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明暗

Light and Darkness

by Natsume Sōseki

After surgery, Tsuda’s marriage shows strain. Soseki’s last novel.

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Original language: JapaneseLevel: Advanced3,582 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
医者はthe doctor (topic)探りを入れたprobed / made an exploratory examination後でafter手術台の上からfrom on top of the operating table津田をTsuda (object)下したlet down / lowered
After the doctor had probed, he let Tsuda down from the operating table.
やっぱりas I thought穴がthe hole (subject)腸までall the way to the intestine続いているcontinues / goes onんでした(explanatory past copula) it was that...
"As I thought, the hole goes all the way to the intestine.
この前before探ったprobed時はwhen途中にalong the way瘢痕の隆起があったthere was a raised scarのでsoついjust / without thinkingそこが行きどまりだとばかり思ってI assumed that was the endああ云ったんですがI said so, but今日today疎通を好くするためにin order to improve the passageそいつをitがりがり掻き落してscraped it away見るとwhen I looked / foundまだ奥があるんですthere is still more beyond
When I probed before, a raised scar was in the way, so I thought that was the end and said so, but today, to make the passage better, I scraped it away and found there is still more beyond."

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About the book

Light and Darkness (Meian) is a long novel by Natsume Sōseki, serialized in the Asahi Shimbun in 1916 and left unfinished at the author's death. It centers on the strained marriage between Tsuda and his wife Oyone, following his surgery, and traces human egoism—written, unusually for Sōseki, from multiple viewpoints, especially women's. It is his longest novel and has been read as an attempt to depict the ideal of 'sutten-kōshi' (abandoning self-interest).

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.

袴 Customs

In the Meiji period, hakama (wide-legged trousers worn with kimono) were standard formal outdoor wear for men. Tsuda wore hakama to his medical appointment, and during the examination he took them off and draped them over the back of a chair.

葡萄状の細菌 History

This refers to staphylococci, bacteria named for the grape-like clusters they form under the microscope. This was part of the bacteriological knowledge that had become widespread by that time.

荒川堤へ花見に行った Customs

The Arakawa embankment, the levee along the Arakawa river on the northern side of Tokyo, was a famous spot for cherry blossoms from the late Meiji period through the Taishō period. Hanami is the spring custom of viewing cherry blossoms in company with others.

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: 明暗 (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

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

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

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