" I am a Cat" by Natsume Soseki

 "I am a Cat" by Natsume Soseki

Introduction:

            Natsume Soseki is a Japanese Novelist. His best-known works are Kokoro and I am a Cat. The narrator, the nameless cat comes to live in the house of a teacher, where it gains a greater knowledge and reality of human beings.

Introduction to “I am a Cat”

            The prose “I am a Cat” is a satire on human pretensions and hypocrisy. The cat is removed from its birth place by a student, who throws him in a bamboo bush. After gaining consciousness, the cat realizes that it has entered the human world, City. The cat, out of hunger, roams the place and enters a school master’s estate. The daughters of master torture the cat by holding it upside down and covering its head with a cover. Thus, the cat narrates how humans differ from animals in terms of moral values.

Cat’s First impression of a human face:

“The face which should have been covered with hair was slippery thing similar to what I now know to be a tea kettle”

            The nameless cat, born in a gloomy, damp place, is taken by a student. The cat states that the student is the most ferocious of the human race. The student carries the cat in the palm and walks around. Upon closer examination of the human face, the cat finds it strangely familiar. It compares the face of the student with that of a tea kettle. The cat describes the nose as something protruding at the center of a face with two holes, to a great extent. The smoke emitted by the students chokes the cat.

Master and the Cat:

“Fate is strange; if that hole had not been there, I might have starved to death by the roadside.”

            The cat being driven by hunger and cold, sneaks into a cozy estate. The first person the cat meets is maid Osan. She grabs it by the neck and throws the cat out. So, the cat states that Maid Osan is much worse than the student.  The master of the house grants permission and lets the cat live in his place. The master of the house is a school teacher and appears to be very studious. But the cat finds out that he is not that hardworking, as he takes a nap in his study room.

“The fact that they haven’t given me a name even as of today goes to show how much they care for me.”

            He is a man of a weak stomach and inactive. He is nicknamed "Mr. Mensroom" because he starts chanting whenever he enters the toilet.  He is a great consumer of food. He complains a lot about his profession to his guests. He never gives up on anything so easily. He contributes his poems and haiku to various magazines. He also tried writing English poetry, composing music, but all went in vain. In the mornings, when the master reads the newspaper, that cat sits on his lap, and while he takes a nap, the cat sits on his back.

Cat- Shiro:

“Shiro kept telling me there was nothing as inconsiderate as humans”

            Shiro lives in the home of a soldier and Mi-ke lives in the home of the lawyer. Four cute kittens were born to Shiro. But the student who lives in the family threw the kittens in the pond. Shiro says that for cats to fulfil parental affection and to have a happy life, the human race should be overthrown.

Cat- Model to the Master:

“I’m not one those you’d call perfect or beautiful; my back, my fur, or even my face cannot be considered superior in any way to those of other cats”

            One payday, the Master comes to the home carrying a big bundle of watercolors, brushes, and drawing paper. He attempts to paint, as per the advice of his friend, who quotes that Andrea del Sarto said that to draw, one must interpret nature in its original form. So, the Master decides to use the cat as the model. The cat looks like a Persian cat, a light gray with a shade of yellow colour and a few spots. But the painting of the Master turned out to be so ugly, and in the drawing, the cat had no eyes. The cat stayed without moving. But the cat moved to answer nature’s call. The master, unable to tolerate the movement, shouted at the cat, “You Fool!”

Cat’s caustic criticism:

   “Humans depend on their great strength to take what is legally ours away from us and think it right”

The cat is more optimistic than Shiro and Mi-ke because it believes that:

1.     The human race will not prosper forever

2.      Human beings are selfish and act according to their whims

3.      Humans did not understand the right of possession of others

4.     Children are terribly spoiled

Conclusion:

“I could endure their being so self-willed but I’ve heard many other complaints regarding mankind’s lack of virtue, and they are much worse.”

            The unnamed cat with a sly, earthly humor and keen observation reveals the trials and tribulations of his master and family. The cat confronts many humans and concludes that human beings are so self-centered and selfish.