The labor into which a heart has poured its whole love--where will it have its say, to excite and inspire, and when?
Yasunari KawabataRead
A poetess who had died young of cancer had said in one of her poems that for her, on sleepless nights, 'the night offers toads and black dogs and corpses of the drowned.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the profound struggles and haunting thoughts that can arise in darkness, particularly in times of pain and loss.
In this poignant quote by Yasunari Kawabata, the poetess conveys a deep sense of despair and reflection associated with sleepless nights. The imagery of 'toads and black dogs and corpses of the drowned' symbolizes the unsettling thoughts and memories that plague her during her darkest hours, likely linked to her experience with illness and death. It serves as a reminder of the emotional turmoil that can accompany solitude, particularly when one confronts their own mortality and the pain of existence.
Themes
PoetryDeathSleeplessnessStruggleDarkness
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a discussion about the impact of loss and grief in literature.
More from Yasunari Kawabata
All quotes →The woman was silent, her eyes on the floor. Shimamura had come to a point where he knew he was only parading his masculine shamelessness, and yet it seemed likely enough that the woman was familiar with the failing and need not be shocked by it. He looked at her. Perhaps it was the rich lashes of the downcast eyes that made her face seem warm and sensuous. She shook her head very slightly, and again a faint blush spread over her face.
Yasunari KawabataRead
The road was frozen. The village lay quiet under the cold sky. Komako hitched up the skirt of her kimono and tucked it into her obi. The moon shone like a blade frozen in blue ice.
Yasunari KawabataRead
The winter moon becomes a companion, the heart of the priest, sunk in meditation upon religion and philosophy, there in the mountain hall, is engaged in a delicate interplay and exchange with the moon; and it is this of which the poet sings.
Yasunari KawabataRead
Put your soul in the palm of my hand for me to look at, like a crystal jewel. I'll sketch it in words.
Yasunari KawabataRead
Lunatics have no age. If we were crazy, you and I, we might be a great deal younger.
Yasunari KawabataRead
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