作品Free Graded Reading
ビルディングBuilding
Birudingu
by 夢野 久作 · Yumeno Kyūsaku
Alone in a building, he hears his own breathing from the next room.
About this story
About this storyA man in a dark building hears an exact copy of his own breathing through the wall.
Read a sample in Japanese
Read a sample in JapaneseSource
SourceThis text comes from Aozora Bunko (青空文庫), the volunteer-run library of Japanese writing that is out of copyright. See this work on Aozora Bunko
Base edition (底本): 「夢野久作全集3」ちくま文庫、筑摩書房
1992（平成4）年8月24日第1刷発行
Typed in by 柴田卓治. Proofread by しず.
Yomimaru has not changed the spelling or the wording.
The furigana are Yomimaru's. In the app it is split into 2 parts.
What you'll learn
What you'll learnA man lies in the night duty room of a dark building, extremely tired and almost asleep. He hears his own breathing from the next room, then musters the courage to investigate. Running down the dark hallway, he collides with something and faints, hearing the building laugh.
Key vocabulary
Key vocabulary| 弦月 (げんげつ) | crescent moon |
|---|---|
| 宿直室 (しゅくちょくしつ) | night duty room |
| 素跣足 (すはだし) | barefoot |
| 暗黒 (あんこく) | total darkness |
| 抛物線 (ほうぶつせん) | parabola |
Grammar points you'll meet
Grammar points you'll meet- ～つつある N1Indicates an action or state is currently in progress, often in a gradual or ongoing manner.無限の時空の中に無窮の抛物線を描いて落下しつつある。
- ～かける N4Indicates an action is about to start or has started but not yet completed.タッタ一人でスヤスヤと眠りかけている。
- ～ように (figurative) N4Used to indicate a simile or appearance, meaning 'as if' or 'like'.その決心に蹴飛ばされたように私は、素跣足のまま寝台を飛び降りた。
- ～としたら N3Means 'if it were the case that' or 'supposing', used to hypothesize.もし隣の室を覗いた時に、私と同じ私がスヤスヤと寝ていたとしたら、それはドンナに恐ろしい事だろう。
Cultural notes
Cultural notes- 分身 (Doppelgänger in Japanese Literature)The motif of encountering a double of oneself is a common theme in Japanese horror and surrealist literature, often representing psychological fragmentation or the uncanny.
Try a comprehension question
Try a comprehension questionWhat does the narrator hear from the next room?
- Someone crying
- His own breathing
- A knock on the wall
- The building creaking
Sensei's reading tip
Sensei's reading tipLook for repeated onomatopoeia like 'スヤスヤ' and 'グングン' to understand the rhythm and mood.
Topics & grammar
Topics & grammar
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