The Gate

The Gate describes the world of the humble clerk Sosuke and his wife Oyone, living in quiet obscurity in a house at the bottom of a cliff. Childless, the couple find themselves having to take responsibility for Sosuke's younger brother. Oyone's health begins to fail, and news that Oyone's ex-husband will be visiting near by promotes a sense of crisis in Sosuke and forces him to abandon his life of quiet domesticity. Prized for the beauty of its description of the understated love between Sosuke and Oyone, the novel has remained in many ways mysterious. A new introduction by Damian Flanagan casts fresh insights into its complex symbolism and ideas, establishing The Gate as one of the most profound works of the modern age.