The Founder of the Shibuya Family

Raised in the fierce devotion of his widowed mother, Masataka expects talent, family connections and good looks to carry him toward honor. Yet his first teaching appointment takes him far from the comforts of Tokyo, into a provincial school whose unfamiliar speech and ordinary scrutiny unsettle him.

Marriage to the beautiful Nobuko seems to promise a new beginning. Fatherhood and the prospect of study abroad awaken a more generous ambition, but disappointment exposes the fragility of his confidence. Suspicion reaches into the closest relationships, and hope itself becomes something he fears.

Miyamoto Yuriko follows a life across years of retreat and resentment, examining the forces of family affection, social indifference and personal weakness. Her images of greenhouses, traps, sunlight and stagnant rooms make an inward struggle sharply visible.