Pathway to Japanese Literature
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The Dark Night of the ForestAuthor: Ogawa Mimei
| Original Title | 森の暗き夜 |
|---|---|
| Author | 小川 未明 |
| Genre | Children's Literature |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | In an isolated house encircled by a brooding forest, a woman toils under a flickering lamp that glows like a festering wound. The woods teem with omens—black birds perched on lightning-scarred trees, a spectral white beast darting through shadows, and nights so dense they smother color. Her solitude fractures when a stranger arrives, his presence unsettling the stagnant air. Soon, eerie changes unfold: whispers in the wind, unseen springs murmuring secrets, and crimson-feathered birds weaving nests from strands resembling human hair. \nThe woman gives birth to a frail child, its existence marked by hunger and neglect. Bound to her back as she works, the infant withers beneath mosquito swarms and her indifference, until death claims it. But the forest refuses silence. Whispers coil through trees—phantom cries, footsteps circling the house—as though the earth itself mourns. The woman buries the child beneath a white-flowered tree, yet claw marks gouge the grave by dawn. A mute earthenware vessel on her shelf, untouched by time, becomes an offering to restless spirits. \nAmidst suffocating greens and bleeding sunsets, the boundary between life and decay blurs, leaving only the forest’s ancient, watchful hunger. |
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