sweetheart a student | Braun (Breo) former boyfriend of Anna Mahr and Johannes' friend an artist |
| Mrs. Tagawa Mrs. Takenaka's sister | Pastor Kollin trusted pastor, friend of Johannes' parents |
The principal characters of both Futon and Einsame Menschen are, in each case, the heads of households who are stimulated by the new theories of naturalistic philosophy and who attempt to bring their innermost feelings out into the open. Their wives are completely absorbed in bringing up their children and do not understand their husbands' work. This situation creates dissatisfaction for both the husbands and their wives. Under these circumstances, the heroines in both stories are able to satisfy with their modern ideas the emotional gaps existing between these husbands and their wives. Love by the main character for his wife was dispelled in each case by the appearance of a heroine. The main characters of Futon and Einsame Menschen are superficially very similar; however, images of these characters unrolled at the close of each story show that they are endowed by quite different personalities.
Tokio lectures Yoshiko on his views relating to an emancipated woman:
   "It's time women should be aware. It's no good for a woman still to be so weak-minded as to depend too much on others. As Sudermann's Magda said if a woman is so lacking in courage as to allow herself to be transferred immediately from the hands of her father into the hands of her future husband, she is worthless. As one of Japan's newly awakened women you must think and act on your own initiative."
​But in reality, Tokio is a man who takes the middle of the road in spite of his ideals which advocate an emancipation from convention. His ideals cannot penetrate into the very core of his being where it may turn these concepts into action. Tokio explains his irrationality in the following paragraph:
   He possessed a certain strength which did not permit indulgence. Even though he regretted being controlled by this innate strength of character, he eventually gave in to it. On account of this strength he experienced the bitterness of being excluded from fortune, but people regarded him as a righteous and trustworthy man.
Tokio's rationalization is self evident in that he is still oppressively governed by traditional values which inhibit the expression of affection towards his pupil; therefore, he does not have the determination to go his own way like Johannes. Tokio oscillates between the two poles of duty and love.
   Tokio was worried. His thoughts wavered in judgment several times a day. One time he thought he was prepared to sacrifice himself for their sake. Another time, he thought that he would stop her love affair at one stroke by revealing the true situation to her parents. But, in his present state of mind he could not venture to select either of these plans.
Unlike Johannes, Tokio is in reality a man who upholds traditional ethics. The following paragraphs elucidate this characteristic of Tokio.
   He worried seriously about Yoshiko's love affair and her subsequent life. He compared their ennui, weariness, and callousness, after living together, with his own experiences. And, he sympathized with a woman's pitiful situation having submitted to a man's will. A pessimistic view of life for the dark mystery hidden in the innermost ​depth of nature suddenly assailed Tokio.
Contrary to Tokio's indecisive mental state, Johannes possesses qualities and elements in his personality that are lacking in Tokio. Johannes loves himself all the time and absolutely rejects conformity which denies the rights of an individual. He likes his parents but disagrees with their religious views, as we have already seen. He is fond of his wife, but he is not a family man like Tokio who takes up part-time employment to support his family. This characteristic of Johannes is borne out in his retort to his wife.
   | John: | Kitty! Kitty! It's perfectly miserable, this constant talk and worry about money--as if we were on the verge of starvation. It's unendurable. It actually gives one the impression that your whole heart and mind are set on money, nothing but money. And I with my high ideal of woman. . . What is a man to love? |
In addition to his not being a family man, Johannes is a self-centered man, although I might add that he has a tender heart. He loves his wife but when by chance he meets Anna Mahr, who is a more congenial companion than his wife, he falls in love with Anna. Johannes's conscience does not hurt him as does Tokio's, because Johannes firmly believes that his affection for his wife has grown deeper and fuller as the result of his acquaintanceship with Anna, as is shown in the following talk between Johannes and Anna.
   | John: | . . . Do you, for instance, feel anything for Kitty but the warmest affection? Is my love for her less strong than it was? On the contrary, it has grown deeper and fuller. |
   | Miss Mahr: | But will you get any one, except me, to believe this? Will this prevent Kitty's grieving herself to death? |
These characteristics of Johannes, which differentiate from those of Tokio, can be reduced to one basic factor: that is, Johannes trusts in his convictions and goes his own way to the extent of opposing the wishes of his wife and his parents. He believes in psycho-physiological philosophy and is determined to change the evils of traditional values by scientific methods. On the other hand, in the case of Tokio, he is well aware of these characteristics of Johannes from reading Einsame Menschen; however, he is still cherishing the traditional values as we have previously examined in the evaluation of his character.
As for Yoshiko, in her appearance she is no doubt a "new woman," but can she compare in worldly affairs to the same degree as Anna? Of course not, as Yoshiko has not had the same worldly experiences as those of Anna. It should also be remembered that Yoshiko's behavior is restricted by her parents, whereas Anna is an orphan and decides her own destiny regarding her friendship with Johannes. The following letter from Yoshiko to her mentor reveals her weakness.
   Dear Sensei,
   I am a depraved girl student. Taking advantage of your kindness, I deceived you. I am convinced that my apologies would be very inadequate for so great a sin. Sensei, please take pity and regard me as a very weak-minded individual. ​I failed to carry out the duties of the new women of the Meiji era of which you taught me. I'm, after all, an old-fashioned woman, and did not have the courage to put the new ideas into practice. I have talked this matter over with Tanaka, and we decided that we would not reveal, under any circumstances, our secret to any other person. We promised that we would, from now on, keep company only in a spiritual way since what had been done could not be undone. However, when I come to think that your anguish is my fault, my conscience makes me restless, and I have worried all day over this. Please, Sensei, have mercy on this pitiful woman.
   I have no other choice but to rely on your mercy.
   Respectfully yours,
   Yoshiko
Tokio's wife, however, does not show any noticeable change. As a matter of fact her attitude towards Yoshiko becomes more friendly after she hears that Yoshiko has a boyfriend, but her basic feeling of disgust for Yoshiko wanting to be a novelist remains unchanged. In Einsame Menschen, however, the developed character of Johannes' wife shows great changes from the initial stage to the conclusion of the play, as Käthe is not really a woman who upholds traditional ideas as does Mrs. Takenaka. In her heart, Käthe agrees with Anna's views that women live in a condition of degradation, but in reality her mother-in-law will not allow her to discuss the matter. In fact, Johannes' mother threatens that if Käthe wants to please her, she would be well advised not to meddle with these new ideas, as they will do nothing but confuse people and destroy their peace to mind. Käthe reluctantly obeys her mother-in-law.
In connection with the analysis of Käthe's character, I discovered striking similarities between Käthe and Tokio. Both are ​restrained from acting by traditional ideas and both suffer from their indecision to carry out what they really believe in. The intensity of Käthe's anguish resembles that of Tokio with one exception, that is to say, Käthe's love for Johannes was intensified during the time Anna was staying in their home, while in Tokio's case his love was tormented by jealousy of Tanaka, to whom he lost Yoshiko.
The minor characters in both Futon and Einsame Menschen remain unchanged and appear to be conventional.
As the result of the foregoing analysis, it becomes discernible how the main characters differ. Let us now interpret why Katai made some changes from Einsame Menschen when he wrote Futon.
Katai characterizes Tokio as an intellectual married man who is bored with the environment of his work and home life. Thus far the situation of Tokio before he meets Yoshiko is similar to that of Johannes; however, the developed character of Tokio does not have Johannes' strong-willed power to carry out his desires. Our question is, why did Katai make this modification in Tokio's personality? In order to answer this problem, let us return to the theme of Futon and reexamine whether or not it requires this change. The answer is positive, as we note that the theme calls for Tokio to fall in love with Yoshiko, that is all, and in no way does it require Tokio to have a similar positive attitude to that of Johannes. It could, therefore, be interpreted that Katai removed from Tokio the characteristics of Johannes' decisive attitude for the sole purpose of emphasizing the effects of Tokio's torment caused by his oscillation between the two poles of duty and love.
​Regarding the characterization of Yoshiko, Katai presents her as a "new woman" in the initial stages of Futon but in the final analysis Yoshiko reveals that she is not a "new woman" as compared to Anna. Why, then, was Yoshiko not portrayed like Anna? To find the key to this question it would be advantageous to analyze once more the theme of Futon and uncover what were the latent characteristics of Yoshiko so that we might be able to perceive the reason for her behavior as portrayed in this story. On examination it appears that she possesses an unusual amount of personal charm, since she attracts such a disciplinarian who was himself doomed to be burdened by tradition. This being the case, let us now ask ourselves if she possesses this presupposed magnetic attraction attributed to her? The answer appears to be in the affirmative. The next question is who is the leading character according to the theme of Futon--Tokio or Yoshiko? The answer is Tokio; therefore, we can say that Yoshiko should not have the same or stronger personality than that of Tokio who is the principal character.
In summation it is to be noted that Katai partially adopts those conflicting situations from Einsame Menschen and uses them with his main characters in Futon. In other words, Katai did not follow closely any characters from Einsame Menschen in Futon as our foregoing character analysis of both stories confirmed. As a result, this analysis establishes that all the characters in Futon are of Katai's own creation as set forth in his theme: "A mentor falls in love as others do, and if a mentor falls in love with his pupil, how can love be prohibited between them?"
3. A Comparison of the Techniques
Both Futon and Einsame Menschen depict daily happenings that make their readers feel as if these characters were actually living in their midst. How is this close feeling between a reader and the characters brought about? Is it not possible that this resulted from the authors' ability to portray situations similar to some that have taken place in the reader's life? Let us examine these principle characters, who are vehicles for the development of the authors' themes. First we shall analyze Hauptmann's technique of revealing his protagonist; then, we shall compare these findings with the technique Katai uses for his principal character.
From our previous analysis of the theme and characters of Einsame Menschen we know that Johannes takes his life at the end of the play; therefore, we can assume that Johannes might have had that idea right from the beginning of the play. Let us find out how this idea is developed.
Einsame Menschen consists of five acts. All scenes take place in Johannes' house in a Berlin suburb. The First Act begins right after the christening of Johannes' and Käthe's first son. In a gay atmosphere, Hauptmann skillfully presents each member of the Vockerat family and the related characters of the play. Johannes' parents and their close friend Pastor Kollins are jovial until the Pastor sees the portraits of Darwin and Haeckel.
   | Pastor Kollin: | A mixed company! I suppose these are--pf, pf!--your old professors, Dr. Vockerat? Well, well! ​ |
   | John: | [Slightly embarrassed] Yes, sir, they are...that is...of course, with the exception of Darwin. |
   | Pastor Kollin: | [Peering closely at the picture] Darwin? Darwin? I see--Darwin! Yes, yes, hm! Well, you know! [He spells out] Ernst - Haeckel. Autograph, too, no less! Pf, pf! [With a touch of irony] And so he was one of your teachers? |
   | John: | [Quickly and rather fierily] Yes, and I am proud of it, Mr. Kollin. . . . |
In the above cross-talk between Johannes and Pastor Kollin, Hauptmann at this early stage brings to light conflicting views on life. Johannes' parents are embarrassed. Käthe tries to cheer her husband but without much success. Johannes regrets the rude manner in which he answered the old pastor. His conscience torments him due to his convictions:
   | John: | . . . The whole thing is hateful to me! . . . hateful! . . . You don't know how hateful! |
This constant conflict of new and old ways of thinking clouds over Johannes' daily life. In time, his constant grief is transformed into self-pity. The following outburst by Johannes bears out this point:
   | John: | If only one person in the wide world cared about me at all! It's not much I ask for. The least little bit of appreciation, the least little scrap of understanding of my work. |
In the Second Act, Anna Mahr's appreciation of Johannes' work changes his suppressed outlook on life to one of tranquility:
   | John: | Of course I have. Certainly. That is...Miss Anna! I know you will not misunderstand me. I have never spoken about it to any one before. ​You know how attached I am to them all. But, in what concerns my work, my own people are of no assistance to me whatever. . . And that's why I have lived in a sort of seventh heaven since you have been here, Miss Anna. It is the first time in my life that any one has taken an understanding, what may be called a professional, interest in my work, in any possible achievement of mine. It gives me fresh life. It's like rain on the dry ground. It is. . . |
In the Third Act, his mother is demanding that Johannes terminate his friendship with Anna by asking her to leave his house. The misjudgment of his behavior with Anna by his mother and Braun prompts Johannes to go his own way regardless of their opposition:
   | John: | I really think you have gone off your head. Are you all determined to talk me into believing in a conflict of interests which does not exist? What you say is not true. There is no decision required. The bond between Anna and me is not the same as the bond between Kitty and me,--there need be no clashing. It is friendship, damn it all! . . . It is you people who do not know what you are doing, I tell you. . . If you care for me at all, do not interfere with me. You don't know what is going on in me. . . . I am ruled by a different spirit; you and your opinion have lost all power over me. I have found myself, and intend to be myself--myself in spite of all of you. |
In the Fourth Act, the alliance between Johannes and Anna develops into a nobler state of fellowship:
   | John: | . . . Friendship is the foundation on which this love will arise, beautiful, unchangeable, a ​miraculous structure. And I foresee more than this--something nobler, richer, freer still. |
In the Fifth Act, Johannes' mind is made up. Johannes' tirade to his mother bears out this point:
   | John: | She is going. You have worked and worked to bring it about. But I tell you this--she'll go over my dead body. You see this revolver? |
On the verge of destruction, Johannes' depressed mental state is described below:
   | John: | Help me, Miss Anna! There is no manliness, no pride left in me. I am quite changed. At this moment I am not even the man I was before you came to us. The one feeling left in me is disgust and weariness of life. Everything has lost its worth to me, is soiled, polluted, desecrated, dragged through the mire. When I think what you, your presence, your words made me, I feel that if I cannot be that again, then--then all the rest no longer means anything to me. I draw a line through it all and--close my account. |
By tracing all the sequences of Johannes' actions which led to his self-imposed destruction, it becomes evident that the prime mover of the play is hidden in Johannes' character: Although he is loving, submissive, and obedient, there are in his spirit traces of independence, rebellion, and stubbornness. All these things were discernible in his behavior at the beginning of the play. He has brought everything that has happened upon himself. These things were in his character and they necessarily directed his actions. In other words, ​Johannes' growth is organic. We can watch his hate changing to self-pity, then to friendship, followed by his friendship sinking into desperation, and finally his desperation leads to his destruction. The climax leaves him at first numb, then he slowly understands his position. He makes his final irrevocable decision, a decision that is as logical as the blooming of a flower, a decision which is the result of a steady, persistent evolution.
Having observed how Hauptmann unrolled the mental progression of his protagonist, I will now proceed to analyze the technique of Katai in the development of his principal character Tokio.
In Futon all main events take place in Tokio's house in a Tokyo suburb. The first chapter opens with a flashback while Tokio is walking down a gentle slope.
The edge on Tokio's words creates the tone and emotional rhythm of Futon. Tokio's thoughts dwell on his experiences with Yoshiko.
   Young women's hearts are easily carried away. One minute they seem to be gay but the next minute they are depressed. They are easily excited by trifling things, and equally readily hurt by matters of no importance. Tokio was ceaselessly perplexed over Yoshiko's gentle attitude that neither seemed to be one of love, nor yet not of love. The power of morals and the restraints of customs can be more easily destroyed than torn cloth, given the opportunity. What does not come readily is the opportunity.
​The story begins with a smooth rhythm through which one can barely perceive the conflicting undercurrents in Tokio's mind.
   . . . Although he [Tokio] had hesitated to grasp at the opportunities twice, he was waiting for a faint hope, in the bottommost reaches of his heart, of the possibility of a third or a fourth opportunity, then starting a new life.
   . . . Love! love! love! To think that even now he was at the mercy of such a passive fate; his heart ached to the core at his lack of spirit and his hapless destiny.
These reflective intonations and unhurried cues break quickly and naturally when Tokio mutters the following words:
   Nonsense! How can love discriminate between a mentor and his pupil!
Behind all this is the emotional rhythm of the scene, which emerges to enrich and refine the general tone of the story:
   Sad, very sad. This sadness was not the type experienced by youth, nor merely, sadness of love between men and women, but it was the profound sadness which lay hidden in the depths of human life. The flow of running waters, the falling of blooming flowers--when one realized the irresistible power that lurked at the innermost depth of nature, nothing was so ephemeral as human beings.
What has been below the surface and what we have partly suspected in Tokio now becomes apparent. It is the conflict between responsibilities as a mentor and his natural desires as a man:
   Tokio was worried. His thoughts wavered in judgment several times a day. One time he thought he was prepared to sacrifice himself for their sake. Another time, he thought that he would stop her love affair at one stroke by revealing the true situation to her parents. But, in his present state of mind he could not venture to select either of these plans.
​His conscience as a mentor suddenly assailed Tokio and he was saddened at the turn of affairs affecting Yoshiko in her daily life.
   He worried seriously about Yoshiko's love affair and her subsequent life. He compared their ennui, weariness, and callousness, after living together, with his own experiences. And, he sympathized with a woman's pitiful situation having submitted to a man's will.
Opposed to his conscience, Tokio suffers intense agony with suspicion of having being deceived by Yoshiko. Tokio gets steadily angrier because he has tried with sincerity to help Yoshiko's love affair with Tanaka. Tokio seems to assert that a mentor is no different from an ordinary man who is disturbed by this type of situation.
   In that case--Tokio was no longer required to honor her virginity as she had already given herself to Tanaka. He might as well have gone ahead and obtained satisfaction for his own lust. When Tokio thought along these lines, Yoshiko, whom he had placed on a pedestal, now seemed to him like a streetwalker, and he began to think that not only her body but also her refined manners were distasteful.
When Yoshiko disclosed in a letter to Tokio that she is a depraved student and deceived him, Tokio springs up holding her letter, and speaks to Yoshiko. In Tokio's subsequent outburst, he seems to have no room for considering the reasons why Yoshiko has made such a daring confession to him:
   "Once things have gone so far, there is no more hope. I can't help you any more. I return this letter to you and swear to keep this matter secret. In any case, your attitude of trusting me as your mentor is nothing to be ashamed of in a modern Japanese woman. However, seeing that things have gone so far, you ought to go home."
​The day after the above incident took place Tokio had had time to reconsider and ponder over his recent outburst to Yoshiko; however, the ensuing description of Tokio's mental state confirms that, after all, he is a man who upholds traditional values and is no different from other men.
   Tokio was still angry but he was in a better mood than yesterday. He felt on the one hand a sense of indescribable loneliness when he considered that he would not be able to see her beautiful expression as they would be separated by a distance of about 500 miles. On the other hand he felt at least relaxed when he thought that he had transferred Yoshiko from the hands of his rival to those of her father.
As we progress by analyzing the development of Tokio's mental state towards the end of the story, it becomes clear that Katai is adopting a similar technique to that of Hauptmann in revealing his protagonist: the prime mover of the story is hidden within Tokio's character as was the case with Johannes. Because this technique is used, the story of Futon develops organically, wavering back and forth between traditional values and Nature, returning at the end to its original starting point where Tokio is a respected mentor, as was expected from a person of his calibre.
The foregoing analysis establishes that both stories develop organically without the intrigues, chance meetings and unnatural plot devices which had been adopted by the authors' predecessors. Because of these techniques, which portray the characters in a natural way, readers are lead to believe that these characters are part-and-parcel of their own lives. But there are differences in the literary forms that each author adopts. Hauptmann chooses a play as his form of expression, while Katai selects the novel as his form.
* ↑ Hauptmann, Einsame Menschen, Act I. pp. 26–27.
* ↑ Ibid.
* ↑ Hauptmann, Einsame Menschen, Act IV, p. 140.
* ↑ Hauptmann, Einsame Menschen, Act V, p. 159.
* ↑ Hauptmann, Einsame Menschen, Act V, pp. 161–64.
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. i, p. 11.
* ↑ A title of honor given to a teacher.
* ↑ Ibid. chap. ii, p. 16.
* ↑ Ibid. chap. iv, p. 32.
* ↑ Hauptmann, Einsame Menschen, Act IV, pp. 138–39.
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. iv, p. 32.
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. iii, pp. 18–19.
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. iv, p. 25.
* ↑ Ibid, chap. vi, p. 48.
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. vii, p. 63
* ↑ Hauptmann, Einsame Menschen, Act II, p. 80.
* ↑ Hauptmann, Einsame Menschen, Act IV, pp. 140–41.
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. i, p. 11
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. ix, p. 79.
* ↑ Hauptmann, Einsame Menschen, Act I, pp. 16–17.
* ↑ Ibid. p. 19.
* ↑ Ibid. p. 22.
* ↑ Hauptmann, Einsame Menschen, Act II, p. 72.
* ↑ Ibid., Act III, pp. 122–23.
* ↑ Hauptmann, Einsame Menschen, Act IV, p. 140.
* ↑ Ibid. Act V, p. 157.
* ↑ Ibid. Act V, p. 167.
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. i, p. 8.
* ↑ Ibid., chap. iii, p. 20.
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. iii, pp. 22–23.
* ↑ Ibid., chap. iv, p. 32.
* ↑ Ibid., chap. iv, p. 33.
* ↑ Ibid., chap. vi, p. 48.
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. vii, p. 63.
* ↑ Ibid., chap. ix, p. 77.
* ↑ Ibid., chap. ix, p. 80.
* ↑ Katai, Futon, chap. x, p. 82.