Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to show how Dazai's Hashire Merosu was used as a reading text in a Japanese language class and how the students responded to the text. My intention to use the novel was: 1) to pay close attention to the details as well as the structure of the text, 2) to examine how the narrative voice changes, 3) to get a sense of stylistics, and 4) to elicit students' responses by encouraging them to comment freely on the text.
