Work Guide · 2026-05-01 · Reading time ~ 4 min

Sakaguchi Ango's "On Egoism" — A 1940s Essay on Self-Centeredness

Sakaguchi Ango — best known in Korea for <em>Discourse on Decadence</em> — wrote a short essay on egoism. Newly translated on Pagera, it shows the directness for which he became famous.

Pagera Editorial

Sakaguchi Ango (1906-1955) is known in Korea mainly for Discourse on Decadence ("Daraku-ron"). But Ango wrote many essays, and they vary widely in tone. On Egoism is now in Korean on Pagera.

Four essay tones from Ango

The Chatter Contest — roundtable recollection, self-mockery
A Man Named Ōi Hirosuke — character recollection in family dialect
Master Kōdan — first-person formal lecture
On Egoism — flat-tone declarative + satire + direct insight

On Egoism shows Ango's signature satirical move: cite the conventional view, then expose it in the next sentence.

Browse all Ango on Pagera

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