Map of Relationships:

Exploration of Relationships:

A particularly interesting relationship is that of Kikuji and Mrs Ota, because of it’s deep contextual complexity considering both of their respective relationships with Mr and Mrs Mitani. We learn that Kikuji has not yet processed the loss of his mother, which is perhaps why he is so quickly infatuated with Mrs Ota, as ‘there was a feeling of the maternal with her’; he is seeking another figure like his mother to provide him with warmth and love, evidenced by the repetition of ‘warm’ throughout chapter 4. Kukiji’s desire to be wanted, and more importantly, loved, is reinforced when he ‘put strength into his embrace’ after Mrs Ota ‘pulled away’. He physically does not want to let her go, connoting desperation, and implying a deeper loneliness that he does not wish to return to.

However, the complexity of their relationship reveals itself as their encounter progresses and Mrs Ota becomes hysterical. Kikuji is reminded that ‘she was his father’s woman’, a possession of the man who raised him, which not only reminds the reader of the context of their shared history, but reintroduces thoughts of Mr Mitani, raising the idea that perhaps Kikuji was drawn to Mrs Ota not only because of unresolved feelings towards his mother, but also to reignite some sort of connection with his late father, as in his final years it is revealed that he was happy with her; perhaps Kikuji feels that if he experiences this happiness for himself, he can gain an insight into his father’s truest, deepest self, and have one final thing in common with him.

Despite this, Kikuji is not the only one with a complicated filial relationship with Mr Mitani, as he shares this with Fumiko, the daughter of Mrs Ota. It is fascinating to see how they navigate this common relationship, as they acknowledge it through both subtlety and, at times, blinding forthrightness in Chapter 5. For example, in response to Kikuji expressing his surprise at how she was able to find the house, ‘she nodded’, and it is only after, and silently, that Kikuji recalls how she saw his father to the gate during the air raids, an interaction from which the reader can infer a mutual, unspoken agreement not to address Mr Mitani. However, this assumption is almost immediately broken, as Fumiko uncomfortably states that she’d like Kikuji ‘to forgive her (mother) for (his) father too’, raising the question of not only whether Mrs Ota is deserving of this forgiveness, but more significantly: whether or not Kikuji has the authority to forgive Mrs Ota on behalf of his father? The action would have immense emotional and historical weight for his family, and ultimately, it is not his to bestow, but Kumiko requests it nonetheless. Although, through Kawabata’s presentation of their exchange’s conclusion, I believe that one can see how Mr Mitani has affected Kikuji and Kumiko, instilling a part of himself in each of them, and thus creating an unseen connection between them. This can be seen in Kikuji seeing Kumiko to the gate, mirroring her actions towards his father all those years ago.