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Cover of 文鳥 (Bunchō)

Upper intermediate · JLPT N2

文鳥Bunchō — A Java Sparrow for the Study

by Natsume Sōseki (夏目漱石, 1867–1916)

  • JLPT N2
  • 10,502 characters
  • 8 parts
  • about 88 minutes

Bunchō is a short, quiet first-person sketch by Natsume Sōseki, first published in 1908. A busy writer who has just moved to Waseda lets his young friend Miekichi talk him into keeping a white Java sparrow. Almost nothing dramatic happens. The narrator watches the bird peck at millet, listens to its 'chiyo, chiyo' call over the scratch of his pen, fumbles with seed and water, and drifts into memories of a woman from his past. The tone is dry and self-mocking on the surface, with a tenderness underneath that he never quite admits to. The bird's small, precise movements are described with great care, and the narrator's own carelessness sits quietly beside them. For a learner, the reward is a compact, carefully observed story with a limited cast and setting, so vocabulary repeats often. The challenges are the older kanji spellings, long descriptive sentences, the gap between Miekichi's polite speech and the narrator's gruff replies, and flashbacks that slip in without much warning.

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Contents

  1. A Bird Promised, Then DeliveredSoon after the narrator moves to Waseda in October, his friend Miekichi urges him to keep a Java sparrow and buy a cage, and he readily hands over a five-yen note. Weeks pass, autumn turns to frost, Miekichi visits often without mentioning the bird, and the narrator forgets all about it. Then one early winter evening Miekichi bursts in with Toyotaka, carrying cages and a large box.
  2. The Cage Arrives, and a Late MorningMiekichi and Toyotaka bring a lacquered cage, a bathing cage, a box, millet and dishes, and Miekichi lectures the narrator on how to look after the white Java sparrow. Pressed into it, the narrator reluctantly agrees. The next morning he oversleeps, finally brings the cage into the light past eight, and the bird looks at him for the first time.
  3. Feeding the New BirdThe narrator sets the cage on its box and admires the Java sparrow's delicate feet and quick movements. Following Miekichi's fussy instructions, he clumsily puts in the seed and water, frightening the bird and coming to dislike his own large hand. Later, as he sits stuck at his writing desk, the bird calls out 'chiyo, chiyo', just as Miekichi had promised it would.
  4. Feeding, Watering and a MemoryThe narrator crouches by the cage and watches the Java sparrow peck at its millet, marvelling at how light the bird is, how still the seed dish stays, and the tiny, rapid sound of its eating. The next morning, when the bird blinks and tucks in its neck to look at him, he remembers a beautiful woman he once teased with the tassel of her sash, two or three days after her marriage was arranged. He then carefully reaches into the cage, blows away the husks and changes the very cold water.
  5. Frosty Mornings and a One-Legged BirdThe narrator writes all day to the sound of his pen and the bird's calls. On frosty mornings he lingers in bed, and a puff of cigarette smoke briefly conjures the face of a woman from his past, while the household puts the cage out and changes the feed and water. Later, working in his cold study, he finds the charcoal scuttle empty. When his clapping goes unheard, he gets up and opens the door, and sees the bird sitting unusually still on its perch, balanced on a single leg.
  6. A Bird That Will Not Be TamedThe narrator watches his sparrow stand on one leg and then drowsily put out the other, something Miekichi never mentioned. As his novel keeps him busy he leaves much of the bird's care to the household, and his attempts to hand-feed it fail. One day he hears a rustling and finds the bird bathing in its tiny water dish, so he moves it to a spare cage and showers it with a watering can. Its blinking reminds him of a woman he once teased with a reflected spring sunbeam.
  7. Neglect, a Fallen Cage, and SilenceAs the days pass the Java sparrow sings well, but the narrator often neglects its food and forgets to put the cage away at night. One night the cage is found knocked off its box, which he blames on a cat. The bird sings again the next day, but then stops, grows weak and ruffled, and the narrator is kept away for two days by Miekichi's troubling affair of a girl's marriage. When he comes home he finds the sparrow lying dead on the floor of its cage.
  8. Death and Burial of the SparrowThe narrator finds the Java sparrow dead in its cage, with its food and water gone. He throws the body down before the young maid, sends Miekichi a bitter postcard blaming the household's cruelty, and the children bury the bird in the back garden. The next morning he finds Fudeko's little sign on the grave, and Miekichi's reply offers only a polite word of regret.

Before you read

  • The narrator calls himself 自分, not 私 or 僕. Read 自分 as 'I' throughout. Learn the bird-keeping words early, because they recur in almost every part: 籠 (cage), 粟 (millet), 餌 (feed), 水入れ／餌壺 (water and seed dishes), 止まり木 (perch), 縁側 (veranda), and 火鉢／炭取 (brazier, charcoal scuttle).
  • Expect older spellings: 云う for 言う, 這入る for 入る, 易える for 替える. The words are still familiar; only the kanji differ. Read them aloud and they will usually click.
  • Dialogue sets the two men's voices apart. Miekichi speaks politely and a little fussily (〜なくっちゃいけません, 〜ておやんなさい), while the narrator answers curtly in old-fashioned male speech (〜たまえ, 〜かね). Who sounds like whom often tells you who is speaking when the text omits it.
  • Many long descriptive sentences hinge on a few patterns. 〜たまま means 'while still ...', 〜と見えて means 'apparently / it seems that ...', 〜や否や means 'no sooner ... than', and 〜てある describes a resulting state. Find these first, then break the sentence at them.
  • Memories of the woman (Parts 4–6) begin abruptly, usually right after the bird blinks or a puff of smoke appears. When the scene suddenly seems to change, check for a time cue such as 昔 or a shift into reminiscence before assuming you have misread.

Words to know

The most useful words from the notes across the story.

WordMeaningJLPT
霜しもfrostN3
伽藍がらんlarge temple hall; (here) a vast, empty roomBuddhist term; related to がらんとした 'empty, deserted'.—
粟あわfoxtail millet (bird seed)—
帯上げおびあげobi-age, a silk scarf tucked along the top of a kimono sashdictionary form: 帯揚げThere is no English equivalent; it is a decorative cloth that supports the sash's bow.—
濁ってにごるto become cloudy, muddydictionary form: 濁るN2
縁側えんがわveranda; wooden corridor along the outside of a Japanese houseHere closed off with glass doors, so it catches the sun.N1
華奢きゃしゃdelicate, slender, fragileA na-adjective, often used of thin limbs or fine objects.N1
行水ぎょうずいa bath in a tub of waterUsed here for the bird's bath. For people it means a quick wash in a basin.—
受合うけあうto undertake, to take responsibility fordictionary form: 受け合うHere written without okurigana. It can also mean 'to guarantee'.—
餌壺えつぼseed dish, feeding pot (for a bird)餌 (えさ) means animal feed; here it combines as え-.—
這入るはいるto go in, to enterOld spelling of 入る.N5
端書はがきpostcardOlder spelling; today it is usually written 葉書.N5
寝坊ねぼうlate riser; sleeping in寝坊する = to oversleep.N4
淋しいさびしいlonely, forlornLiterary kanji variant of 寂しい.N4
粗末そまつplain, crude, cheaply madeAlso used humbly: 粗末な物ですが ('it's nothing much, but...').N3

Plot summary

Show the full summary (contains spoilers)

In October the narrator moves to Waseda. Miekichi urges him to keep a Java sparrow, and he hands over five yen, then forgets about it. In early winter Miekichi and Toyotaka arrive with a white bird, cages, millet and instructions. The narrator grows fond of the bird. He admires its feet, its eating and its calls, and it reminds him of a woman he once teased. Absorbed in writing his novel, he leaves its care to the household and often forgets it himself. One night the cage is knocked over, probably by a cat. The bird weakens, and while Miekichi's affair over a girl's marriage keeps the narrator away for two days, it dies without food or water. He throws the body down before the maid and sends Miekichi a bitter postcard. The children bury the bird, and Fudeko writes a sign for the grave. Miekichi replies with only a polite word of regret.

About the author

Natsume Sōseki (1867–1916) is one of the most important novelists of modern Japan. He studied English literature at Tokyo Imperial University and later spent time studying in London on a government scholarship. After teaching English, he became famous with 吾輩は猫である (I Am a Cat) and 坊っちゃん (Botchan). He then left academia to write fiction as a staff writer for the Asahi Shimbun, which serialised many of his works, including こころ (Kokoro). His portrait appeared on the Japanese 1000-yen note for many years.

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