The Gate

Humble clerk Sosuke and his wife Oyone live in a modest house at the bottom of a cliff. Oyone was once married to another man – now her adultery seems to hang over their marriage like a curse. Despite multiple pregnancies, they have no living children; and Sosuke, born into an affluent family, finds his income growing ever smaller. They are left with little besides each other, and a beautiful painted screen as a souvenir of better days.

Then a series of crises rocks their shabby but harmonious domestic existence. Sosuke’s wastrel brother moves in with them; they find themselves forced to sell the screen to buy winter shoes; and Oyone’s ex-husband is rumoured to be visiting a wealthy neighbour at the top of the cliff. Beset by reminders of his flaws and failures, Sosuke runs away to a temple, hoping to escape into enlightenment. But can he learn what the monks have to teach him? Will he return to Oyone changed – or not at all? One of the great works of the literature of indecision, this is also one of the founding texts of modern Japanese letters.

Translated by Francis Mathy