Naomi

If you enjoy reading about men gradually emasculating themselves through male egotism, adoration and submission to a woman capable of employing both guile and seduction fully as a weapon, then you'll enjoy Naomi.

Joji Kawai, a twenty something office worker, chances upon Naomi, a sullen teenage waitress with an unusual "Western looking" appearance. After hearing about her nonchalant upbringing and taking pity upon her, he decides to settle with her, and cultivate her into a cultured modern, young woman and his image of an ideal wife. He harbours dream about living simply with her, wanting to do away with the rigid structures and hierachy of traditional Japanese households.

Little does he know that his fantasies become pear-shaped, when show more he manages instead to bring out the worst of Naomi's self-indulgence and coquettry towards other men. He is soon disgusted by Naomi's coarse behaviour and tendency to fling herself at other men freely, but can't quite control himself when Naomi employs her techniques on him.

Naomi eventually becomes ruthlessly efficient at her seduction of Joji, and metaphorically cuts off Joji's balls at the end.

One can't help but feel very sorry for him, although one also can't help but feel that Joji's weaknesses and ego meant that he simply got what he wanted, but without the admittance of his own selfishness, disguised as niceness. show less

In many ways this novel was painful to read. A love story, the love evolves from a pure, idealized love to a masochistic, obsessional love. Each stage is horrifying on some level. The man is willing to be completely dominated by a manipulative, dishonest, cruel woman. Normally, I may have set this book aside, but as was the case with "Lolita" by Nabokov, the prose is exquisite, and it drew me on to end. Perhaps Tanizaki appealed to some thread of masochism which exists in all who love.

This is a bit like a Japanese 'Lolita'. Very cinematic. The story of a man - Jōji - and his infatuation with a Eurasian looking teenage girl, Naomi. Upon meeting and getting to know one another, both characters bond over their mutual fascination with the West. Soon, Naomi becomes Jōji's protégé and she moves in with him. He is intent on nurturing her into a 'respectable young lady'. His adoration takes form in lavishing her with clothes and expensive meals. Naomi quickly becomes spoiled and distasteful traits begin to show. We discover her mischievousness and unfaithfulness - the bane and ruin of Jōji's life. His love (however unhealthy the reader may deem it) for Naomi, is unwavering. This novel was very atmospheric and show more transported me to another culture and climate. It was, however, rather stifling to read - both in terms of the circumstances at hand and also in terms of the writing style. I felt myself trying to rush through and get to the point of a few scenes. The whole relationship is unhealthy and weird and I didn't find myself rooting for anyone. A feminist and PC attitude would obviously sympathise with Naomi - a young woman groomed and made subject to an older man's overpowering and constricting infatuation. However, I couldn't help but ever so slightly sympathise with Jōji - who I imagine to be a meek and rather pathetic brown-suited man - a man who subsequently has to resort to 'buying' his love from women through supplying their addiction to materialism. Naomi clearly walks all over him and he allows it because he is so hopelessly in love with her (or merely obsessed?). show less

Being his first novel, Tanizaki's Naomi is a surprisingly masterful tale of a man obsessed and manipulated, a tale of imminent decline. The protagonist Joji takes fiteen year old Naomi under his wing, and the two soon strike up a passionate love affair, with Joji at the ready to cater to Naomi's every desire. We see that most of the love, with any authenticity, is one sided. As the story advances, Naomi becomes less childish and more beguiling, more bewitching in the best and worst ways. Tanizaki uses her deceitful character as the perfect springboard to create a thick plot of growing, but subtle mystery entwined in powerfully lyrical prose. Most of the time, pitiful Joji can't even tell how badly he is being fooled. Even if he knows he show more is deceived, he thinks he might gain the upper hand and assert his dominance over Naomi. Tanizaki, with such grand skill as a storyteller, fools us into thinking the same. The character of Naomi, for all of her charms, is more reminiscent of Sacher-Masoch's Wanda than Nabokov's Lolita. Joji, at the end, is a castrated dog, and we as readers come to realize the power that deception wields within the realms of lust, love, and passion. show less

"Naomi" reminded me that I don't enjoy stories in which all the characters are shmucks. Narrator Joji, a serious-seeming engineer salaryman in his early 30s, assumes personal responsibility for raising a 15-yo adolescent girl as if she were a puppy or houseplant. Her guardians lazily accede, happy to be relieved of the burden of feeding another mouth. Guess what? The house plant not only blossoms into a sexy young and desirable woman, but also shows herself to be selfish, lazy, and not so bright. So what's a guy to do? Nothing, in Joji's case, because he is completely smitten with Naomi and persists in his original judgment that she lacks free will and can be tamed according to his vision and specifications.

The story also contains lots show more of east vs, west, old, vs. new dynamics of emerging changes to Japanese society and culture, which my review admittedly ignores. Separate and apart from the historical context, however, "Naomi" reads more like a comedy than a tragedy. We witness Naomi's natural growth (but with no self-awareness) into a fun-loving adult who offers little added value beyond her proven (albeit difficult to fathom) competence in bringing men to their knees. Joji, on the other hand, naturally smart though he is, demonstrates a pathetic absence of personal growth and discernment based on massively faulty premises and his absymal inability for critical thinking and self-reflection.

"Naomi" was a vivid portrayal of what and how not to be. It reminded me of the movie "Leaving Las Vegas". show less

Junichiro Tanizaki’s Naomi is about obsession. Joji, a mediocre businessman, lets his obsession of the mysterious girl Naomi overtake him. Yet, while the novel is full of sensual obsession, it is ultimately about obsession with Western culture, for Naomi is a Western-looking girl that personifies an idealization of the west.

Naomi dealt with an uncomfortable subject and had frustrating characters (I seriously wanted to hit Joji over the head a few times), so it was not a favorite read. Yet, I am very glad I read it. I learned something about the Japanese culture conflict with Westernization in the pre-World War II days. It was a quick and engaging read, and although I was reading late into the night, I seriously could not put it down show more because I wanted to see how it resolved. Frustrating as it was to read (like watching a train-wreck), it is a novel I won’t easily forget. It is one that anyone interested in Japanese literature or culture should experience.

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Naomi was the first major work by Jun'ichirō Tanizaki (1886-1965), who was one of the leading 20th century Japanese novelists. It was written in the aftermath of the 1923 Great Kantō Earthquake that decimated Tokyo and Yokohama, where Tanizaki was living, an event which marked a turning point in his life and writing. Before the earthquake Tanizaki was enamored of Western culture, with its modernity and freedom of expression; in its aftermath he began to appreciate the traditional Japanese customs and values of his childhood, which continued throughout the rest of his life.

Naomi, also known as "A Fool's Love", was initially published in serial form in 1924, and was highly controversial at that time, due to its depiction of Naomi's show more promiscuity and nontraditional behaviors. As a result, it was not published as a novel until the end of World War II. It has remained in print since its release in 1947, and it remains one of the best selling Japanese novels of the 20th century, both within and outside of the country.

The subject of the novel is a 15 year old girl from a dodgy family who works as a café hostess in 1920s Tokyo. One of her customers is the 28 year old Joji, the narrator of the story, an electrical engineer who describes himself as a country bumpkin, awkward but attractive to most women. Joji respects the traditions of Japanese culture, but dislikes the intricacies of courtship and marriage. He wishes to live with a woman who is beautiful by Western standards and modern, one who can speak English fluently and has an intelligent, analytical mind.

Joji is enraptured by Naomi, with her Western name, Eurasian features and free spirit, and she agrees to live with him as his "maid", while he pays for her classes in English and Western music. He seeks to mold her in the fashion of his ideal wife, but Naomi becomes an indifferent pupil, as she develops a taste for fine clothes, restaurants and the company of young men. The two fall in love, and "marry" the following year. However, as Naomi flowers into womanhood, she becomes more manipulative and brazen, as she realizes the power she holds over Joji and other men who desire her. Joji's life spirals out of control, as he spends every spare dollar meeting her increasing demands, and takes more time off from work to follow the movements of his promiscuous wife. Eventually he throws her out, but he quickly realizes that he cannot live without her.

Naomi is an important novel about the conflict between traditional Japanese and Western values in 1920s Japan, as it reflects the changes in Japanese society before World War II and in the author. Tanizaki is believed to have based the subject of his novel on his Westernized sister-in-law, with whom he was enamored; he found his first wife to be too traditional and restrained. It is a straightforward and enjoyable read, although this reader frequently wished to give Joji a spine transplant. show less