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硝子戸の中

Inside My Glass Doors

by Natsume Sōseki

From behind his glass doors, the author writes of days and memories.

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Original language: JapaneseLevel: Intermediate3,486 characters · ≈ 14 minSource: 青空文库

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Sample: three-line reading

Each word has its meaning in this sentence underneath, and each sentence has a full translation. Read the original and glance down only when you need to.

一one
One
硝子戸の中からfrom inside the glass door外を見渡すとwhen I look out over the outside霜除をしたwrapped/protected against frost芭蕉だのthe banana tree, and赤い実の結ったbearing red berries梅もどきの枝だのthe branches of the mock plum, and無遠慮に直立したstanding upright without reserve電信柱だのがthe telephone pole, and theseすぐ眼に着くがcatch my eye at once, butその他にbesides thatこれと云ってworth mentioning as such数え立てるほどのものはthings worth enumeratingほとんど視線に入って来ないhardly come into view
When I look out through the glass door, the banana tree wrapped up for winter, the branches of the mock plum with their red berries, and the telephone pole standing there straight up without a hint of shame all catch my eye at once, but beyond that, almost nothing worth counting comes into view.
書斎にいるin the study / being in the study私のmy眼界はthe view (as for the view)極めてextremely単調でplain, andそうしてand alsoまたalso極めてextremely狭いnarrowのであるis (asserting a reason/state)
The view from my study is very plain and also very narrow.
その上besides / moreover私はI (topic)去年の暮the end of last yearからsince / from風邪を引いてcaught a cold (and)ほとんどhardly / almost not表へ出ずにwithout going outside毎日every dayこのthis硝子戸glass doorの中にinsideばかりonly / and nowhere else坐っているam sittingのでbecause / since世間の様子はas for the state of the worldちっともnot at all分らないdo not understand / have no idea
Besides, since I caught a cold at the end of last year and hardly go out, sitting every day inside this glass door and nowhere else, I have no idea at all what is going on in the world.

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About the book

Inside a Glass Door is an essay by Natsume Sōseki, written between Kokoro and Michikusa. As the opening in our library shows, the ailing author watches the outside from behind a glass door, writing down small everyday matters and memories.

Cultural notes (selection)

Background a translation can’t carry: social roles, history and allusions. While reading, tap “Note” at the end of a sentence to see them all.

欧洲では大きな戦争 History

Refers to the First World War, which broke out in July 1914. That August, Japan, citing the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, declared war on Germany and sent troops to occupy Qingdao, Germany's leased territory in China, as well as the South Sea Islands. The war was still going on when Sōseki wrote this, which is why he says below that there was no telling when it would end.

春の相撲 Customs

Refers to the regular spring sumo tournament held annually in Tokyo. Sōseki lists it alongside war, elections, and rice prices as one of the "annual events," using it as an example of how eventful the world is.

卯年の正月号 Customs

Japanese magazines had a custom of themed New Year issues based on the zodiac, gathering photos of famous people born under the same sign. The Year of the Rabbit (卯) includes 1867 (Keiō 3), the year Sōseki was born, so the magazine treated him as a "Rabbit-year man."

About the author

Natsume Sōseki (9 February 1867 – 9 December 1916), born Natsume Kinnosuke, was a Japanese novelist, poet, and scholar regarded as one of the greatest writers in modern Japanese history. His major works include I Am a Cat, Botchan, Sanshirō, Kokoro, and his unfinished final novel Light and Dark.

Summary prepared with AI from Wikipedia: 硝子戸の中 (CC BY-SA)

How the glosses are made

Word glosses and sentence translations are generated in context by AI models (DeepSeek and Zhipu GLM), and every word is checked to have a gloss. AI can make mistakes; you can report problems from the book page.

FAQ

Is this the original text?

Yes. The library holds the opening section of the public-domain original, taken from 青空文库.

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What level is it?

This one is marked “Intermediate”. Every word is glossed, so you can keep reading even with a small vocabulary.

Can I use another gloss language?

English and Chinese glosses are prepared in advance; signed-in readers can generate other languages.

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