孤独に(こどくに)息を引き取り(いきをひきとり)、「近代日本が誕生する過渡期の暗闇」を象徴している

Upset in mind, Hanzo was confined in a barred room at home, and in his tragic imprisonment, passed away in loneliness while recalling the beautiful Kiso mountains of his past. The title 'Before the Dawn' symbolizes the darkness of the transition period as Japan headed toward modernization. Through the failure of a noble intellectual, it accused the absurdity of modern Japan's birth, standing as Toson Shimazaki's supreme masterpiece.