Abstract

CHAVES, José Ricardo. Mishima, Homosexuality and Aestheticism. Acta poét [online]. 2013, vol.34, n.2, pp.157-169. ISSN 2448-735X.

This essay addresses the relationship between beauty, homosexuality and aesthetic thought in the work of Yukio Mishima. The argument embarks from the analysis of three works by the Japanese author: Confessions of a Mask, The Forbidden Colour and The Gold Pavillion. This allows for contrasting visions of the European and Japanese worlds on the subject of sexuality. It also posits similarities between The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde and the novel The Forbidden Colour. Finally, we undertake a reading of the place of beauty, from the point of view of aesthetic values, in the novel The Golden Pavilion.

Keywords : Mishima; homosexuality; aesthetics; beauty; Japanese gay culture.