Thirst for Love Themes & Social Concerns

Preview of Thirst for Love Summary:

In spite of the fact that Mishima associated with Japan's wealthy and titled people, particularly when he was a student, he seems to have held them in contempt. His presentation of the old man in this book — a company president now retired as a farmer — shines with that contempt. To some extent his attitude toward Japanese women was similarly unfriendly. In this work, therefore, he indulges in some sharp social satire of the men and women of station in Japanese society.

The rather ignorant young man in the story, with his wholesome, earthbound values, seems to come off much better, particularly when he takes part in a wild country festival, an event in Japanese culture that Mishima always treated with reverence.

The principal theme of the novel is expressed in the ironic title. The love the woman endures from her fatherin-law is...