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三つのなぜ

by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa

Three short fables ask why: about Faust, Solomon and Robinson Crusoe.

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Original language: JapaneseLevel: Intermediate2,917 characters · ≈ 12 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First (item one)なぜwhyファウストFaustはtopic marker (as for Faust)悪魔the devilにwith / to (the devil)出会ったかdid (he) meet? (past + question)
First: Why did Faust meet the devil?
ファウストFaustはtopic marker (as for)神Godにto (indirect object marker)仕えていたwas serving (humble form of 仕える, past progressive)
Faust served God.
従ってtherefore林檎はthe apple (topic)こういう彼にはfor him, this kind of personいつもalways智慧の果fruit of wisdomそれ自身itselfだったwas
So for him, the apple was always the 'fruit of wisdom' itself.
彼はhe (topic)林檎をan apple (object)見る度にevery time (he) sees地上楽園をthe earthly paradise (object)思い出したりremembered (listing, among other actions)アダムやイヴをAdam and Eve (and such), object思い出したりremembered (listing, among other actions)していたwas doing (repeated/habitual past state)
Every time he saw an apple, he remembered the earthly paradise, and he remembered Adam and Eve.

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About the book

This text consists of three short parables, each posing a 'why': why Faust met the devil, why Solomon met the Queen of Sheba only once, and a third question about Robinson. The opening traces how an apple keeps changing meaning in Faust's eyes, written in brief, question-and-answer puzzle-like prose.

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.

か細い黒犬が一匹 Allusion

An allusion to Goethe's Faust: Mephistopheles takes the form of a black poodle, follows Faust into his study, and then reveals his true form.

タルシシの船や、ヒラムの船 Allusion

From 1 Kings 10 in the Old Testament: Solomon's fleet of Tarshish ships and the ships of Hiram king of Tyre sailed once every three years, bringing back gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.

モアブ人、アンモニ人、エドミ人、シドン人、ヘテ人等の妃たち Allusion

From 1 Kings 11: Solomon took foreign wives—Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women. The Bible says these wives led his heart away from the Lord.

About the author

Ryūnosuke Akutagawa (1 March 1892 – 24 July 1927), also known by his art name Chōkōdō Shujin, was a Japanese writer active in the Taishō period who is regarded as the "father of the Japanese short story". He died by suicide at the age of 35 through an overdose of barbital, and Japan's premier literary award, the Akutagawa Prize, is named after him.

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.

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

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