Confessions of a Mask

Name: Confessions of a Mask
Rating: 3.9166666666666665 (84 reviews)
Author: Yukio Mishima
ISBN: 9780811201186

by Yukio Mishima

3.9

(84 ratings)

255 pages1958New Directions PublishingISBN 9780811201186

Fiction Biography

About this book

Confessions of a Mask tells the story of Kochan, an adolescent boy tormented by his burgeoning attraction to men: he wants to be "normal." Kochan is meek-bodied, and unable to participate in the more athletic activities of his classmates. He begins to notice his growing attraction to some of the boys in his class, particularly the pubescent body of his friend Omi. To hide his homosexuality, he courts a woman, Sonoko, but this exacerbates his feelings for men. As news of the War reaches Tokyo, Kochan considers the fate of Japan and his place within its deeply rooted propriety. Confessions of a Mask reflects Mishima's own coming of age in post-war Japan. Its publication in English--praised by Gore Vidal, James Baldwin, and Christopher Isherwood-- propelled the young Yukio Mishima to international fame.

Publication Details

Publisher: New Directions Publishing
Published: 1958
Pages: 255
ISBN: 9780811201186
Language: en

About Yukio Mishima

Kimitake Hiraoka (平岡公威, Hiraoka Kimitake; 14 January 1925 – 25 November 1970), known by his pen name Yukio Mishima (三島由紀夫, Mishima Yukio), was a Japanese writer, playwright, actor, martial artist, model, and the leader of an attempted coup d'état that culminated in his ritual suicide by *seppuku.* Mishima is considered one of the most important postwar stylists of the Japanese language. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature five times in the 1960s. His works include the novels *Confessions of a Mask* and *The Temple of the Golden Pavilion,* and the autobiographical essay *Sun and Steel.* Mishima's political activities made him a controversial figure. From his mid-30s onwards, his far-right ideology and reactionary beliefs became increasingly evident. ([Source][1]) [1]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yukio_Mishima