Romanesque

Osamu Dazai’s Romanesque is an analysis of the artist’s pursuit of beauty, which for the artist, are his ideas which spawn from his imagination, and the conflict every artist faces, the preservation of this beauty. He illustrates this idea by using three flat characters to explain the stages the author goes through in order to make fantasy reality.

The author uses a fable in order to present the characters. The fable genre is the most effective genre when telling this story because of the qualities of a fable. All fables begin with the famous phrase “Once upon a time…” which usually signifies that all fables have a sense of timelessness. Fables also have a sense of magic in them, often used to better illustrate fantasy and the surreal. Because imagination often contains these elements, a fable is an obvious choice. Had Dazai chosen to use a different genre, something more serious, it would not have been as effective. The fable genre also clearly details the life of the three characters. This is essential, as each character background allows the reader to better understand the characters. And since each character is representative of the steps the author goes through in order to capture and preserve beauty, background information better explains the theme of the story. This is why the fable genre is essential for this story.

Taro the Wizard represents the superego of the artist, Taro, as he represents fantasy, imagination and illusion. The secret of Taro’s wizardry represents how the author gets his “magic” or his imagination. The line spoken by Taro “what a bore, what a bore, what a bore” clearly represents the process in which the author goes through in order to get his imagination to function. It is often in boredom that our imagination starts to flow. Taro is also a dreamer, just like many artists who come up with their ideas. He however, does not use his potential, unlike most artists. Taro, like the artist, was interested in the pursuit of ultimate beauty. Taro was successful, but he was handsome according to the standards of the 8th century. Taro’s ego was the root of this, because he was so focused on himself that he lost track of his goal. The same can be said about the author trying to convey a message, if one focuses to hard on achieving beauty (the end result), the message can be lost. An author’s ego can also cloud the message, hence why the secret for Taro’s wizardry is to enter a state of egolessness. The same can be said for the author trying to write a book. If he focuses too much on what people think of him and his book, the original message may not be properly conveyed and can become skewed with the views of others. If one enters a state of egolessness, one judgement will be clear and can allow his mind to flow.

Jirobei represents the realist in the artist and the id of the artist. Jirobei is very animalistic and filled with passion. He has the will to articulate. Jirobei and the artist share something in common. Jirobei has the will to articulate, and so does the artist, but will alone is not enough to get thoughts and ideas into words. One must train. The similarities between an author training to write a book and Jirobei training to fight are stark. Jirobei states that fighting requires courage. The same can be said about the author training to get his ideas onto paper. Jirobei cultivated his courage by drinking, his favourite pastime. Author who build up the courage to write up a novel also build up their courage by taking interest in an activity that requires that body and mind to move as one, such as martial arts or outdoor activities etc… Only when the body and mind are one can the author continue. This is the basis of the id. The id is emotions, which are expressed through the mind’s thoughts and the body’s actions. Next was the matter of conveying the message. For Jirobei, it was reciting cocky lines before the fight, as it was customary. For the artist, it is customary that he finds a writing