Noboru+Death


 * OUTLINE**

Noboru's Perspective on Life/Death, and how it became this way.

Noboru, the protagonist in Yukio Mishima’s The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea develops a nonchalant and detached view of murder.

Noboru, the protagonist in Yukio Mishima’s The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea, artificially develops a nonchalant and detached view of murder.
 * Introduction** :
 * The climax is marked by Noboru's murder.

Noboru develops an indifferent outlook on everything around him. He is especially insensitive to death. He practices “absolute dispassion,” (54) and is trained to de-sensitize himself to change. When Noboru seized a kitten and slammed it at a log, searing it “into the air by this power and hurling it again and again at the log” (58), he was not even guilty, this showed his transformation and how his perspectives on death have changed.
 * Environment effects Noboru's views on death/murder**

“a distant hand reached into Noboru’s dream and awarded him a snow-white certificate of merit” (61). his gang influences his attitude towards death as well. The chief of the gang, for example, disapproves values and activities such as falling in love. (132) and “never forgetting your dream” (132) as “all lies” (133).

Noboru’s mom doesn't recognize her son’s involvement in sinful activities and is therefore unable to influence or guide him along the right path. She is rather too involved with her work and with intimate relationship between Ryuji. Therefore, he experienced no opposition in practicing absolute dispassion contributes heavily to his distorted perspective of death


 * **The Cheif is a big influence on Noboru's perspective on death :**

Noboru has a fatalistic view on death; he and chief decide that Ryuji be killed for committing sins.

The chief believes that life is merely a result of the chaos of existence; that society is useless, that fathers are deceitful; and that school is a simulation of the society of adults and therefore is useless as well. The cheif then instructs Noboru to perform a morbid rite of passage, the purpose is to demonstrate that there is nothing mystical about life; living beings are made up of nothing more than earthly materials and mechanical components, so destroying a living being is no different than breaking a machine.

Quote "At thirteen, Noboru was convinced of his own genius (each of the others in the gang felt the same way) and certain that life consisted of a few simple signals and decisions; that death took root at the moment of birth and man’s only recourse thereafter was to water and tend it; that propagation was a fiction; consequently, society was a fiction too: that fathers and teachers, by virtue of being fathers and teachers, were guilty of a grievous sin. Therefore, his own father’s death, when he was eight, had been a happy incident, something to be proud of." (Reference to the build up of Ryuji (father-figure)'s death)


 * Unique/Isoluated Behaviour**

Noboru keeps a diary where he keeps records of sins committed by people around him. Many other kids of his age also keep diaries, but the vast majority does not use their diaries as means of writing down what they perceive as sinful. He is unique in that he has his own conception of sin and he decides the charges or consequences for committing those sins. For instance, one of the charges against Ryuji Tsukazaki was “answering, when I asked when he would be sailing again: “I’m not sure yet” (105).

QUote - "the hands of a father puttering over carpentry of a Sunday afternoon, would close forever the narrow access to that unearthly brilliance which he himself had once revealed” (158).


 * Cultural Setting**


 * Japan was a feudal society

Although Noboru, on the surface, seems to arrogantly assume the role of a deity figure, he complies with everything that his superior, the chief decides to do. For instance, the chief orders number three, Noboru, to “smack [the kitten] against [the log]” (57). Shows children knows norm, due to his hesitance.


 * The Sailor Who Fell From Grace with the Sea - Perspective on Death**

Noboru, the protagonist in Yukio Mishima’s The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea, artificially develops a nonchalant and detached view of murder. Throughout the novel, Noboru's cultural settings and historical background stimulate the protagonist to develop hubris and indifferent attitudes toward death.

Noboru in Mishima’s The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea artificially develops an indifferent outlook on everything around him. He is especially insensitive to death. He practices “absolute dispassion,” (54) and is trained to de-sensitize himself to change. When Noboru seized a kitten and slammed it at a log, searing it “into the air by this power and hurl[ing] it again and again at the log” (58), he was not even slightly swayed with guilt. Rather, “a distant hand reached into Noboru’s dream and awarded him a snow-white certificate of merit” (61). In addition, his gang influences his apathetic attitude towards death as well. The chief of the gang, for example, deprecates values and activities such as “fall[ing] in love” (132) and “never forget[ing] your dream” (132) as “all lies” (133). Noboru’s mom, furthermore, fails to recognize her son’s involvement in sinful activities and is therefore unable to influence or guide him along the right path. She is rather too involved with her work and with intimate relationship between Ryuji. Whether Fuyako’s realization of Noboru’s merciless and uncivil trait and intervention in his involvement with the gang would have made any difference in Noboru’s view on death can’t be known. Yet, that he experienced no opposition in practicing absolute dispassion contributes heavily to his distorted perspective of death.

Noboru is a sociopaths plagued by an irrepressible inclination toward self glory. For instance, he has a fatalistic view on death; he and chief decide that Ryuji be killed for committing sins. Noboru keeps a diary where he keeps records of sins committed by people around him. Many other kids of his age also keep diaries, but the vast majority does not use their diaries as means of writing down what they perceive as sinful. He is unique in that he has his own conception of sin and he decides the charges or consequences for committing those sins. For instance, one of the charges against Ryuji Tsukazaki was “answering, when I asked when he would be sailing again: “I’m not sure yet” (105). Later when Ryuji finds out that Noboru had been secretly observing Ryuji and Fuyako’s intercourse and does not punish Noboru, Noboru “felt nauseous” and immediately decided that “the hands of a father puttering over carpentry of a Sunday afternoon, would close forever the narrow access to that unearthly brilliance which he himself had once revealed” (158). Such an arrogance and ridiculous reasoning of logic—to simply put an end to stepfather’s life—clearly implies the position in which Noboru sees himself in; he believes that he is capable of making decisions, in this case extremely fatal decisions that involve murder, for others.

It is also interesting to look at the cultural settings of The Sailor Who Fell From Grace With the Sea. Japan was a feudal society. Social hierarchy in a smaller scale can be applied to the relationship between the chief and Noboru. Although Noboru, on the surface, seems to arrogantly assume the role of a deity figure, he complies with everything that his superior, the chief decides to do. For instance, the chief orders number three, Noboru, to “smack [the kitten] against [the log]” (57). Although murder or violations of laws by those under the age of 13 are not officially considered crimes, children are to know basic morals and norms that are accepted by their societies via education. And in the case of Noboru, it is apparent that he chooses to ignore despite his knowledge because Noboru and the gang members were always the top of the class. Therefore, the feudal system and social hierarchy played minor roles in shaping Noboru.