Satire in Natsume Soseki's novel "I Am a Cat"

Natsume Sōseki is still widely considered one of the founding fathers of modern Japanese literature. His first novel, Wagahai wa Neko de Aru, or “I am a cat", became not only an example of brilliant social critique but also paved the way for the development of modern comic literature in Japan. This paper aims to fill the gap in the research on Sōseki’s works in Russia and the international research on his early novels. By analysing the original text of “I am a cat” and examining the specifics of its style and humour, this paper will expand on such topics as the development of the comic genre in Japan and the state of satire in its public and literary scene. Commented translations of a number of his writings, which centre on his assessment of his favourite Western authors and his perspective on comic literature, will be available in this study.