Schoolgirl

I've never felt so seen before. A good read for when you're not feeling like reading or doing anything in particular.

The story follows the character (a schoolgirl) as she narrates her depressing life. The main topic of this short novel is depression but the novel itself is not depressing, in my opinion. In fact, I'm feeling relaxed after reading it.

Schoolgirl by Dazai Osamu captures the fleeting inner world of a young girl on the cusp of womanhood, unfolding in a single day through her stream of consciousness. The book paints a vivid portrait of adolescence—its quiet anxieties, small joys, and moments of existential reflection. The protagonist navigates the contradictions of her emotions, swinging between a desire to hold onto childhood’s innocence and the inevitable pull towards the complexities of adulthood. We are drawn into her raw, unfiltered thoughts, revealing her struggles with loneliness, self-doubt, and the search for identity.

Through the protagonist's introspection, Schoolgirl touches on the universal experience of growing up—the tension between yearning for freedom and fearing the unknown. Beneath the mundane details of daily life lies a profound exploration of the self, where every fleeting thought and moment of silence holds weight. The story becomes a quiet, poignant reflection on the inner turbulence that defines the transition from childhood to maturity.

“In time, when we became adults, we might look back on this pain and loneliness as a funny thing, perfectly ordinary, but—but how were we expected to get by, to get through this interminable period of time until that point when we were adults?” A slow burn read. But towards the end, schoolgirl’s random musings become awfully relatable. I think some words weren’t the most appropriate choice, but it’s probably just the translation.

felt like reading my own diary when i was a schoolgirl. “Really, I don't know which is the true me. What ever will I do when there aren't any more books to read, or when I can't find another role model to imitate? Probably just wither away, helpless and sniveling profusely.” each and every line struck my heart. it was marvelous, absolutely beautiful. “I always want everyone to think I am a good girl.” i still do, unfortunately. also, these lines were so painfully beautiful. “You wait and wait for happiness, and when finally you can't bear it any longer, you rush out of the house, only to hear later that a marvelous happiness arrived the following day at the home you had abandoned, and now it was too late. Sometimes happiness arrives one night too late. Happiness ... ” i wish i had read this when i was still a schoolgirl.

My first Dazai reading experience and it certainly won't be my last.  Schoolgirl is a unique piece of work, you spend an entire day in the mind of a young girl, experiencing every thought that passes through her head. Despite being a bit abstract I enjoyed reading it, the writing felt really authentic to what a young girl thinks like and about at that age. The random bursts of melancholy, the slight self-importance, the endless hopes for the future, all very real for a young girl. Lots of interesting themes were explored despite its brief nature, I really enjoyed seeing the narrator examine her relationship with grief and self-image. Another standout was watching the narrator speak about her mother and watching her think about how she should treat her.  Overall a really interesting piece of writing

This was surprisingly amazing...

this is and always will be a favorite of mine it's so well written and so realistic,i couldn't give it less than 5 stars rate because i really enjoy reading it and of course i had to disregard a thing or two it wasn't that flashy so i guess it's alright

literally a day in my life fr

✦ hope is not lost, but it WILL soon run out ✦ short but far from a light read ✦ only the 2nd book i've read of dazai's but i've alr found a new fave author in him ✦ he just gets it, unfortunately, i think he got it too much

the very last sentence...

she's just like me im gonna 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 the line where she says  "the sly ability to steal someone else's experience and recreate it as if it were my own is the only real talent i possess" got me so bad tears sprung out

he hates women

“As I begin to realize from various experiences in my life just how enormous our instincts are and how powerless we are against the force that drives us, sometimes I think I might lose my mind” Excerpt From “Schoolgirl” Osamu Dazai she’s just a girl

oh, dazai. why are you so depressing yet so relatable sometimes? anyway, i liked this one a lot more than no longer human. he captures the essence of loneliness and its fluctuations quite well.

i honestly loved this novella. such a short and easy read, i could of read in one sitting. basically a stream of consciousness of a single day of high school girl's life. and oh boy is it quite realistic. she is just so perfectly all over the place, all the time, very relatable. found myself within many of these ideas and thoughts of hers. quite the lighthearted introspective read and not hard to get through at all. the language is very playful and easygoing despite the many different depressing ideas expressed throughout the story. i can see why this is a classic.

3.5- I would’ve made this book my personality if I read it in jr high

honestly the character was so relatable that it hurt. Literally all of the things I've thought about have been mentioned in this book, one one hand, it makes me feel not so alone but on the other it just makes me feel basic(?). Definitely buying a paperback if i can find it. "In time, when we became adults, we might look back on this pain and loneliness as a funny thing, perfectly ordinary, but—but how were we expected to get by, to get through this interminable period of time until that point when we were adults? " another one "I had been staring like this for a very long time, and would be staring from now on, just like this, sitting here in the doorway to the kitchen, in the same pose, thinking the same thing, looking at the trees out front. It felt as if the past, the present, and the future had collapsed into one single instant."

this book was relatable and raw, quite a refreshing read

4.25

sometimes this made me feel horribly seen and understood. i would read it again and again and find even more pieces of writing that mess with my brain. i really need to get my hands of a physical copy of this so i can write all over it