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No Longer Human

By: Osamu Dazai - Read: November 2023 - Rating: 6/10

Dazai's semi-autobiographical novel about alienation and the mask we wear for others.

One of the darkest books I've read; a reflection of Japan's rigid social hierarchies from decades ago that rings true to this day. No Longer Human is a bit of a mistranslation; rather, it is Disqualified From Being a Human. Yozo's (Dazai's) story revolves around this theme of disqualification; unable to understand human interaction, social cues and feelings growing up, he feels he has lost the qualification to even be called a human. A deeply tragic tale of growing up with a mask, playing the clown, spiraling and being involved in a series of tragic relationships to drug addiction; it just does not get better.

No Longer Human is simply a 170-page suicide note allowing you to look into the mind of a troubled author and understand the suffering of an outcast. A masterpiece of suffering and depression literature, but not a headspace I enjoy inhabiting.