Quicksand (Tanizaki novel)
| Author | Juni'chiro Tanizaki |
|---|---|
Publication date | 1931 |
Quicksand, originally published in Japan as Manji (Japanese: 卍), is a novel by the Japanese author Jun'ichirō Tanizaki. It was written in serial format between 1928 and 1930 for the magazine Kaizō. The last of Tanizaki's major novels translated into English, it concerns a four-way bisexual love affair between upper-crust denizens of Osaka.
Title
The Japanese title, Manji, refers to the four-pronged Buddhist swastika, a symbol of the four lovers. The English title refers to the destructive cycle of obsession and jealousy faced by the four main characters.[1]
Plot
The story is narrated by Sonoko Kakiuchi, a young woman from Osaka. At the start of the novel she lives comfortably with her husband Kotaro, and attends art classes at a local women's school. Rumors spread around the school that Sonoko is having a lesbian affair with another student, the beautiful young Mitsuko. Sonoko finds herself drawn to Mitsuko, though she barely knows her, and she proceeds to forge a friendship with her. Soon, she invites Mitsuko to her house to pose nude for her figure drawing. Mitsuko agrees, but insists on covering herself with a sheet. The sexual tension comes to a head when Sonoko rips the sheet away, thus sealing her infatuation. The two begin a fiery affair.
Things are complicated by the arrival of Watanuki Eijiro, Mitsuko's sometime fiance. The effeminate, impotent Watanuki reveals that Mitsuko had intended to marry him, but now refuses unless he allows her affair with Sonoko to continue. Sonoko begins to sense that Mitsuko has been manipulating them both, but is far too mired in her infatuation – the quicksand of the title – to back out. Meanwhile, Sonoko's husband Kotaro has taken notice of her infatuation with Mitsuko. He attempts to put an end to it, but Sonoko will not be dissuaded. After a few chance meetings, Kotaro falls under Mitsuko's spell as well, and attempts to get closer to her. One evening when all three are sleeping in bed together, Sonoko awakens to find Kotaro having intercourse with Mitsuko. Knowing that their ménage à trois is doomed, Sonoko, Kotaro, and Mitsuko form a suicide pact, in which they will kill themselves with poison-laced sleeping powder. In the event, however, Sonoko wakes up, realizing that Kotaro and Mitsuko have withheld the poison from her dose, a final betrayal.
Development history
The novel was first published serially in the magazine Kaizō between 1928 and 1930. An English translation by Howard Hibbett was published in 1994 by Alfred A. Knopf.[1]
Adaptations
The novel has been adapted to film several times.
| Role | 1964 film | 1983 film[2] | 1998 film[3] | 2006 film[4][5] | 2023 film[6][7] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cast | |||||
| Mitsuko Sido | Ayako Wakao | Kanako Higuchi | Tomoko Mayumi | Fujiko | Manami Shindo |
| Sonoko Kakiuchi | Kyōko Kishida | Haruna Takase | Kaori Sakagami | Cosmosco | Noriko Kijima |
| Kotaro Kakiuchi | Eiji Funakoshi | Yoshio Harada | Sei Hiraizumi | Shima Ônishi | |
| Crew | |||||
| Screenwriter | Kaneto Shindō | Masaru Baba | Jun Miyamoto | Noboru Iguchi[8][9] | Kaori Kotani |
| Director | Yasuzo Masumura | Hiroto Yokoyama[10] | Mitsunori Hattori[11] | Kishū Izuchi[12][13] | |
In 1985 the novel was adapted into the Italo-German film The Berlin Affair, which changed the setting to Nazi Germany.
There was also a 1984 PC-88 game by CSK Research Institute based on it.
References
- ^ a b Buruma, Ian (February 13, 1994). "Fatal Attractions". The New York Times. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
- ^ Quicksand at IMDb (1983)
- ^ Quicksand at IMDb (1998)
- ^ Quicksand at IMDb (2006)
- ^ 卍 / Manji (2006) Official website (Archive) (in Japanese)
- ^ Quicksand at IMDb (2023)
- ^ 卍 Manji (2023) Official website (in Japanese)
- ^ Mori, Naoto, ed. (2006). 日本発映画ゼロ世代 : 新しいJムーヴィーの読み方 [The Zero Generation of Japanese Films: How to Read the New J Movie] (in Japanese). Tokyo, Japan: Firumu Ātosha. ISBN 978-4845906826. OCLC 68047950.
- ^ also writer
- ^ Buckley, Sandra, ed. (2001). Encyclopedia of Contemporary Japanese Culture (1st ed.). London, England: Routledge. pp. 198, 298, 501. ISBN 978-0415143448.
- ^ Bienati, Luisa; Ruperti, Bonaventura, eds. (2009). The Grand Old Man and the Great Tradition: Essays on Tanizaki Jun'ichiro in Honor of Adriana Boscaro. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University of Michigan. pp. 125–128. doi:10.3998/mpub.9340226. ISBN 978-1929280551.
- ^ "谷崎潤一郎「卍」新解釈オリジナル脚本で映画化！メインビジュアル・予告編・場面写真一挙解禁" [Jun'ichirō Tanizaki's "Manji" adapted as a film with a new interpretation and original script! Trailer, poster, and stills released]. Cinemas+ (in Japanese). June 16, 2023. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
- ^ "人妻が美しき小悪魔に惹かれていく…谷崎潤一郎の小説をもとにした映画「卍」公開" [A married woman is attracted to a beautiful little devil... The film "Manji" based on Jun'ichirō Tanizaki's novel is released]. Natalie (in Japanese). June 16, 2023. Retrieved February 2, 2025.