Masuji Ono

Masuji Ono is a former painter in post-World War II Japan who looks back on and evaluates the contribution his life has made to his city. Eager to be an artist from a young age, but strongly discouraged in this pursuit by his father, Ono leaves home in 1913 and moves to Fukurama where he earns his living as an artist under Master Takeda. Ono only ever refers to his family through a recollection of his father burning his paintings thus it is unclear if Ono has cut ties with them. At the Takeda firm, Ono works long hours to meet the quota of Japanese-style prints commissioned by foreigners, until his ambition and talent lead him to work under Seiji Moriyama (Mori-San), a ‘true artist’. Ono succumbs to the decadent lifestyle his father predicted, through spending time in the pleasure district to gather the subject matter for his art, until a meeting with the nationalist Chishu Matsuda influences his ideology and career trajectory towards the escalating view at the time, Japanese imperialism. Ono achieves high status as a wartime artist and is conflicted when the war comes to an end when his works, and the ideology they represented, are discredited.

Ono struggles to arrive at an interpretation of his contribution during the war that both celebrates his success but absolves him of any guilt. He claims to be an independent thinker but in many of his recollections he admits he cannot remember if the thoughts or words he used are his own or if he acquired them from the person who features in the account. He is categorical in his summations of certain others, casting some as mediocre (e.g. the Tortoise, Shintaro) and others as having risen above mediocrity (e.g. Akira Sugimura, Matsuda), which enables him to reach a satisfactory appraisal of himself through his assuming superiority over the former group and solidarity with the latter. He purports to be unassuming of the praise his status accords him, yet his frequent referral to instances in which he received such praise belies his modesty, suggesting he may have embellished his stories or has deluded himself into believing his career was more important than was actually the case. Because Ono does frequently provide great detail in certain of his descriptions, such as of the physical environment, when he leaves details out that the reader assumes should be there, it is difficult to unequivocally believe his account.

Ono lost both his wife and only son during the war, although he only ever mentions them matter-of-factly and does not describe his grief. Ono’s interactions with his daughters Noriko and Setsuko have changed since war, Noriko calling Ono ‘less of a tyrant’, and are further marred by Ono’s suspicions that his daughters and Setsuko’s husband, Suichi, believe Ono’s wartime career may be responsible for Noriko’s previously failed marriage talks and could thus interfere with the present negotiation. Ono attempts to bond with his grandson Ichiro but he does not understand or engage with Ichiro’s captivation with American heroes, such as cowboys. Ono’s belief that Japanese society has embraced American influences too quickly is a point of digression with his sons-in-law, Suichi and Taro, but by the end of the novel, having resolved his inner conflict somewhat, Ono is able to embrace their optimism for the country’s future.

Masuji Ono Quotes

‘Setsuko probably has no idea of what you’re like these days, Father. She only remembers you from when you were a tyrant and ordered us all around. You’re much more gentle these days, isn’t that so?’ (Noriko, to Setsuko and Ono) Page 8

Indeed, I have never at any point in my life been very aware of my own social standing, and even now, I am often surprised afresh when some event, or something someone may say, reminds me of the rather high esteem in which I am held. (Ono) Pages 13-14

‘Indeed, as the instance he has just related amply illustrates, his reputation has now spread beyond the world of art, to all walks of life. But how typical of Sensei’s modest nature that he is unaware of this.’ (Kuroda praising Ono to the group at Migi-Hidari) Page 19

‘Being at Takeda’s’, I told them, ‘taught me an important lesson early in my life. That while it was right to look up to teachers, it was always important to question their authority. The Takeda experience taught me never to follow the crowd blindly, but to consider carefully the direction in which I was being pushed.’ (Ono to his pupils at the Migi-Hidari) Page 66

‘… I must say I find it hard to understand how any man who values his self-respect would wish for long to avoid responsibility for his past deeds; it may not always be an easy thing, but there is certainly a satisfaction and dignity to be gained in coming to terms with the mistakes one has made in the course of one’s life.’ (Ono) Page 111

For indeed, a man who aspires to rise above the mediocre, to be something more than ordinary, surely deserves admiration, even if in the end he fails and loses a fortune on account of his ambitions. (Ono, on Akira Sugimura) Page 117

‘Sensei, it is my belief that in such troubled times as these, artists must learn to value something more tangible than those pleasurable things that disappear with the morning light. It is not necessary that artists always occupy a decadent and enclosed world. My conscience, Sensei, tells me I cannot remain forever an artist of the floating world.’ (Ono’s last conversation with Mori-san) Page 161

Noriko

Ono’s younger daughter is 26, bolder than her sister, and frankly speaks her mind. Noriko’s planned marriage comprises the linear story within the novel, the success of which is made more critical due to failed marriage talks which occurred the previous year. Noriko has a close relationship with her sister Setsuko and an easy relationship with her nephew Inchiro. Noriko lives with her retired father with whom she shares a strained relationship; she thinks her father meddles too much with the garden and that he ‘mopes around’.

By the end of the novel, Noriko is married to Taro and living in a modern apartment in the city, expecting their first child.

Noriko Quotes

‘The point is, Noriko began to talk about the marriage negotiations in front of him [Mr Mori]. She took much the same attitude as just now, that everything was settled. It was most embarrassing. Mr Mori even congratulated me as he was leaving, and asked me the groom’s occupation.’ (Ono to Setsuko, on Noriko’s forwardness) Page 11

‘Noriko was always so good with children,’ Setsuko remarked. … ‘Ichiro’s taken a great liking to her.’ (Setsuko to Ono) Page 29

‘Really, Noriko, you shouldn’t be so indiscreet.’ (Ono) Page 44

‘Your mother was rather like you, Noriko. She had no bones about saying whatever came into her head.’ (Ono) Page 95

When amongst family, or in the company of close friends, Noriko is in the habit of adopting her somewhat flippant manner of address, and often achieves a wit and eloquence of sorts; but in more formal settings, I have often known her to have difficulty finding an appropriate tone, thus giving the impression she is a timid young woman. (Ono) Page 106

Setsuko

Setsuko is Ono’s elder daughter and at the start of the novel she is already living elsewhere with her husband Suichi and their son Ichiro. Setsuko is more reserved than her sister and is deferent to her father, but can be strong-willed when the situation calls for it. She has greater influence in her family home than Ono’s mother would have had, and in this way represents the changing gender roles of post-war Japan. Ono values Setsuko’s opinion; it is on her suggestion that Ono visits old acquaintances ahead of Noriko’s marriage talks to ensure favourable reviews are returned, and whose appraisal of Ono’s career at the end of the novel has Ono reassessing his narrative.

By the end of the novel, Setsuko is expecting her second child.

Setsuko Quotes

Even as a child, Setsuko had rather masculine features, … , Noriko was always able to get the better of her elder sister by calling her ‘Boy! Boy!’. Who knows what effect such things have on personalities? It is no coincidence, surely, that Noriko should have grown up so headstrong, and Setsuko so shy and retiring. (Ono) Page 12

‘Our Setsuko will flower in the summer’ she had often said. (Ono, on his late wife’s comments coming true about their daughter’s physical appearance) Page 12

‘He seems convinced I know some secret and that we’re all keeping it from him. I have to continually reassure him that I have no idea myself.’ (Setsuko to Ono, on Suichi’s persistent questioning of her about a family secret he thinks underpinned the failure of Noriko’s previous marriage talks) Page 13

‘How sad to see her reach this age and still unmarried.’
‘Indeed. The war came at a bad time for her.’ (Setsuko to Ono, about Noriko) Page 76

‘Sometimes at home, Father wants to do something and Mother tells him it’s not allowed. Sometimes, even Father’s no match for Mother.’ (Ichiro, to Ono about his mother and father) Page 169

‘Father painted some splendid pictures, and was no doubt most influential amongst other such painters. But Father’s work had hardly to do with these larger matters of which we are speaking. Father was simply a painter. He must stop believing he has done some great wrong.’ (Setsuko to Ono) Page 173

Ichiro

Ichiro is Setsuko and Suichi’s young son, he is captivated with American cinema and TV heroes, lively, cheeky, and occasionally misbehaves. Compared to Ono’s upbringing, in which he was only allowed into the family’s reception room at age 12, Ichiro’s upbringing is more permissive, he is allowed to sit in on adult conversations at age 8. It is from Ichiro’s inquisitive questions that Ono learns much of the content of what his daughters and their husbands discuss, such as their concerns for Ono’s mental health after he talks positively of a wartime composer having owned his responsibility for the war by committing suicide. As Ichiro grows he starts to resemble Ono’s deceased son, Kenji, and it is Ichiro who innocently points out Ono’s sense of powerlessness when he is unable to persuade Setsuko that Ichiro be allowed to taste sake.

Ichiro Quotes

‘Ichiro’s a fine boy,’ I said. ‘Not at all shy like a lot of children that age.’
‘I hope he wasn’t giving you trouble just now. He can be quite headstrong at times. Please don’t hesitate to scold him if he becomes a nuisance.’ (Ono and Setsuko) Page 29

‘Suichi believes it’s better he likes cowboys than that he idolise people like Miyamoto [a ronin: samurai for hire]. Suichi thinks the American heroes are the better models for children now.’ (Setsuko to Ono, on Ichiro liking cowboys) Pages 29-30

‘He’s so arrogant. Pulling people back and forth. Such bad manners.’ (Setsuko about Ichiro, seeing him pulling on his aunt’s arm) Page 30

‘Sometimes at home, Father wants to do something and Mother tells him it’s not allowed. Sometimes, even Father’s no match for Mother.’ (Ichiro, to Ono about his mother, after she didn’t allow Ono to give sake to Ichiro) Page 169

Suichi

Suichi is Setsuko’s husband and Ichiro’s father. Suichi is against the war which claimed the lives of half his high school graduation class, and welcomes the American occupation, even to the point of encouraging Ichiro to idolise American heroes rather than Japanese ones. Ono suspects Suichi’s anti-war sentiments have influenced Noriko and Setsuko, which fuels his suspicion that his daughters blame him for Noriko’s failed marriage negotiation.

By the end of the war Suichi is working for a company under American leadership and feels optimistic about the nation’s future.

Suichi Quotes

‘Suichi believes it’s better he likes cowboys than that he idolise people like Miyamoto [a ronin: samurai for hire]. Suichi thinks the American heroes are the better models for children now.’ (Setsuko to Ono, on Ichiro liking cowboys) Pages 29-30

‘There seems to be no end of courageous deaths,’ he said, eventually. ‘Half of my high school graduation year have died courageous deaths. They were all for stupid causes, though they were never to know that.’ (Suichi to Ono, at Kenji’s funeral) Page 50

‘Those who sent the likes of Kenji out there to die these brave deaths, where are they today? …Many are more successful than before, behaving so well in front of the Americans, the very ones who led us to disaster. …This is what makes me angry. Brave young men die for stupid causes, and the real culprits are still with us. Afraid …to admit their responsibility.’ (Suichi to Ono, at Kenji’s funeral) Pages 50-51

Taro

Taro is the groom in the present marriage talks involving Noriko. He comes from a more forward thinking family which encourages females to participate and not be deferent. Ono appears to have an easier relationship with Taro than with Suichi, considering he shared his thoughts with him about the well-known wartime composer who suicided. Taro welcomes the American changes such as democracy but asserts they should be carried out slowly.

Taro is married to Noriko by the end of the novel.

Taro Quotes

‘Democracy is a fine thing, but it doesn’t mean citizens have a right to run riot whenever they disagree with something. In this respect, we Japanese have been shown to be like children. We’ve yet to learn how to handle the responsibility of democracy.’ (Taro to his father, on the night of the miai) Page 107

‘…We feel very optimistic about the future. Within the next ten years, provided we all do our best, KNC should be a name recognised not just all over Japan but all over the world …’ (Taro, about this firm) Page 166

‘In fact, Father, just the other week I attended a reunion dinner of my school graduation year and for the first time since the surrender, all those present from every walk of life were expressing optimism for the future.’ (Taro to his father-in-law, Ono) Page 167

Shintaro

Shintaro is presented as a naïve character who once aspired to be a great artist but who is stuck nostalgically in the past, drinking at the same bar for 17 years and producing art considered by Ono to be of a low quality. Shintaro was Ono’s student during the war and involved in the same propagandistic art, still referring to Ono as ‘Sensei’ in the present day when they frequently drink together at Mrs Kawakami’s bar.

Ono chastises Shintaro for wishing to disassociate post-war from his wartime career in order to secure a teaching position. Interestingly, Ono fails to notice the hypocrisy of his own similar request of colleague Matsuda for a favourable wartime report for the Saito family’s investigator as part of Noriko’s marriage negotiation. Ono perceives Shintaro to be mediocre which allows Ono to use him as a standard of measure against which to evaluate his own achievements.

At the end of the novel, Shintaro is teaching art at a high school.

Shintaro Quotes

There is something reassuring about going into Mrs Kawakami’s and finding Shintaro sitting up there at the bar, just as one may have found him on any evening for the past seventeen or so years, absentmindedly turning his cap round and round on the counter in that old way of his. (Ono) Page 16

Sometimes he will even ask me questions relating to technique or style with all the eagerness of a young apprentice – though the truth is, of course, Shintaro has long ceased to be concerned with any real art. For some years now, he has devoted his time to his book illustrations, and his present specialty, I gather, is fire engines. (Ono) Page 16

But I suppose in the evenings, after a few drinks, Shintaro likes to believe he is still the idealistic young artist I first took under my supervision. (Ono) Page 17

‘Shintaro,’ I said, ‘why don’t you simply face up to the past? You gained much credit at the time for your poster campaign. Much credit and much praise. The world may now have a different opinion of your work, but there’s no need to lie about yourself.’ (Ono) Page 91

The likes of the Tortoise – the likes of Shintaro – they may plod on, competent and inoffensive, but their kind … do not know what it is to risk everything in the endeavour to rise above the mediocre. (Ono) Page 182

The Tortoise (Yasunari Nakahara)

The Tortoise, having received this nickname for his slow work, is a peer of Ono’s who worked with him both at the Takeda firm and at Mori-san’s villa. The Tortoise is devoted to the painting priorities of his employers, never departing from their style, and ingratiated to Ono’s assistance throughout his career which makes for a power imbalance in their relationship which Ono is able to exploit. Ono views the Tortoise as even more mediocre than Shintaro, but the Tortoise’s slow and cautious nature are also a symbol of weakness to Ono.

The Tortoise Quotes

All he would have recognised was that it represented a blatant disregard for Mori-san’s priorities; abandoned had been the school’s collective endeavour to capture the fragile lantern light of the pleasure world; bold calligraphy and been introduced to complement the visual impact … (Ono, on the Tortoise’s appraisal of his ‘Complacency’ painting) Page 156

The likes of the Tortoise – the likes of Shintaro – they may plod on, competent and inoffensive, but their kind … do not know what it is to risk everything in the endeavour to rise above the mediocre. (Ono) Page 182

Kuroda

Kuroda and his postwar fate is a narrative which remains a mystery for a large part of the novel though it is clear he holds significance for Ono. Once Ono’s protégé and leading student during the war, Kuroda’s art comes to diverge from Ono’s principles and Ono reports his work to the authorities which culminates in an interrogation of Kuroda’s family and Kuroda’s imprisonment and torture. After the war, Kuroda is the proverbial thorn in Ono’s flesh; Ono’s perception of his role in Kuroda’s fate as integral to Noriko’s previously failed marriage talks compels him to manage his reputation in the present marriage negotiation, while the guilt he carries for Kuroda’s fate derails Ono’s success at constructing an image of his own wartime efforts in which he can take pride. Ono is never quite able to fully absolve himself of his guilt, grandiosely believing he can still reconcile with Kuroda who wants nothing more to do with him.

By the end of the novel Kuroda is teaching art, his work highly esteemed by his protégé Enchi.

Kuroda Quotes

‘But I personally have no doubt. His reputation will become all the greater, and in years to come, our proudest honour will be to tell others that we were once the pupils of Masuji Ono.’ (Kuroda to the group at Migi-Hidari) Page 20

‘Mr Kuroda is always telling me,’ he said, ‘I should try and paint in a style more distinctly my own. But I find so much to admire in Mr Kuroda’s ways, I can hardly help mimicking him.’ (Enchi, Kuroda’s protégé to Ono) Page 98

‘We all know now who the real traitors were. And many of them are still walking free.’ (Kuroda’s protégé Enchi to Ono) Page 101

‘I had no idea,’ I said, ‘something like this would happen. I merely suggested to the committee someone come round and give Mr Kuroda a talking-to for his own good.’ I started again at the smouldering pile in the middle of the yard. ‘It was quite unnecessary to burn those. There were many fine works amongst them.’ (Ono and the police officer on the burning of Kuroda’s paintings) Page 164

Chishi Matsuda

Matsuda holds an influential role in Ono’s life and development and may be loosely considered a father figure to him, Matsuda having no children of his own and Ono never recalling any impactful conversations with his own father other than the burning of his early artwork. Matsuda facilitated the marriage talks between Ono and Ono’s late wife, and introduced Ono to new ideologies, ultimately guiding his career towards nationalistic purposes. His postwar self-assessment of his own role in the war, which he shares with Ono, is instrumental to Ono forming his own similar assessment, which demonstrates that Ono was not the independent thinker he often professed himself to be.

By the end of the novel Matsuda is old and frail, and before passing away shares his revised view of his and Ono’s contribution to the war, relegating its status to the contribution of ordinary men with no particular insight, a point which Ono finds difficult to assimilate, contradicting as it does the careful assessment of himself he has spent the entire novel constructing.

Chishi Matsuda Quotes

‘But, Ono, there are things we should both be proud of. Never mind what people today are all saying. Before long, a few more years, and the likes of us will be able to hold our heads high about what we tried to do. I simply hope I live as long as that.’ (Chishu Matsuda, to Ono about their role in the war) Page 85

‘Your eyes are indeed far from open, Ono, if you believe a little goodhearted charity can help the poor of our country. The truth is, Japan is headed for crisis. We are in the hands of greedy businessmen and weak politicians. Such people will see to it poverty grows every day. Unless, that is, we the emerging generation, take action.’ (Matsuda to Ono) Page 154

‘But I’m no political agitator, Ono. My concern is with art. And with artists like you. Talented young artists, not yet irreversibly blinkered by that enclosed little world you all inhabit. The Okada-Shingen [Society] exists to help the likes of you open your eyes and produce work of genuine value for these difficult times.’ (Matsuda to Ono) Page 154

Although he and I often quarrelled, our approaches to life were identical, and I am confident he would have been able to look back on one or two such moments. Indeed, I am sure he was thinking along these lines when he said to me that last time we spoke, a gentle smile on his face: ‘We at least acted on what we believed and did our utmost.’ (Ono, on Matsuda) Page 182

Seiji Moriyama (Mori-san)

Ono’s second teacher Mori-san, with whom he worked for seven years while living at his villa with the other students, was to Ono ‘a true artist’. Compared to the mass-produced art at the Takeda firm, Mori-san introduced his students to the decadent lifestyle of the pleasure district, from where they captured its beauty as subject matter for their art. When Ono’s art starts to take on his newfound ideologies and departs from Mori-san’s principles, the two part ways. Mori-san remains powerful to Ono’s persona during the war (and after), when Mori-san’s status declines and Ono’s status is elevated, demonstrated through Ono being unable to enjoy winning a prestigious award until he assures himself that he has thwarted the negative prediction Mori-san made of Ono’s career when they last talked.

Seiji Moriyama (Mori-san) Quotes

‘The finest, most fragile beauty an artist can hope to capture drifts within those pleasure houses after dark … But as for those pictures up there, they don’t even hint at these transitory, illusory qualities.’ (Mori-san) Page 133

‘I suspect the reason I couldn’t celebrate the floating world was that I couldn’t bring myself to believe in its worth. …to spend one’s skills celebrating things so intangible and transient, I suppose I thought it all rather wasteful, all rather decadent. It’s hard to appreciate the beauty of a world when one doubts its very validity.’ (Mori-san) Page 133

‘When I am an old man, when I look back over my life and see I have devoted it to the task of capturing the unique beauty of that world. I believe I will be well satisfied and no man will make me believe I’ve wasted my time.’ It is possible …that Mori-san did not use those exact words …such phrases sound rather more like the sort of thing I myself would declare … (Ono) Page 133

Mrs Kawakami

Mrs Kawakami’s is the setting for many nostalgic conversations between Ono, Shintaro and the proprietor herself. She and her establishment represent all that is left from the old days, among the otherwise abandoned neighbourhood after the war. By the end of the novel, Mrs Kawakami has taken a buy out of her bar and moved elsewhere.

Mrs Kawakami Quote

As for Mrs Kawakami, although she will do her best not to allow the current mood to affect her, there is no denying she has been greatly aged by the war years. (Ono) Page 18