In the beginning of the story, Mishima peculiarly notifies the reader of the death of Shinji and Reiko along with a brief summary of the political and military problems Japan was experiencing at that time. These "governmental" problems, which were cited on the story, were "when right-wing officers killed several moderate officials in an effort to establish a more militant Japan" (593).

In chapter two, Mishima still uses the "omniscient narration,' but establishes a closer relationship with the characters. For instance, in the first paragraph, last sentence, Mishima beautifully constructs the sentence so that we are able to picture Reiko. There are also some small but finely drawn details elsewhere in the chapter...the lieutenant's 'mud-splashed uniform'; the dagger that Reiko's mother gave her that contained significant, almost foreshadowing meaning. We also learn some about their home, for example in the last paragraph in this same chapter, Mishima is trying to establish how loyal they were to the gods and to the Imperial Majesties; almost everything seemed to be picture perfect, as if the gods granted this harmony. This paragraph echoes a sort of picture of a calm before the storm.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1386
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)