Thursday, February 10, 2011

The Pride Men Inherit and Distribute

The first thing I thought about when I found out we were going to read this book about Japan and its culture was pride. All throughout the book Kazou Ishiguro has displayed the pride that this culture carries through inheriting it from the generation before them. An example of this would be when Ono's father tried to turn him into a profound man that would carry out the family business, but at the same time he made sure Ono wouldn't make a fool out of himself by becoming an artist. "Tell me Masuji, have you any idea what kind of a world artists inhabit?.. They inhabit a world which gives them every temptation to become weak-willed and depraved"(46). Also when Ono's father was talking to his wife about the same matter he said, "..there is a weakness running through our son's character"(46). From this we see that having honor, dignity, and pride is a major trait of the Japanese culture for the men and soon-to-be men.

Focusing more on pages 153 when Ono tells his grandson Ichiro he is eight and about old enough to get his first taste of sake, beer. Ono goes on telling Ichiro how men believe they are stronger when they drink when in reality they are no more than they are sober. This ties into the floating world for Ono where all the artists would gather at the Midgi-Hagi to drink and converse while being nurtured amongst the spirit of rebels and patriots.

When Ono tells Norikio about his offer to Ichiro of his first taste of sake on page 156 and 157, she corrects his tradition of introducing boys to the realm of men. After being criticized by both of his daughters, Ono begins to question his on way of doing things, but doesn't admit it out loud. “You women may not understand, but these things mean a great deal to a young boy.. it's a question of pride.. you women just don't understand about pride”(157). Then we see where Ono begins to have a change of though of his ways for both Ichiro and his son, Keniji. “I believe I was quite annoyed with myself..to be fair it is possible I misinterpreted entirely what she actually said”(157 & 158).\

From this mini-section of the book, I believe it is a short interpretation of the entire book. Through out the beginning of the book, Ono inherits pride from his farther and became a patriotic artist within the floating world. In this world like he told Ono, he felt stronger than he really was along with the rest of his pupils. Then as his surroundings and culture began to change after the war, so did Ono. He began to accept his failure in the past and the new changes around him through being criticized from the younger generation, and former colleagues just like how he was criticized by his daughters about giving Ichiro a taste of sake. In the end he admits his mistakes and moves on with his life just like he does with his son, Ichiro, and his losses from the war.

The inner life of an artist

Okay so we all know that I am big on the inner-self and that I love psychology. While reading this book, that is all that I really focused on.. I found it really relatable and I learned some things through our discussions. So this is what this post is going to be talking about mainy is ono and his journey to recolect with himself.

This whole book I found as a journey of finding and reconsiliation. Masuji Ono is the artist who has taken the hard road of life. Wanting to become an artist at a young age and having his paintings looked down upon by his father took a toll on him as he looks back on it. Also the whole guilt trip of Japan losing the war, because he feels that he was an antagonist to the war, the fact that his son and his wife died because of the war made the guilt that much stronger. 

Throuhout the book Ono goes on this personal journey and along the way he eventually comes to terms with himself. From the arguing with his daughters and the talks he has had with his nephew he has gone on this journey. Acceptance was a big thing that Ono had to face. He had to face his responsiblities of his actions in the war. If the war wasn't enough for him, Japanesse culture was drastically changing right before his eyes because of the westernization of the americans and Ono, wasn't willing to accept this. I can relate because even now it is hard for us to accept change. Like every person in this world over time we accept chang in our lives and towards the end of the book Ono finally accepts the fact that the culture has changed, yet it doesn't want to be a part of it. He states in the last sentences of the book "One can only hope for the best for these young people." When he says that he still feels out of place from these poeple, which he sould because he is from a different era. Yet he doesnt want to conform to the change.

In a way I can relate to what Ono is going through because as of now I am going through my own personal  journey.  Throughout the book Ono is looking back on his life or like to see it as reflecting. I reflect on my life as well and through my reflection a grow a little bit and I learn to accept some things that have gone on through my life and I have also learned to appreciate the thngs in my life, Ono does this as well. He learnes to appreciate his talents as an artist and that what he has done was the right thing to do even though it has had its downfalls. he also learned to appreciate his family: his daughter and niece, he has also learned to appreciate his sensei and his students. Which I can also relate with.

The main thing that really had me liking this book was the fact that Ono is reflecting on his life. I think that it was one of the strong aspects of the book.

Duty, Honor, Country... Was it All a Waste?

Japan has been at war for over 10 years before the US got involved in the Pacific. The once poor and weak nation of Japan was to soon forge a destiny never imagines before. The world progresses without them and yet, Germany, Russia, France and the British have mustered their own power and serve as some of the most powerful nations on the face of the earth. Yet, " Japan stand like a giant amidst cripples and dwarfs. And yet we allow our people to grow more and more desperate, our little children to die of malnutrition", as Matsuda points out to Ono (173). Ono is presented with a dilemma that not only changed his perspective on the world he lived in, but that it was time to move on and change his way of painting. Mori-sans "floating world" may be that of pleasure and show the beauty that is contained with women and drinks, but to show the reality of things is a major step that Ono soon took after drawing a picture. This picture didn't only show the reality behind all the fake "floating world" ideology that everything is nice and perfect. Instead, "Eyes of the Horizon", depicts the difference in society by showing a gap between the wealthy and poor. Children represent the poor as they have barely enough to survive or even live anywhere in such harsh conditions, while politicians and business men drink and have all the time in the world to do what they want. What causes controversy and Ono's dismissal from Mori-sans villa is showing that the three children turn into Imperial soldiers who serve the Emperor, while the wealthy men retreat from the picture as if to hide from something. This was due to Matsuda's insistence that Japan must progress. He says, " It's time for us to forge an empire as powerful and wealthy as those of the British and the French. We must use our strength to expand abroad. The time is now well due for Japan to take her rightful place amongst the world powers. Believe me, Ono, we have the means to do so, but have yet to discover the will. And we must rid ourselves of these businessmen and politicians" (174). Japan was behind and many knew nothing of the outside world, the real world. Japan was itself its own 'floating world", where everything was perfect and beautiful, but they wouldn't progress much since they still dealt with problems about how society is. Here is where everything is based on. Ono's decisions to create something people didn't have, didn't believe in was soon to spark a change in mind, hearts, and souls of every Japanese person who thought it was imperative to make Japan better and bigger. This was the beginning of a new era for Japan. a simple painting or photograph can have much effect on people. For example the photo of the flag raising on Iwo Jima was memorable because every person back in the State were influenced by it. It provided hope and helped raise money for the war, since production of weapons and everything needed to win against Japan was declining at a heavy rate. Ono's painting is similar. It provided hope, even though at first it was disloyal to his teacher, but it was a step that soon gave young men the incentive to serve their Emperor, to serve their country, to believe that their country was expanding and becoming better. Of course this wasn't the case in the end, but Ono has no reason to believe that he did wrong is making patriotic paintings. At the time it was honorable to fight and die for Emperor and family, but as we see Japanese culture changes. It was risky and yet blameworthy to what Ono did to help the war effort. But as Ono point out, " We have the satisfaction of knowing that whatever we did, we did at the time in the best of faith. Of course we took some bold steps and often did things with much single-mindedness; but this is surely preferable to never putting one's convictions to the test, for lack of will or courage" (202). I do believe that Ono was right and is proud that he did what he did. The war benefited them in a way, but showed that in reality, Japan wasn't ready for the world. It accomplished only the fact that such ideology was to be forever cast away.

Ishiguro, Kazuo. An Artist of the Floating World. New York. Vintage Books. 1989.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Sake for Me, Spinach for You...

Masuji Ono's conversations with his grandson, Ichiro, bring up comparisons between the West and East. Our first encounter with Ichiro we get a show of his love for cowboys through his imitation of Lone Ranger and he is fascinated with by a movie called Godzilla which is about a huge monster that destroys a city in Japan. The author Kazuo Ishiguro makes use of Ichiro's fascinations in two ways: First he shows us the difference in culture between generations. With the US now involved in Japan, the newer generation loses much of the older customs that Ono wishes would not be lost. Secondly, there is deeper meaning in each situation that gives light to problems within the old Japanese culture.

Later in the novel, Ichiro goes out to eat with Ono where we are introduced to another difference in the generation that is caused by the western influence. After Ichiro gobs down some spinach and starts acting like a maniac, Ono tries to figure out what he was doing. He thinks Ichiro is acting like a drunk man after drinking sake but he finds out that he is completely wrong. Ichiro is more interested in the American Popeye the Sailor man and his spinach than the Japanese and their sake. Ichiro asks Ono, "Does sake make you strong?" and Ono replies, "Sake can make you believe you're strong. But in reality, Ichiro, you're no stronger than before you drank it". What's interesting is that Ono admits that spinach can make Ichiro stronger. With spinach acting as a symbol for the American culture and Sake for the Japanese, the author shows that there is a major difference between strengths in both countries. Where the US is concerned, they have real strength, and where Japan is concerned, they only have false strength. The story is set after WWII when Japan is recovering from the defeat of their country. This spinach/sake metaphor directly represents the feeling of the Japanese at the time. Many thought that Japan would come out victorious, but the bravery and strength that Japan had was only imagined. The US had to show its true strength through the war and after, the Japanese were left reflecting upon their weak state.

A Reminiscing Artist

Masuji Ono really goes all out in the last portion of the book. He looks back onto the many hardships he went through in order to get to where he is. Being an artist was a very difficult road for Ono. He had to deal with his painting satisfying everyone while also being happy with himself.
He found happiness in art. He was one of the quick artists, as discussed during his dinner conversation with his son-in-law, Taro, his two daughters, and grandson. This was the start of one of his famous digression times. Although these areas of the book come about spontaneously, they are an interesting way to give some background.
When he looks back into his past, he looks back at every single detail possible. He looks back into the previous visits of his grandson compared to the visit now, Noriko being alone to being married and living side by side with his fellow painters then soon discovering one of them dies.
This is a lot to take in for one person especially after a war has just ended and there are many changes he must adjust to. Ono goes back and forth from his “floating world”. When he notices all the detail from the pleasure to the district to the villa, his travels from the floating world and back is very meaningful to him. The floating world is different for every artist. His paintings varied and they all were something he was proud to call his own. If you notice there is a lot of repetition in the last section of this novel.
When he speaks about his past he goes from his world as an artist to his world of being a grandfather, dad and father-in-law. The repetition in the reading really keeps a reader on track. This type of writing is slightly different from the rest of the novel. If you notice the beginning and middle of the novel was at times difficult to follow because everything moved along so quickly. In the beginning of the last section Ono repeats himself a lot when it comes down to his grandson drinking sake for the first time and his confidence in his paintings.
Sake is a big deal in a young man’s life, and Ono hesitated when dealing with this action and his grandson. Why was it so difficult? Is it just like any situation when it comes down to taking a big step in growing up? When he tells his daughters about his plan to give Ichiro a taste of sake with some water mixed in it they did not seem too happy about it. As usual Setzuko made sure she could somewhat comfort her father and in some way thank him for his thoughtfulness. Being a grandfather has also been a challenge for him but also something he enjoys. Is there some connection between his young grandson and his acceptance to this new Japan?
When reading the novel we should always keep in mind everything is being told only from one perspective. This has a lot of say when an artist is telling a story. They add in a little to the mix to make it more of their own. When I think of the fact that most of his stories may be completely different from the way his daughters may tell it, I think of the example of the two paintings he describes. The two painting were similar one was slightly different from the other, “’Eyes of the Horizon’ was indeed a reworking of ‘Complacency”, though with such differences as we might expected given the passage of years between the two” (168). Although this similarity may have occurred he was able to keep pride in his own painting, “An artist’s concern is to capture beauty wherever he finds it” (172).
While looking back at his time being taught by Mori-san he allows the reader to in a way see how he may have built the strength to keep believing in his own paintings. Mori-san mentions, “And no man will make me believe I’ve wasted my time” (151). Ono clearly presence the same confidence at the very end, “And while I may deserve only the smallest praise for my own paintings, when I come to look back over my life and remember I have nurtured and assisted the careers of all of you here, why then no man will make me believe I have wasted my time” (151).
Having this confidence and looking back on his past being able to learn from his experience is what has allowed him to deal with change without much struggle. There are things here and there that hurt him to accept, but he is proud of what he has done and is optimistic of what will come from Japan.

Works Cited
Ishiguro, Kazuo. An Artist of the Floating World. New York. Vintage International. 1989.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Ono's Dilema

From the beginning of the novel, we are given the impression that Ono is a humble artist who made a mistake and has been chewed out by the rest of society for it though they once admired him. However Ono is a senile old man who thinks too highly of himself and is arrogant enough to try and shoulder the blame for leading Japan into war. Through out the novel, it seems that Ono is outcast by society because of his patriotism during the war when in reality he is the one excluding himself from the world.

At one point in his life, Ono believed in the emperor and what he stood for. He believed in a strong Japan that would rise against its fat bureaucrats and prosper. However, before all of this, Ono was a mere artist of a “floating world” of entertainment and pleasure. While working under Mori Ono was content with living a life of indulgence without a care for the world, as Matsuda puts it at the end of the novel Ono had a “narrow artist's perspective” (199). It was Matsuda that turned Ono on to the idea of a corrupt and disgraced Japan that needed to be fixed. It was with the “Eyes to the Horizon” Ono finally embarked down his path to patriotism and stepped out of the floating world. The idea of a new Japan was impressed onto Ono in such a way that he saw it as his own, but when he lost his wife and son to the war, Ono could not help but feel responsible for their deaths because it was similar opinions to his that led to the war in the first place.

This feeling of guilt then ate Ono from the inside and eventually clawed itself to manifest in the real world. Ono feels guilty for the loss of his family and for that reason, he can't help but feel uncomfortable when he sees that his wife and son died in vain. Kenji died in Manchuria, trying to extend Japan's reach, Michiko died as a result of the war, both were the result of ideals that Ono believed in and that is why he feels as if he played a major part in everything that happened.

It seems that this feeling of guilt then drives Ono mad. He sees hate in the eyes of the new generation because he hates himself for supporting the movement that took everything from him. However, Ono can't bring himself to admit his self loathing, his pride won't allow it. Instead, Ono projects his attitude to the people around him. I didn't begin to realize this until Ono mentioned his conversation with Setsuko on pages 192 and 193. How can it be that Setsuko cannot recollect the conversation in which she warned her father of the past when we are given such a vivid account of it? The only answer that I can think of is that said conversation never happened anywhere outside of Ono. When reading the novel, we must keep in mind that everything is being filtered by Ono so it is entirely possible that the events he describes aren't completely accurate he himself even acknowledges this on several occasions. To me all of the pardons on Ono's behalf for digressing and for the accuracy of his words is a clear hint by Ishiguro that Ono might suffer some kind of memory loss and that we should not trust him, since he himself can't remember the events that influenced his life. On page 193 Setsuko even tells Ono, “no one has ever considered Father's past something to view with recrimination.” Yet earlier on in the novel, Setsuko is hell bent on reprimanding her father.

It is entirely possible that Ono's subconscious caused him to imagine such a conversation with Setsuko to help him come to grips with his feelings. By having someone else blame him, Ono can force himself to justify himself. The miai also gives Ono the excuse he needs to come clean with himself and admit his mistakes. Indeed, the family does seem awkward when Ono begins his rantings and his daughters comment on this later on, though it doesn't seem so to Ono. In fact, in Ono's eyes, it wasn't until his confession that the miai took a turn for the best. It's funny how no one else remembers it that way.

Matsuda, who in a way forced Ono to become involved with the new Japan, admits that they never played a crucial part in the whole ordeal. It was the Army officers, politicians, and businessmen that the people followed not a simple artist.

These two instances just caused me to think that Ono didn't play a big a role as he would have us believe and that the most important aspects of the novel are coping mechanisms for Ono to deal with the loss of life in his family. However, at the end, Ono finally crosses the bridge of hesitation and decides to move on with his life for had it not been for the war and the occupation of Japan who knows what would have happened to the small nation.


Well I have to end this somewhere, and this might not have made sense but it was just something that I thought about.

Monday, February 7, 2011

In Nature

The second chapter of the book begins with the mention of the Bridge of Hesitation. Ono mentions that it is where men, husbands, hesitate on whether they should go into the pleasure district with the geishas, or head home with their wives. Ono finds comfort in the hesitation. It could simply be ironic that he finds beauty in the confusion and insecurities of others. But it could also signify that he is stuck in the middle of the generations. The pleasure district represents the newer generation and the homes represent the older generation. He is comfortable and unashamed where he is. He doesn't feel disturbed by be in between. This is how his views are. He agrees on some terms with both the older and newer generation, but he doesn't choose a side. He just likes seeing the beautiful sunset silence everything around him.

The Japanese culture is much different in the way we address on another. Here we are blunt and straight-forward. In the Japanese culture, they speak indirectly and by implications. This is how Noriko addresses her father, Ono. She compares him to the bamboo he has just cut. She comments that he cut it wrong and made it unbalanced. She's talking about his life, Ono's life, and how holding onto all that happened in the past is making his life unbalanced. On page 106, Ono mentions that some of the younger shoots are becoming more dominant. Here he is making a comparison with the bamboo and Noriko, Setzuko, and her son Ichiro.

Ono, also, seems to have a fascination with the snow falling outside on his garden. He makes notice of the snow falling off of the branch and the lantern evenly covered with snow. It's showing the symbolism of Ono being stagnant, and staying in the past, while Shintaro is trying to forget the past and is shaking the now off just like the tree branches.

Friday, February 4, 2011

The Artist

Who are the artists of the Floating World? Browsing through the internet I came across the term "Geisha". What's a Geisha you may ask, well they are men, women who for a living train to be entertainers. Meaning they spent every waken moment perfecting their dancing, music and poetry skills. They keep Japanese culture alive and that's what makes Japan so prideful. So why then do we read in Kazuo Ishiguro's An Artist Of The Floating World of businessmen and other common folk harbor disdain for an artist?

Ono's own father did not approve his choice of hobby and so tried bashing his dream by saying,
"Artists' live in squalor and poverty. They inhabit a world which gives them every temptation to become weak-willed and depraved. "(46). Why at this given moment? Ono is someone who wants to live his life for himself by escaping into the mystery and fantasy that's art. Maybe Ono's dad knows this but doesn't want his only male son to put the family name in shame by becoming a no-name artist. Imagine how people would treat Ono's family if he painted something so radical and the Japanese didn't like it? Surely they would be shun from society and seen as lowly people.

There's no shame however in being an artist. In fact it's probably the hardest profession there can be because the past, present and future of Japan is in their hands. Ono has so much to offer that what he paints will have an impact in Japanese culture. And as we know he does and because of that he's know reminiscing and thinking of all the people he knew before the war.
We understand that before he could become a "real artist" he worked for a commercial company that made "Japanese Art" .



"Japanese Culture - Geisha." Japan-Zone.com - Japan Travel Guide, Japanese Pop Culture, History, Japanese Girls, Japanese Guys. 1999-. Web. 04 Feb. 2011. .

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Ono's Haunting History

Ono is a very mysterious character. So far, the novel doesn't really told us a lot about his past mistakes, but there are a lot of characters who seem to have something against him. The surprising thing, though, is that Ono doesn't seem to realize it.
The narration seems to be using language that only excuses Ono, and doesn't go further into the accusations made against Ono by people like her daughter. However, this only seems to lead to the idea that Ono is trying to either hide or ignore that. Maybe he could also simply be on the “bridge of hesitation”.
In the beginning of April 1949, there is a small quarrel going on between the proposed Noriko and Ono. Of course, the argument is about the positioning of the tree, but what does this really mean? On page 106, Noriko says, “The azaleas have never regained their looks. That's what comes of Father having so much time on his hands. He ends up meddling where it's not required.”(Ishiguro 106) Azaleas are supposed to be pretty flowers, but Noriko keeps saying that they never regained their looks. Noriko is trying to hint at Ono how he messed up their last engagement, and she hasn't regained her status or image as beautiful. Ono messed it up when he gave away information about the military, and know Noriko is afraid he will do the same with the Saito's.
The history of Ono comes back to haunt him whenever he tries to revisit his old friend, Mr. Kuroda. I found it very strange how Mr. Enchi, the young painter under the mentorship of Mr. Kuroda, treated Ono with the most polite of manners, listening to every comment with high regard and detail. However, whenever he hears about his history with the war, Enchi treats him as low as someone has been treated this book. I found it funny how Ono acted as if he didn't know what was going on, “Most things are more complicated than they appear, Mr. Enchi. Young men of your generation tend to see things far too simply.”(113). Ono is trying to defend himself by stating that the past in something not understood by youngster, but the truth is that he needs to get on with this new generation because Enchi was serious when he said Kuroda didn't want to see him. I think Ono is having a difficult time admitting his past mistakes.
I think that the truth behind Ono is that his past decision to go into the military causes everyone to hate him. Even Mr. Saito and his family seems to have something against him. Ono seems a bit stubborn though, and he doesn't appear to change his mind anytime soon. Who knows what consequences he will have next.

The Generation Gap

Ono believes that there is a difference in the postwar generation. A difference in the way they see and understand things. zthey don't see things as they really are, but differently. Is this true?

In the second section of "An Artist of The Floating World" Ono goes to visit Kuroda. He makes this visit in an effort to clear up any misunderstanding they may have had in the past and make sure Kuroda doesn't sat anything about Ono's past that may jeopardize Noriko's marriage negotiations. Upon his arrival Ono is greeted by a young man, Kuroda's pupil, Enchi. Enchi assumes Ono is one of Kuroda's associates so initially he is very polite and welcoming, but when he finds out exactly who Ono is he changes. Ono says, "Until this point the young man had managed to maintain a polite tone in his voice, but now he seemed to lose his self control" (113). Enchi's voice changes and he is in this mood of disgust. From the things that Kuroda has shared with him about Ono the young man has no respect for Ono. Enchi accuses him of being a traitor and blames Ono for Kuroda being thrown in jail and all of the abuses he suffered while there. Ono says to him, "Young men of your generation tend to see things far too simply", (113).This angers Enchi and he responds even more forceful than before. Enchi believes that he knows exactly what happened and understood well enough.
Is it that Enchi sees thing too simply or is it that Ono simply doesn't understand the severity of the things that he did that may have caused Kuroda's imprisionment? This doesn't seem to be at all the case when one attempts to write Kuroda a letter and in Kuroda's response he say that he doesn't want anything to xo with Ono. This shows me that maybe the problem isn't with the younger generation at all. The problem is with Ono and has always been with Ono. The things that Hensley during the war were things that were considered in bad judgement at the time. Ono knew that but still he did them and had his pupils do it too.

In how own eyes Ono is right but to the people around him not so much. Shintaro, another of his pupils even came to him seeking a disclaimer to posters they had produced during he war. Ono refused to honor this request because he believed, as he later said, that a man should take responsibilty for things he has done in the past. So my question to you is: where do you think the difference lies, in the younger generation or in Ono?BlogBooster-The most productive way for mobile blogging. BlogBooster is a multi-service blog editor for iPhone, Android, WebOs and your desktop
Ishiguro, Kazuo. An Artist of The Floating World. New York, NY: Vintage Books, 1986. Print

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Beliefs

Matsuda says, "We may not have parted on the easiest of terms, but things like that shouldn't come between us. Naturally, I'd say only the best things about you" (93). Masuji Ono tells his old friend Matsuda to only talk good about him. Ono asks him to not mention that he was a painter or anything about his past that would jeopardize his daughter's, Noriko, possible marriage. Noriko and her family will be investigated by investigators hired by the possible groom to be in order to see if she meets his expectations. Is it really right to hide who you are because it will benefit you in some way? This is what Ono is doing, which is going against to what he believed before, when he was a kid.

Ono says, "All he's kindled is my ambition" (48). Young Ono tells this to his mother when his father is burning his paintings. What happened to this Ono? Did he let life happen? Ono didn't like his father telling him that being an artist is something he shouldn't be proud of. So why has he turned so much like his father? Ono is lost because he is contradicting what he believed at first. What happened to the young Ono? Where did his beliefs go?


Loyalty

“There are some who would say it is people like myself who are responsible for the terrible things that happened to this nation of ours. As far as I am concerned, I freely admit I made many mistakes. I accept that much of what I did was ultimately harmful to our nation, that mine was part of an influence that resulted in untold suffering for our own people. I admit this. You see, Dr Saito, I admit this quite readily.” In this quote, Masuji Ono admits that he took part in leading Japan into World War II by being patriotic. He was loyal to his country as his pupils are loyal to him. Loyalty is a major theme throughout this book. It is loyalty that led Ono to paint patriotic paintings that liberated the people to support this movement towards war. It is also through this loyalty that split the generations, whether it was unintentional or not. The younger generation despises the elders for destroying the reputation and prosperity of their country.

It seems to me that this book questions the nature of loyalty. How loyal must one be? According to this book, the extent of loyalty has caused incidents. The first is the influence of war, even though Japan shouldn’t have gotten involved. Many people from the young generation believe a war was pointless and that Japan shouldn’t have been involved. The second is the split between the generations. The younger generation resent the older generation for influencing the war. If it weren’t for the many paintings of misleading patriotism, Japan would have never joined the war. Thus, Japan would not have lost its prestige and honor. The third is that Ono has lost the respect of Mr. Kuroda due to the fact that Mr. Kuroda blames Ono for causing the war.

Ono's Description of Setting

One thing that makes the book very detailed and interesting is the fact that we can see the setting where things take place. Why does the Ishiguro give so much detail about the setting?

In almost every scene that he describes he always gives a lot of detail about the setting. The very first scene in the book is a description of Ono’s house and the garden.

He also starts April 1949 with a description of nature. “Clusters of new houses have appeared towards the foot of the hill down which I have just come. And further along the riverbank, where a year ago there was only grass and mud, a city corporation is building apartment blocks for future employees” (99).

He also gives a very detailed description of Kuroda’s home. “Kuroda did not live in a good quarter. I walked for some time through little alleys filled with dilapidated lodging houses before coming to a concrete square resembling the forecourt of a factory” (109).

He even gives a detailed description on page 116 of the Kasuga Park Hotel (the place where Noriko had her miai). It is very interesting that they are having a very special Japanese ceremony in a place that has been influenced by western style.

He also gives a very detailed description of Kawabe Park.

In the beginning his describes his house because it is a place of great importance to him. He describes Kuroda’s home because it was a time where he was rejected by a pupil. He describes Noriko’s miai because a daughter’s wedding ceremony is very important to a father. Kawabe Park also has had a huge impact on his life.

I think that Ishiguro gives detailed description of several places because they are all of the places that have strongly impacted Ono’s life. I thought of it as a visual experience. Ono is an artist. He is a visual person. He will obviously describe with detail the setting to the places that have had major impacts in his life.

Ishiguro, Kazuo. An Artist of the Floating World. New York. Vintage International. 1989.



Mentors and Family

Teachers have a great impact on his students whether it is teaching about a certain subject or about life. They are the ones who bring about the best in others and through dedication make students understand, but also admire such people. There’s always that one person that provides more than just a student-teacher relationship. They teach not only from what they are supposed to teach, but also from their own experiences. They make a lesson more than just a boring class. They make the world seem real.
It’s weird how people can inherit thing from other people without being a relative or just a mere acquaintance. Mentors, as well as teachers, provide comfort and wise advice that are beneficial to his students. It isn’t only that mentors teach people, but create an atmosphere in which the pupils admire and try to imitate. Such people are there to enhance the learning of others and see to it that they not only carry with them their teachings, but also to leave a mark in his pupil’s lives that’ll forever change their perspective on things. Ono makes it precise when he says, “ Certain traits will tend to survive, like some shadow of that influence, to remain with one throughout one’s life” (137). It just shows how teachers influence their students through the simplest things. It may depend on how the teacher or mentor teach, but also their characteristics and behavior in and out of classrooms. Students in turn, try to inherit the way a teacher acts or even talks. This “resemblance” just shows that teachers are inspirational and motivate his students to persevere.
Also, Ono makes a comparison between his grandson Ichiro and his son Kenji stating, “ I confess I take a strange comfort from observing children inherit these resemblances from other members of the family…” (136). Ono’s quote can be compared how people inherit certain traits fro their mentors/teachers. From gaining the ability to speak, walk, teach, or even act are all “traits “ that are not inherited through a transformation of the pupil trying to convince himself that he can be similar. While children gain physical traits from family members, pupils gain internal traits that change their way of thinking and are determined to stick to the philosophy of their teachers in a way that they were taught. With all this students’ gain an advantage and a confidence that lead them to do well in whatever they are doing.

Kazuo, Ishiguro. An Artist of the Floating World. New York, NY: Vintage Books. 1989. Print.