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The Final Years
The Final Years (Japanese: 晩年, Hepburn: Bannen) is a Japanese short story collection written by Osamu Dazai and was published in 1936. It was Dazai's first published book, composed of fifteen previously published short stories, and was completed ten years after Dazai first decided to become a writer.
In 1930, while enrolled at the University of Tokyo, Dazai was visited by Koyama Hatsuyo, a geisha whom he had known since he was in high school in Aomori. Hatsuyo had broken her contract and fled from Aomori to Tokyo. In an attempt to avoid a potential scandal, Dazai’s eldest brother, Bunji, soon arrived and made Dazai send Hatsuyo away. Before agreeing, however, Dazai made Bunji promise that he would be allowed to eventually marry Hatsuyo. Bunji agreed and returned to Aomori, taking Hatsuyo with him.
Shortly thereafter, feeling isolated from Hatsuyo and disapproval from his family, Dazai attempted double suicide with Shimeko Tanabe, a waitress. Dazai survived, but Shimeko did not. The following month, Dazai was allowed to marry Hatsuyo.
Over the next two years (1931-1932), Dazai wrote very little. Twice, he was questioned by the police about his involvement with the left-wing movement in Japan, but both times he was released almost immediately. After the second incident, he cut ties with the left-wing movement. At that same time, Dazai, who had always thought of Hatsuyo as pure and innocent, came to know of her sexual history as a geisha. It also became clear that Dazai, who hadn’t attended school since shortly after his older brother, Keiji’s, death in 1930, would not be able to graduate. Once again, Dazai was contemplating suicide.
This time, however, Dazai was determined to leave something behind. He began by writing Recollections, an extremely autobiographical story originally imagined as a type of suicide note. From 1932-1934, Dazai wrote twenty additional stories. Many of Dazai’s early stories were written with his own life experiences and outlooks in mind. He then chose the best fourteen of those stories and burned the other seven. These fourteen stories, as well as The Flowers of Buffoonery, were published in various literary magazines from 1933 to 1936 before being published together as The Final Years.
Dazai gave the collection the title The Final Years, thinking that it really would be both his first and last book, published after his death. Dazai did indeed attempt suicide again after submitting The Final Years for publication, but not until March 1937. He survived this attempt as well.
The Final Years, as well as some of Dazai’s stories that came after, were published in and around the events leading up to and in World War II. This was during a time the Japanese government was strict on what could be published and what could not. Many critics agree that Dazai’s stories are among the best literary artworks that were published during that time.
Below is a list of the stories that appear in The Final Years, in the same order as they are found in the book, along with summaries for the stories that are available in English.
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The Final Years
The Final Years (Japanese: 晩年, Hepburn: Bannen) is a Japanese short story collection written by Osamu Dazai and was published in 1936. It was Dazai's first published book, composed of fifteen previously published short stories, and was completed ten years after Dazai first decided to become a writer.
In 1930, while enrolled at the University of Tokyo, Dazai was visited by Koyama Hatsuyo, a geisha whom he had known since he was in high school in Aomori. Hatsuyo had broken her contract and fled from Aomori to Tokyo. In an attempt to avoid a potential scandal, Dazai’s eldest brother, Bunji, soon arrived and made Dazai send Hatsuyo away. Before agreeing, however, Dazai made Bunji promise that he would be allowed to eventually marry Hatsuyo. Bunji agreed and returned to Aomori, taking Hatsuyo with him.
Shortly thereafter, feeling isolated from Hatsuyo and disapproval from his family, Dazai attempted double suicide with Shimeko Tanabe, a waitress. Dazai survived, but Shimeko did not. The following month, Dazai was allowed to marry Hatsuyo.
Over the next two years (1931-1932), Dazai wrote very little. Twice, he was questioned by the police about his involvement with the left-wing movement in Japan, but both times he was released almost immediately. After the second incident, he cut ties with the left-wing movement. At that same time, Dazai, who had always thought of Hatsuyo as pure and innocent, came to know of her sexual history as a geisha. It also became clear that Dazai, who hadn’t attended school since shortly after his older brother, Keiji’s, death in 1930, would not be able to graduate. Once again, Dazai was contemplating suicide.
This time, however, Dazai was determined to leave something behind. He began by writing Recollections, an extremely autobiographical story originally imagined as a type of suicide note. From 1932-1934, Dazai wrote twenty additional stories. Many of Dazai’s early stories were written with his own life experiences and outlooks in mind. He then chose the best fourteen of those stories and burned the other seven. These fourteen stories, as well as The Flowers of Buffoonery, were published in various literary magazines from 1933 to 1936 before being published together as The Final Years.
Dazai gave the collection the title The Final Years, thinking that it really would be both his first and last book, published after his death. Dazai did indeed attempt suicide again after submitting The Final Years for publication, but not until March 1937. He survived this attempt as well.
The Final Years, as well as some of Dazai’s stories that came after, were published in and around the events leading up to and in World War II. This was during a time the Japanese government was strict on what could be published and what could not. Many critics agree that Dazai’s stories are among the best literary artworks that were published during that time.
Below is a list of the stories that appear in The Final Years, in the same order as they are found in the book, along with summaries for the stories that are available in English.