Great figures who went through “Told a lie”

Told a lie

You lied or cheated to get through a moment. Read the life stories of 4 Japanese historical figures who went through something similar.

Figures who went through this

  • Dazai Osamu — The Man Who Pretended to Talk in His Sleep

    A boy who wanted his father's fountain pen could only ask for it by pretending to talk in his sleep. He lied, borrowed money, and even begged a prize committee, "Please give it to me." The embarrassing, hard-to-look-away life of a writer.

  • Fukuzawa Yukichi — The Man Who Pretended to Be Fine

    As a child, he let his head be shaved without crying, because sake was the reward. He grew up resolved never to let joy or anger show, yet to the man who looked after his household accounts and errands, he was someone who let joy and anger show without hiding them. The proud, bluffing life of the man once on Japan's 10,000-yen bill.

  • Koizumi Setsu — The Storyteller Who Never Gave Her Name

    "Looking at a book, no good. It must be only your story, your words, your thoughts." That is what a husband said to his wife when she told him old tales with a book in her hand. Most of the stories in Kwaidan, his book of Japanese ghost stories, were told to him by her. Her name is not on the cover.

  • Yanagiwara Byakuren — The Woman Who Lied All the Time

    She was a poet, the wife of a coal-mine king, and people called her the "Queen of Tsukushi." Years later she said: I could not get through my days unless I was lying all the time. One autumn day at thirty-five, in front of a friend, she began to cry. "I'm thinking of doing something like falling off a cliff."

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