Pathway to Japanese Literature
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Late SummerAuthor: Hori Tatsuo
| Original Title | 晩夏 |
|---|---|
| Author | 堀 辰雄 |
| Genre | Modern Short Fiction |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | A couple abruptly abandons their mountain retreat for Lake Nojiri, seeking respite from encroaching solitude. Their journey begins with an odd encounter at a nearly deserted bakery, where a foreigner’s wry humor about a half-eaten cake lingers like an omen. Arriving at the lakeside, they find a shabby hotel clinging to the season’s end—its log walls and whiskey-lined bar echoing transient foreign influences. The lake lies quiet, stripped of summer’s yachts, while nearby villas stand abandoned, their verandas sagging under wild grasses. Yet traces of life persist: whispers from a neighboring room, two enigmatic foreign girls sharing cryptic exchanges, and the ghostly imprint of bonfires where laughter once crackled. As mist blurs the mountains, the husband immerses himself in a German novella of festering guilt, its brooding narrative mirroring his own restless introspection. Between strolls through decaying settlements and uneasy encounters with locals, an unspoken tension simmers—a blend of cultural dislocation and quiet yearning for connection, all framed by a landscape suspended between fading summer and impending autumn rains. |
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