The novel tells us about a man named Shimamura comes to snow country for three times and has a subtle relationship with two girls, Komako and Yoko. Komako is a hot-spring geisha, whose social position is very low. Yoko is a country girl, who lives a poor life. This analyses Snow Country in the perspectives of setting, plot development, point of view and characterization.
The setting of the novel is the snow country. It is overwhelmingly covered by snow, even in summer time. The adjective “ white” and “cold” is repeatedly used to describe the environment. It is a place segregated from the busy world, far away from the city. The life of regular residents is very peaceful. Another important setting of the novel is the train station. It leads readers into the story and is the first place where Shimamura pays attention to Yoko. It is also the place where Komako insists to see him off when he leaves her, where She refuses Yoko’s begging her to hurry home because Yokio is dying. Moreover, the inn where Komako serves herself as a geisha is a remarkable place, where she needs to accompany customers to drink, to perform music and even to be a prostitute. The novel gives a vivid description of the physical and spiritual interaction between Shimamura and Komako.
The plot of this story is very simple, developed roughly by time sequence, but sometimes the events are shown in a series of flashbacks. It begins with Shimamura takes a train alone to the snow country and there he meets Yoko the first time. Yoko talks to the station master, asking him to take good care of her brother. Shimamura is amazed by her beautiful voice. Secretly observing her, he finds her caring for a sick man as if they were couples. Later, according to other people’s gossip, he knows that the man is called Yokio and Komako is engaged with him. Because of his illness, she degrades herself to be a geisha in order to make money to cure him. However, when Shimamura asks Komako, she denies the engagement. The relationship between Yoko and Yokio is not clear. It can only be seen that Yoko takes care of him attentively. Komako fells in love with Shimamura. Shimamura is obsessed with her body but he does not show any affection to her. In the end of the story, a fire starts in a theater and Yoko dies because of her trying to save a child. Yoko’s appearance in both the begin and the end of the story reflects one of the themes of in this story, that is the pursuance of purity and its death.
The author uses the third person point of view. The benefit of the view is that it provides reader with a overall picture of the story. The person who narrates the story is omniscient. The author is allowed to have more freedom in writing with the third person point of view. What’s more, the author puts a lot of efforts to describe the leading character Shimamura’s internal thinking and his feeling about the surroundings. In addition, the plots shift from his second-time in snow country to the first time when he meets Komako, along with his recollection. As a result, the author also uses the technique of stream of consciousness.
The major characters are Shimamura, Komako and Yoko. Schimamura is born in Tokyo. He is a married middle-aged man. He is rich and lives an extravagant life because his parents leave him a large amount of heritage. He doesn’t have a job that can be named, but he is fond of the occidental dance and his writings of the dance sometimes are published on magazines. He knows that it is just some empty talk, but he feels at ease with his life, have nothing to do but eat, drink and sleep. However, he thinks and introspects himself. He seems to live in another world which is a fantasy. The characterization is reflected in the relationship between the characters. This is especially true in Snow Country. The personality of each character is hidden in the interaction between them. One needs to interpret Shimamura’s characteristic in an multiple angle. The most obvious relation can be found between Shimamura and Komako. Shimamura goes to snow country for three times, makes Komako fall in love with him. He knows that this relationship is temporary and cannot last long, but he still finds it hard to let it go for transitory satisfaction. Schimamura’s attitude towards Komako is complex. On one hand, he is attracted by Komako’s youth and beauty and he pays to occupy her body. At the beginning when they meet, he considers her as very clean “ be clean to the hollows under her toes”. She is also very sincere that he doesn’t want to have any sexual relationship with her, though it still happens. He does not write to her or implement his promises to send her books after they parts. But later when he wins the poor woman’s heart, his feeling for her changes. She is no longer pure but still pretty. He is a cruel onlooker when he gets to know Komako’s unfortunate destiny and miserable situation, holding the attitude that he can do nothing about it. The more she obsessed with him, the more he thinks it as in vain. To some extend, Shimamura just “buys” her body. On the other hand, the association with Komako makes him examine himself and find his conscience. When Komako plays music, he know that she is also a valuable person; he is sympathetic to her; he realize that she shall be respected. They have not just physical relationship, but they communicates somehow. Before they finally parts, Shimamura knows that she is a good woman. He is continually in a contradiction between desire and conscience, lies and morals. To conclude, he is not a traditional detestable man who seeks physical pleasure, but just a playboy who is affectionate but irresponsible. The contrast between Shimamura and Komako is very obvious. She is very brave. She pursues love and a better life, while Shimamura feels negative about life.
Another relationship which is noticeable is between Shimamura and Yoko. Komako’s beauty is something real and secular, whereas Yoko is like an angel coming from a fairy tale. She is mysterious and out of ordinary. She does not appear to be sexually appealing. Shimamura mentions her voice many times. She has such a beautiful voice that it strikes one as sad and it seems to come echoing back across the snowy night. The snow world serves as a foil to Yoko’s voice, as if it were from heaven. She also sings. What’s more, Yoko is described as a considerate person who has love for others at heart. She cares for Yokio and is kind to children. Yoko is so pure that Shimamura feels uneasy to go to Komako when Yoko is in the inn. He must have felt a bitter contrast between himself and the chaste girl. The only interaction between him and Yoko happens when Yoko acts as a messenger between Shimamura and Komako. Yoko asks him to treat Komako nicely. Shimumura says that he can do nothing. Then Yoko ask him to bring her to Tokyoto. Strangely, their conversation ends in Yoko asking him to treat Komako nicely and Shimamura answering no. Yoko goes out crying. The conversation is very implicit. Yoko means to test Shimamura, the dandy whom Komako loves so much. Although Yoko is very provocative at that time, Shimamura does not feel any indecent suggestion, as always she is sadly beautiful. In the end, the description of Yoko’s death is very unique. It is not dangerous or horrified. It is like a phantom in a unreal world, falling down softly and freely. As a result, from the beginning to the end, Yoko has the beauty that none of the women in secular world have. Yoko symbolizes the purity that Shimamura wants to pursue.
The third relationship is between Komako and Shimamura. Yokio is Komako’s music teacher’s son. They both have a subtle relationship with Yokio. Komako degrades herself to save Yokio because he is the only person who sees her off when she is sold to Tokyo. Yoko loves Yokio. Komako and Yoko live together. Komako seems to be very indifferent to Yoko. When Yoko begs her to have a last look at Yokio, she refuses. Komako seldom talks about Yoko. She even says that Yoko is always a burden to her. However, at the end of the story, when Yoko falls down from the fire, Komako jumps to her regardless of danger and tries to save her. People say that Komako goes mad. It can be inferred that Komako loves Yoko in a very different way. Yoko care about Komako very much, too. She is the only person who notices that Komako falls in love with the dandy Shimamura and she even try to persuade Shimamura to treat Komako in the same way as she loves him. The two women appreciate and sympathize each other. While Komako represents the secular beauty, Yoko symbolizes the pure and holy beauty.They well complement each other. To sum up, each character’s individuality is fully developed in the three interlocking relationship.
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