Kawabata and Culture in 'Thousand Cranes,' 'Snow Country,' and 'Beauty and Sadness' Ashley Habenicht 12th Grade

Yasunari Kawabata is a Japanese author who ties his culture in with his novel, though not necessarily to add to the story. In Thousand Cranes, Yasunari Kawabata uses the tea ceremony as an undertone for the theme of going against tradition when it comes to the main character, Kikuji. Kawabata uses the setting of a Japanese hot spring as well as geishas as a part of Snow Country to show the doomed love between Shimamura and Komako. In Beauty and Sadness, Kawabata uses Japanese literature and arts as a part of the long lost love between Otoko and Oki. All three of these novels use the culture he grew up in to either support a theme or add a traditional background to a non-traditional story.

In Thousand Cranes, Kawabata has the common tea ceremony tradition in the background of this novel. Tea ceremony is an activity many Japanese people take part in, dating back to ancient times. There are many steps to participating and many pieces to a tea ceremony, all needing to be meticulously used. Kawabata used the tea ceremony to contrast the breaking of tradition in the novel. The main character, Kikuji, falls in love with his deceased father’s former lover, Mrs Ota. They first meet at a tea ceremony where he is meant to be set up with...