The cursed diary——A study on Tanizaki's "The Key"

This thesis mainly aims to investigate dramatic elements in “The Key” (Published in "Central public opinion", 1956), written by Junichiro, Tanizaki (1886-1965) in his later years. According to Professor Donald Keene's introduction, European critics regard this novel as the greatest masterpiece of the Japanese Literature. However, when it was published, the explicit sexual depiction has caused the great repercussions of the literary circles.

First, I would like to introduce the historical background of this novel, and examine the connection between this text and the experience of author’s high blood pressure. Then, I will analyze the peculiar style of mixed use of the katakana and the hiragana in writing, and re-examine its dairy form. In Chapter 2, I would approach the complicated network of relationship between the characters. Chapter 3 will deal with the dramatic elements in “The Key”, such as the acting of the husband and wife both pretending unaware of each other’s peeking at their own diary, the setting of the limited entrance of roles, the use of time and space as on the stage, the emphasis of the lighting, and the relation between the dominator /dominated, those who see and to be seen. All of the mentioned above reveals Tanizaki, as a fanatic admirer of Oscar Wilde in his youth, once again in this novel, practices what Wilde preaches, “Life imitates art.” In the end, the wife murdered her husband as a realization of what is written in the diary. In the last part of my dissertation, I will focus on how the fiction takes on the reality.

Finally, I would end up with a discussion of the comic elements in the story and an analysis of the issues on sex, diet, life and death as well as diary writing in hopes of manifesting the author’s affirmative attitude towards life.