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story of a very young girl and a man with a wife and child. Otoko was a mistress. Oki had had a wife and child when he was in love affair with Otoko. The way he wrote
his novel showed his actual thought and feeling of his relationship with Otoko. He only took advantage from their tragic love story. He wrote the novel without thinking
of Otoko’s feeling. “He had not known Otoko in the full flower of her youthful beauty. She was
sixteen when they parted” Kawabata, 1996:15. To this quotation, theory of direct comment was applied. It mentioned that Otoko got parted from Oki when she was
sixteen years old after Otoko given birth to a baby girl. It was the last time Otoko had a relationship with a man.
2. A Homosexual Person Homosexual is is sexual behavior or sexual relationship between individuals of
the same sex. In the broader sense, it is a sexual attraction toward individuals of the same sex even though there is no overt practices are involved. Otoko shifted from
heterosexual to homosexual at her thirties. Otoko was in relationship with her protegee, a girl named Sakami Keiko.”It seemed that Otoko was living in a guest
house on the grounds of a certain temple, along with a girl who was her protégée” Kawabata, 1996:3. The direct comment of the author clearly showed that Otoko
lived together with protegee who is actually her lover. They never parted since then.
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I want you to paint me. Id be happy to, if I could, Otoko repeated.
Maybe your love has cooled — or are you afraid of me? Keikos voice had an edge to it. A man would be delighted to paint me. Even in the nude.
Otoko seemed unperturbed. If thats how you feel, suppose I try. Im so glad
But a nude wont do. A nude painted by a woman never turns out very well. Not in my old-fashioned style, anyway.
When I paint my self-portrait Ill include you in the picture, said Keiko insinuatingly.
What kind of picture would that be? Keiko giggled mysteriously. Dont worry. If youre going to paint me, mine
can be abstract. No one will know. Kawabata, 1996: 31.
Theory of coversation with others was applied to the quotation. Keiko related Otoko’s love for her with her willingness to paint her. Keiko insisted Otoko to paint
her by making an anology that a man would absolutely be delighted to paint her even in nude. Hearing Keiko’s words about she being painted nude by a man, Otoko
agreed to paint her. Even though there was explained that Otoko seemed unperturbed to accept Keiko’s wishes, the way she instantly agreed after Keiko talked about being
painted nude by a man showed her jealousy. She did not want Keiko being painted nude by a man. Those facts shows that Otoko and Keiko had a relationship as lovers.
The conversation also showed that Otoko had a secret relationship with Keiko which was hidden from anyone. It was seen through their conversation about Keiko’s
desire to be painted nude by Otoko, she told Otoko that if she painted herself and Otoko, she would make it abstact so that no one would know. In this case, abstract
painting was a metaphor for their relationship. Abstract means an expression of ideas and emotions by using elements such as colors and line without attempting to create a
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realistic picture. Abstract painting represented unspecific people, objects or actions. Therefore, Keiko’s intention to paint Otoko and herself in abstract style was a
metaphor for their secret relationship. According to Coleman’s theory of homosexuality, Otoko and Keiko were classified as secret homosexual because they
hide their relationship. People would see them only as a teacher and student who lived together. There were just a few people who might know about their relationship.
Omiyo had been a maid at the temple for the past six years, and she also took care of Otokos quarters. A hard worker, she did everything from housecleaning
and laundry to washing dishes, even preparing occasional meals. Although Otoko liked to cook and was good at it, she would become too engrossed in
painting. Keiko herself had a surprising knack for creating the subtle flavors of Kyoto cuisine, but she was inclined to be unreliable. Thus they often made do
with simple dishes turned out by Omiyo. Since there were two other women at the temple — the masters young bride and his mother — Omiyo was free to
spend most of her time taking care of Otokos needs. She was in her early fifties, small and pudgy, her wrists and ankles so plump the deep folds of flesh
looked as if they had been tied with a string Kawabata, 1996:62-63.
The personal description showed that Omiyo was the one who might know about Otoko’s and Keiko’s relationship. Since Omiyo had been a maid at the temple
for the past six years and also had spent most of her time taking care of Otoko’s needs, there was a possibility that she might know about their homosexual
relationship because Otoko and Keiko were inseparable. As Coleman stated in his theory, there was only a few people knew about the identity of the secret homosexual.
In this story, Otoko was classified as a secret homosexual and the only people who knew about her homosexulaity were Omiyo and Keiko.
Looking at the portrait had brought a flood of memories of her mother. Then Keiko had called to her, and Otoko was reminded once again of the old portraits
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of the boy saint. Some of the figures looked like pretty little girls or beautiful young maidens, in the elegant, refined manner of Buddhist art but also with a
certain voluptuousness. They could be taken as symbols of the homosexual love at medieval monasteries where women were forbidden, of the yearning for
handsome boys who could be mistaken for beautiful young girls. Perhaps that was why the saints portraits had come to mind as soon as she thought of
painting Keiko Kawabata, 1996:39.
The quotations was about Otoko’s thoughts, therefore theory of thoughts could be applied. Her thoughts showed the reason why she would paint Keiko in Buddhist
style in the manner of the paintings of the boy saint. It was a purely classical Portrait of a Holy Virgin. As it has been described, the painting of the boy saint was taken as
symbols of homosexual love at medieval monsteries. It came to Otoko’s mind as she thought about painting Keiko. From those explanation, it was clearly seen that they
had relationship as lover through they way Otoko would paint Keiko. Later when had it been? — Otoko somehow began toying with her at night,
pressing her lips on Keikos eyelids, or nibbling at her sensitive ears until she squirmed and moaned. That led Otoko on. Kawabata, 1996: 74.
Theory of direct comment of the author was applied to this quotation. It showed that Otoko and Keiko did sexual intercourse. Their relationship showed the quality of
relationship as lover. They did not only live together, share affection toward each other but also they had sexual interests toward each other and did sexual activity as
any other straight-couple. Otoko was led on by Keiko’s squirm and moan as the impact of her caresses to Keiko. Otoko’s sexual pattern has shifted from heterosexual
to homosexual, because she was in reationship with Keiko and also practiced sexual intercourse with her.
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B. The Causal Factors of Otoko’s Homosexuality
As already described above in the second chapter about the theories that is used in this study, some of the the theories are to reveal the factors which caused Otoko’s
homosexuality. This part explains about events which happened in Otoko’s life thus became the causal factors of her homosexuality. Coleman stated in his theory that
there are three possible causal factors which may contribute the development of homosexuality. Therefore, according to his theory, the causal factor of Otoko’s
homosexuality is psychosocial factor. Psychosocial factor which Otoko faced in her life were negative conditioning of heterosexual behavior and homosexual experience
and its positive reinforcement. Otoko’s homosexuality is the result of a variety of circumstances during her
childhood and adolescence. Her sexual pattern switches from heterosexual in her childhood to homosexual in her adulthood. From what has been explained in the first
problem formulation, Otoko was a heterosexual person when she was in her childhood. She had negative conditioning of heterosexual behavior when she was in
relationship with Oki. She had a relationship with Mr. Oki Toshio when she was fifteen years old. Their relationship lasted only for a year after Otoko gave birth to a
baby girl. Those things which happened durring her relationship with Oki lead her to trauma, therefore, here the theory of trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder was
used. The other causal factor of her homosexuality is homosexual experience and its positive reinforcement. She got it when she met her student, Keiko, and then had
relationship with her. Her homosexual experience with Keiko went along with its
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positive reinforcement. Otoko met several needs she did not get while she was in relationship with Oki, therefore theory of motivation is used.
1. Negative conditioning of heterosexual behavior As Coleman stated in his theory, an individual may swift from heterosexual to
homosexual because of bad experiences of heterosexual relationship which are causing severe stress thus lead trauma. That statement is also supported by Carroll
who stated that one of causation of homosexuality is persistent failure during adolescence to establish satisfactory social and emotional heterosexual relationship.
Otoko had bad experiences of heterosexual relationship with Mr. Oki Toshio. It started when Otoko had a relationship with Mr. Oki Toshio who was twice her
age when she was only fiftteen years old. Otoko had a heterosexual relationship with Mr. Oki Tosiho at her most innocent age. All she knew was just she loved him so
much and so did him. In the days when he was secretly meeting Otoko, she once startled him by
saying: Youre the kind whos always worrying about what other people think, arent you? You ought to be bolder. Kawabata, 1996:18.
Reffering to what has been stated by Judith Herman about traumatic system that “psychological trauma is an affiliation of the powerless” Herman,1992: 33. As has
been explained in the first problem formulation, Otoko was a mistress. Her love story with Oki was not other than just an affair. Otoko could not always see him because he
had a wife and a son. She could only see him an a secretly meeting without his wife’s awareness. Being a mistress was not a pleasant thing to live with for Otoko. She
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knew exactly that Oki’s love was not just for her, but there was somebody else, his wife and family. She sacrified her feeling only to be with the man she loved.
Therefore, this was one of the factors which contributed to Otoko’s later trauma because Otoko was powerless to against unpleasing things during her relationship
with Oki. I wonder if you couldnt have broken up Mr. Okis marriage.
But I was only a schoolgirl... and they had a child. Id have done it.
You dont know how strong a family can be. Stronger than art?
Well... Otoko tilted her head, looking a little sad. In those days I didn’t think about art Kawabata, 1996:35.
As the only family Otoko had was just her mother, it made her too weak to face the reality. She thought that she was not able to change anything about her status
being a mistress because she thought she could not do anything againts Oki’s family. She felt so powerless over it. The only thing she thought was just a family was really
strong that could not be broken up and she should accept anything she had that time. As has been explained previously that trauma was an affiliation of the powerless,
there for it played big role in her trauma. Here also was mentioned that Otoko felt powerless because at that time she did
not think about art. Meaning to say that art symbolized power. Otoko declared herself as a painter years after she parted with Oki. As Coleman stated, traumatic
experiences can be one of the aspects that influence an individual to use defense mechanism. It was designed to deal with inner hurt, anxiety, and self-devaluation. It
could be concluded that art and being a painter was a defense mechanism which
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Otoko used. It was called sublimation. Based on Freud’s theory of sublimation, Otoko redirected her emotions into an object which was serve as a symbolic
subtitute. It was a constructive activity. Art was her symbolic subtitute of redirecting her emotion of the traumatic experiences, while painting was the constructive
activity that she did to redirecting those emotions. At sixteen, in the seventh month of carrying his child, Otoko had given birth.
The baby was a girl. Nothing could be done to save it, and Otoko never saw the baby. When it died, the doctor advised against letting her know too soon.
Mr. Oki, I want you to tell her, Otokos mother had said. Im apt to burst out crying, the poor thing having to go through all this, when shes still such a
child. Kawabata, 1996:6.
The quotation above also proves her being powerless in her relationship with Oki. It was the beginning of Otoko’s bad experience in her heterosexual relationship
with Mr. Oki. From her mother’s conversation with Oki, It showed that what Otoko endured at that age would be a really horrible traumatic experience for Otoko in the
future. Otoko was pregnant when she was only sixteen years old and gave birth to a baby girl after seven months of carrying it, but unfortunately it died. Otoko should go
through this when shen was still such a child. The fact that, “Otoko had given birth in a dingy little clinic on the outskirts of Tokyo. Oki felt a sharp pang at the thought that
the baby’s life might have been saved if it had been cared for in a good hospital” Kawabata, 1996:7 was really pathetic. Oki did whatever he wanted without thinking
about Otoko. He brought her to a little clinic which was the last thing he should do, because actually he could bring her to a good hospital. Otoko and her mother had no
power to ask Oki for a better hospital.
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Oki remembered that two months after the death of her baby Otoko took an overdose of sleeping medicine. Had she also remembered? He had rushed to her
side as soon as he learned of it. Her mothers efforts to get Otoko to leave him had brought on the suicide attempt, but she sent for him nevertheless. Oki
stayed at their house to help take care of her. Hour after hour he massaged her thighs, swollen and hard from massive injections. Her mother went in and out
of the kitchen bringing hot steamed towels. Otoko lay nude under a light kimono. Still only sixteen, she had very slender thighs, and the injections made
them swell up grotesquely Kawabata,1996:12.
Otoko took an overdose of sleeping medicine two months after she lost her baby. The fact that Otoko lost her baby and had never seen it and her mother’s efforts
to get her to leave Oki had given her a massive pain which resulted a severe stress thus brought her on the suicide attempt. She could not endure it all emotionally and
physically that made her could not do anything but laid nude under a light kimono and got a massive injections that made her very slender thighs swollen. Reffering to
Judith Herman’s theory, the death of her baby had overwhelmed her ordinary system of care that gave her sense of control, connection and meaning, thus brought her to
suicide attempt. He stayed by Otokos side for three days without sleeping, until she finally
opened her eyes. She writhed and moaned in pain, pawing frantically at herself. Then her glaring eyes seemed to fix on him. No, no Go away Kawabata,
1996:12.
The stress Otoko faced had made her being unconscious for a several days. When she finally opened her eyes, she writhed and moaned in pain, pawing
fractically at herself. She gave an unpredictable reaction when she saw Oki. She did not want to see him and asked him to go away. It showed that even though Otoko was
so madly in love with Oki, the fact that she lost her baby had hurt her really bad.
