A Personal Matter
A Personal Matter by Kenzaburō Ōe, published by Grove Press in 1969, is a reissue of a significant work in contemporary literature. This novel explores the profound and challenging theme of a parent’s response to the birth of a child with disabilities. The protagonist, Bird, a 27-year-old man grappling with antisocial tendencies, faces a crisis that forces him to confront his past and the implications of his choices regarding his newborn child.
Readers will find a deep examination of family life and relationships as Bird navigates his emotional turmoil and moral dilemmas. The narrative delves into the complexities of marriage and long-term relationships, revealing the impact of personal crises on familial bonds. Through Bird’s journey, the novel presents an honest portrayal of his struggles, making it a notable exploration of human experience and self-deception. This edition contains 165 pages and is available in English.
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Oe’s most important novel, A Personal Matter, has been called by The New York Times “close to a perfect novel.” In A Personal Matter, Oe has chosen a difficult, complex though universal subject: how does one face and react to the birth of an abnormal child? Bird, the protagonist, is a young man of 27 with antisocial tendencies who more than once in his life, when confronted with a critical problem, has “cast himself adrift on a sea of whisky like a besotted Robinson Crusoe.” But he has never faced a crisis as personal or grave as the prospect of life imprisonment in the cage of his newborn infant-monster. Should he keep it? Dare he kill it? Before he makes his final decision, Bird’s entire past seems to rise up before him, revealing itself to be a nightmare of self-deceit. The relentless honesty with which Oe portrays his hero — or antihero — makes Bird one of the most unforgettable characters in recent fiction.
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