No Longer Human

The protagonist in Osamu Dazai's No Longer Human, portraying himself as a failure, narrates a fairly regular life even though he believes he is incapable of understanding human beings. Oba Yozo's attempts to reconcile himself to the world around him begin in early childhood, continue through high school, where he transforms into a "clown" to disguise his estrangement, and culminate in an adult suicide attempt. Without being emotional, he captures life's inconsequential cruelties as well as ephemeral moments of human connection and affection.