闘争
A letter written after a funeral reveals a hidden struggle.
- Authentic text: the opening of a public-domain original
- Word-by-word glosses and translation in English or Chinese, free
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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.
About the book
This is a letter to Mr. K, in which the writer, after a funeral, recounts an underhanded struggle within the forensic medicine classroom and also explains a mysterious newspaper advertisement he once placed. It reads like an intimate, rambling epistolary confession, tinged with grief and a sense of withheld secrets.
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.
A Japanese coinage from the Taishō to early Shōwa period, referring to newly built houses with Western-style conveniences such as electric lights, running water, and flush toilets. Usually small Western-style homes, they were often occupied by the new middle class, such as white-collar workers and writers.
A term for someone who makes a living through literary writing. It was a common designation in the Meiji and Taishō periods; close in meaning to “作家” (writer), but with a stronger flavour of that era.
Refers to the Traube–Hering phenomenon: the periodic fluctuation of blood pressure in rhythm with breathing, discovered by the German physiologists Traube and Hering. Osanai Fukio had a medical background and habitually drew on physiological theories to discuss people; here he likens the rise and fall of mental activity to the tension and relaxation of the heartbeat.
About the author
Kosakai Mitsuji (8 October 1890 – 1 April 1929), better known by the pen name Kosakai Fuboku, was a Japanese medical scientist and crime writer.
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.
Do I need to pay or sign up?
Library books are free to read without an account. Other gloss languages and importing your own texts need an account and credits.
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.