L’importanza delle linee, della luce e del colore in Atatakai yume (Un dolce sogno) di Natsume Sōseki

International critics have already pointed out the influence of European and Japanese painting in Natsume Sōseki’s novels. However, little has been written on his experimental use of painting composition techniques in his writing. In this regard, "Atatakai Yume", one of the short stories included in "Eijitsu shōhin" (Spring Miscellany, 1909), is a noteworthy work. The episode can be read as a triptych in which the narrator describes the somber streets of London, the colorful interior of Her Majesty’s Theatre and a scene of the Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Through the careful juxtaposition of ascending and descending lines, warm and cool colors, brightness and darkness, London’s streets are transformed in dark and gloomy valleys, and the theatre in a welcoming and warm place, where the narrator can find a temporary relief from the oppression of the metropolis.