The Sea of Fertility

Japanese: 豊饒の海 - ほうじょうのうみ

A full-length novel by Yukio Mishima. It consists of four parts and was serialized in the magazine Shincho from September 1965 to January 1971. The final installment was handed over to the editorial department on the day the author committed suicide. The book was published by Shinchosha in three parts: Part 1 Spring Snow, Part 2 Galloping Horse (both published in 1969), Part 3 Temple of Dawn (1970), and Part 4 Decay of Heavenly Beings (1971). All four parts are in the form of a story of reincarnation through reincarnation, and Part 1 depicts the tragic love of the protagonist Matsueda Kiyoaki, and represents the aesthetic ideal of "tawayameburi."

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

三島由紀夫の長編小説。全4部から成り，1965年(昭和40)9月から71年1月まで《新潮》に連載。最終回は作者の自決の日に編集部に渡された。単行本は第1部《春の雪》，第2部《奔馬》(以上1969)，第3部《暁の寺》(1970)，第4部《天人五衰》(1971)に分けて新潮社刊。4部を通じて輪廻転生（りんねてんしよう）による生れ変りの物語のかたちをとり，第1部は主人公松枝清顕の悲恋をえがき美的理念としては〈たわやめぶり〉をあらわす。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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