A review by valsometimesreads
No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai

challenging dark fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

“From then on, however, I came to hold, almost as a philosophical conviction, the belief: What is society but an individual?”

An interesting introspection of an unreliable narrator. Dazai’s prose feels very raw and vulnerable in a way that feels like the reader is listening in a confessional. While I can’t personally relate to the objective events in this book, the underlying themes of society vs individual, imposter syndrome, and self criticism are deeply relatable. It is very reminiscent of Albert Camus’ ‘The Stranger,’ and I would definitely read again to dive deeper into the subtext. The book overall is very short but the content itself is rich

A criticism I do have is related to the portrayal of women and
sexual assault
that happens. Whether that is an intentional outlook of the character versus a sign of the author and his times is uncertain to me
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