Kokoro, By Natsume Sﾅ行eki

“I will not hesitate to cast upon you the shadow thrown by the darkness of human life. But do not be afraid. Gaze steadfastly into this darkness, and find there the things that will be of use to you” (Sōseki 124). In the novel Kokoro, there are many philosophies suggested about how to live ranging from traditional to modern, passionate to logical, and sincere to cunning. These ideas are portrayed through the characters in the text, most notably being the unnamed narrator in the first two parts and Sensei throughout the work. Author Natsume Sōseki also expresses the dualities of these philosophies by using a more vibrant style when writing from the perspective of the unnamed narrator, who represents the modern, passionate, and sincere person;
This is rectified in “Sensei’s Testament”, as Sensei sends a letter to the narrator explaining the experiences of his life that led him to inhibit certain philosophies. Sensei makes the statement that “... love is a sin” (Sōseki 28), which the narrator does not understand because of his inexperience with the subject. Sensei does not tell him an outright answer for his reasoning, but it is later revealed that Sensei believes this to be true because his love for Ojōsan in essence killed his friend. In the letter, he writes, “I realized that two days or more had passed since Okusan had told K but our [Sensei and Ojōsan’s] engagement… That night, however, K killed himself” (Sōseki 216). This allows the narrator to better grasp why Sensei has his particular beliefs. Later in the novel, Sensei tells the narrator that he should settle the matter of his inheritance before his father dies, but he does not give the narrator a satisfactory explanation as to why this is so. In his letter to the narrator Sensei explains the reasoning as being that his Uncle stole his inheritance after his parents died, which is, “... an example of an ordinary, decent person who will suddenly turn bad when he sees money, and I was thinking of the fact that no one in this world is to be trusted” (Sōseki 156).
traditional, passion vs. intellect, and sincerity vs. cunning. These are exemplified through the unnamed narrator who is modern, passionate, and sincere; and Sensei who portrays being traditional, intellectual, and cunning. The transition in points of view between the unnamed narrator and Sensei highlights these differences because in “Sensei’s Testament” the reader gets to know what Sensei’s inner thoughts are, and what kind of person he really is as he explains his past. There are many times in the novel where Sensei and the narrator quarrel about different ideas of philosophy and thought. Sensei expresses in his letter to the narrator that, “You [the narrator] and I [Sensei] have often argued over questions of modern thought… I never felt outright contempt for your opinions, yet I could not bring myself to actually respect them” (Sōseki 124). Sensei does not share the narrator’s modern outlook on life, instead, he chooses to have a more traditional mindset when looking at the world. In contrast, the narrator fully embraces the new modern way of life brought on by the Meiji Restoration. The unnamed narrator is also more passionate in his endeavors than Sensei is, who takes a more intellectual route when dealing with things. When writing his end of the year thesis, the narrator expresses, “Every day at my desk I pushed myself to the limits of my energy” (Sōseki 53), which showcases how even though he