Rashomon - Mega Library

Author: Ryunosuke Akutagawa
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-08-01
Features: In Ryunosuke Akutagawa's novels, we strongly feel the cold and intense gaze of humanity upon its own evil, the detached observation of life's sorrow. Even when depicting the most virtuous and beautiful aspects of humanity, there is no naive admiration for its smoothness and fragrant charm. Instead, he reveals the contingency and absurdity at the origin of this goodness and beauty, as well as the tragic grandeur of distortion and eruption caused by an inexplicable force. Ryunosuke Akutagawa never makes judgments in his works, whether on facts or morality. He simply presents phenomena "in their raw state," making us realize the inherent uncertainty of the world and turning "reality" into a vague concept. Thus, whether a legendary masterpiece truly existed becomes a huge question even in the minds of those who witnessed it firsthand ("Autumn Mountain Picture"); a seemingly simple murder in the forest becomes an unsolvable mystery due to conflicting testimonies from different narrators ("In the Thicket"). Humanity is intriguing precisely because it reveals helplessness in evil, conceals absurdity in goodness, exudes greatness in sorrow, and nurtures brevity in joy. Ryunosuke Akutagawa walks alone among these paradoxes, leaving behind one after another Sphinxian riddles for us to ponder.