“The hunting gun is a lonely thing. It is not like a sword, which can be drawn in a moment of passion. A gun must be loaded, aimed, […]
Japanese literature
Bullfight
“The bullfight was over, but the memory of it lingered like a stain.” Chapter 1: The Invitation The novel opens with Tsugami, a newspaper editor in post-war Osaka, […]
Japanese literature
Confessions of a Mask
“I was born with a spirit that sought to hide itself.” Chapter 1: Childhood and Early Awareness The protagonist, Kochan, recounts his early childhood in wartime Japan. From […]
French literature
The Second Sex
“One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.” Volume 1: Facts and Myths The first volume of The Second Sex examines the historical, biological, and social construction […]
English literature
1984
“War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.” Part One Winston Smith, a frail 39-year-old man, lives in Airstrip One (formerly Britain), a province of the totalitarian […]