A LOVE WORTH DYING FOR?: ABE SADA
Abe Sada was a geisha and prostitute, who is regarded as one of the most high-profile criminals of the 20th century in Japan. Murdering her lover through the act of erotic asphyxiation and making off with his castrated member, Abe’s case was and continues to be sensationalized by various media outlets. The most notable case of such being the erotic art film, In the Realm of the Senses which has gone on to gain a multitude of accolades from numerous film societies.
In the Realm of the Senses (1976) Directed by Nagisa Oshima
Hailing from Tokyo’s Kanda Neighbourhood, Abe was raised in an upper-middle-class family of tatami makers. She was born the seventh of eight children yet only four of those eight survived. Of these surviving children, Abe was the youngest and was doted on by her mother. Despite the communal perception of Abe’s parents being fairly normal and hardworking, the same could not be said about her older siblings, two of whom were notorious for their sexually deviant behaviour.
In an attempt to shelter Abe from these behaviours she was enrolled in lessons of singing and shamisen, a stringed instrument played mostly by geishas. Geishas at the time were considered celebrities, inspiring Abe to place importance on lessons over academic schooling, and to adopt a similar makeup style. As family problems increased, Abe was often left alone and spent much time out of her house with similarly independent teenagers. Unfortunately, this resulted in traumatic events in her own life, which in turn caused her to rebel against her parents. Despite their initial attempts to support Abe, she was eventually sold by them to a geisha house in hopes of instilling stability in her life. Although this may seem to have been in line with Abe’s prior dreams and was testified as such by her elder sister, Abe claimed that she was made to become a geisha as punishment for her promiscuity.
The Brothel where Abe worked, at present in Tokyo.
During her time in the house, Abe was unable to break free from the status of low-ranking geisha, her main duties consisting of the sexual satisfaction of guests. As a result of this, she eventually contracted syphilis, which then lead to her decision to become a full-out prostitute since the latter paid better.
Abe Sada, in 1935 (Estimated to be age 30)
Abe Sada in 1950 (Estimated to be in her 40s)
On numerous occasions, Abe attempted to leave behind her work in the sex industry, yet she always returned due to the incentive of high payment. It was during one of these Instances that she came across Kichizo Ishida; through employment at his restaurant. Although at the time of their meeting, Ishida and Abe were respectively involved with other people, it wasn’t long before the two began their obsessive affair. Throughout the course of a month, the two were inseparable, with steamy encounters that at times lasted for days. Despite Abe having worked as a prostitute for quite some time before encountering Ishida, In her pre-conviction statement, she states “...There had never been a man in my life like Ishida. There were men I liked, and with whom I slept without accepting money, but none made me feel the way I did toward him."
News article detailing Abe’s crime. Kicihizo Ishida, pictured on bottom left.
Abe and Ishida’s relationship dramatized in In The Realm of the Senses
Location where the murder took place.
Shortly after this honeymoon phase, things began to take a turn in their relationship, due to Ishida’s unwillingness to leave his wife. This led Abe to begin a descent into drunken debauchery and be plagued by erratic thoughts. After a short period, the two rekindled their relationship, yet something changed. Seemingly unable to forgive Ishida’s rejection, Abe threatened him with a knife; inspired by a play she attended. Yet this only seemed to amuse Ishida, and so the two embarked on a new violent chapter of their sexual relationship in which knife-play and asphyxiation were common occurrences; until one day Abe decided to take it a step further.
(various)
Abe Sada in the process of arrest and in police custody.
On the morning of May 18th,1936 Abe wrapped her obi-sash around Ishida’s neck and strangled him to death; later telling the police "After I had killed Ishida I felt totally at ease, as though a heavy burden had been lifted from my shoulders, and I felt a sense of clarity." After laying with his lifeless body for a few hours, she severed his genitalia and kept it with her, in her kimono until her arrest.
[paraphrase] Abe, age 63 explains that when she left the scene of the crime, she wanted to take something with that would remind her of him. The only thing she could do was take the thing that brought her the most memories, and that was his penis. He was the person that she loved the most from the ore of her heart. She then apologizes and leaves.
A woman called Sada (1975)
Despite her conviction and her personal desire for the death penalty, Abe served only five years for her crime.
She capitalized on the occurrence by taking part in various interviews and she went on to release a memoir detailing her experience. The story became a national and international sensation and decades later continues to draw interest; interpreted by countless artists, filmmakers, novelists,
ero-guro mangakas and philosophers.
Abe Sada’s memoir detailing the crime.
Manga inspired by the Abe Sada incident