On the surface, not very much seems to happen. Now, now, now-even while you try to pin down an instant it flies off into the distance.’ĭazai is able to supply a fascinating depth and heft in such a small space with Schoolgirl. ‘ The present moment is interesting to me. Smart, stylish and sensitive, Dazai manages a masterful character study full of nuance and social insight all set within a single day that will resonate long beyond it’s slim page length. While the book contains culturally and period specific details and discourse, it manages to have a universal and timeless appeal that speaks to the modern reader just as directly as it would have in the 30s. She drifts from dreamy and whimsical musings to sharp social and self-critiques, battered around by impulsivity of opinions as she flails for a sense of self she believes is both yet to come and already fading into the past. Osamu Dazai captures the spirit of youthful angst and anxiety while coming of age in his brief yet brilliant 1933 novella, Schoolgirl (in English translation by Allison Markin Powell), which follows the interior monologuing of a young girl through the course of a single day. Youth is a volatile landscape of emotions and opinions, often vacillating between extremes while wishing you could just find your own sense of self and stability amidst all the tumult.
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