Analysis of Japanese Societal Ills and Their Role in Kafka on the Shore

Analysis, Pages 7 (1720 words)

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Japanese society is a multifaceted amalgamation of centuries-old honored traditions and modern democratic ideals. Older traditions such as religious philosophies centered around nature or the unwritten honor code loyally followed by Japanese citizens are juxtaposed with the growing influence of Western popular culture and ideologies of independence. The post-war occupation of Japan by American forces, as well as Japan’s economic boom in the 1980s, furthered Japanese progress towards modernization. However, despite the growth of globalization, traditional aspects of Japanese culture continue to persist in Japanese society, primarily due to a decline in birth rate and the high population of elderly Japanese citizens born during, and immediately after, the second World War.

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Among the most critical parts of modern Japanese culture are the traditions that persist: politeness, respect for elders and authority figures, and maintaining favorable appearances in public. Younger generations are more distressed by these holdovers than older generations, often seeing them as unnecessary to their day to day life, if not actively harmful.

Deviating from society’s expectations leads to ostracization, which causes many Japanese people to hide who they really are in order to conform to norms, gain acceptance from peers and approval from societal elders, and avoid exclusion. In Haruki Murakami’s novel Kafka on the Shore, Murakami uses literary devices such as setting and characters to expose the flaws of modern Japanese culture’s prioritization of respect for authority figures and assimilation to societal norms over the wellness of individuals. This demonstrates how one person’s individuality cannot be suppressed by society as a whole.

Kafka on the Shore has many settings; the two settings in which the characters spend the most time are the Komura Memorial Library and Oshima’s cabin in the mountains. Both are relatively isolated places that allow the characters to reflect on themselves and their roles in the world. This parallels the country of Japan as a whole: an isolated island with a rich culture that values deep introspection, philosophical teachings, and strong leadership. The seclusion provided by the library and the cabin in the mountains further emphasizes the importance of personal space to individuals looking to further develop a sense of self. In modern urban public spaces, individuals are subjected to the judgement of others, and therefore focus on conforming with the masses around them instead of feeling comfortable being themselves or exploring who they are. Kafka’s self-described isolation “in the darkness, in the middle of the night, surrounded by a deep forest” illustrates how surrounding oneself with nature is a traditional way of promoting philosophical thought that helps with finding one’s identity; in other words, it is a method of finding peace and contentment with oneself without prioritizing the expectations of others (Murakami 274).

The forest’s isolation and the library’s privacy both allow for introspection and time alone, something difficult to come by in modern times. This creates a stark contrast with the urban spaces that the characters pass through, such as Nakano Ward in Tokyo or the city of Takamatsu. The cities are all constantly active, never leaving one with time to rest or think introspectively as the library and forest do. This is most exemplified by the time Hoshino spends in Takamatsu, when 'he left the sushi bar and happened to run across a pachinko place . . . went into a discount store in the shopping district . . . stopped at a nearby bakery . . . went to a bank . . . went inside [a cafe]” (Murakami 238). His entire day is spent flitting from one place to another without time to think carefully about himself, reminiscent of the lives that a majority of the Japanese people live: busy, tight schedules where one must constantly be working and has little time to even think about their personal wellness, much less actively take care of it. Through setting, Murakami exposes that the city, though just as vast as the forest in the mountains and more open than the library, is ultimately far more constricting to the characters than either of those areas. In this way he is able to show that the societal expectations that come with modern urban life must be changed so that people can comfortably focus on themselves rather than on the way they are perceived in public.

Murakami further exposes Japanese society’s flawed focus on authority figures and conformity by revealing the different kinds of problems that can arise from it. In the case of teenagers such as Kafka, development and personal wellness is stunted due to emotional instability. When teenagers feel like “. . . [their] identity's an orbit that [they’ve] strayed far away from”, it is because they haven’t been able to properly develop a sense of self, which hinders healthy emotional development. (Murakami 145). This symbolizes the emptiness felt throughout the novel by Kafka and by other modern Japanese teenagers like him in real life. Society prioritizes veneration of authority figures and conformity to standards over individuality; because of this, teenagers are unable to discover themselves and find comfort in their identities, thereby harming their mental and emotional health. The problem with authority and society concealing people’s true desires is not limited to teenagers--the personal well-being of adults is also shirked.

For example, though not tight-lipped about the fact that “Biologically and legally [he is] undeniably female . . . [His] body is physically female, but . . . emotionally [he lives] as a man”, Oshima’s comfort with his identity as a gay, intersex, transgender man is obscured by the fact that he keeps his history a secret from others in order to maintain normal appearances (Murakami 130). Despite his disgust with “. . . people who have no imagination . . . callous people who throw a lot of empty words at you, trying to force you to do what you don't want to”, he is subconsciously hiding who he is in order to conform, just as society and the unimaginative people he hates most want him to (Murakami 132). Another side to the bitterness that younger Japanese people hold towards authority figures can be seen through Hoshino’s conclusion that 'Cops . . . are just gangsters who get paid by the state” (Murakami 303). This shows the enmity people have for the artificial necessity to respect and obey authority.

However, this resentment is not limited to law enforcement: as is the case with a majority of working-age Japanese citizens, Hoshino reveals the monotony he felt at the job where he’d been “‘. . . working [his] tail off . . . Always did what they told [him] to do, never a complaint’” for years (Murakami 237). Hoshino’s deference to authority by working an ordinary job for years in an effort to conform led to his eventual contraction of spinal issues; the personal well-being of working-age citizens is usually sacrificed in order to meet their superior’s goals. Hoshino’s back problems due to overwork represents the struggle that Japanese people must physically endure at the behest of older authority figures who defend the dysfunctional societal expectation of blind obedience. Murakami’s critique of the large role played by authority figures in Japanese society is also displayed in his representation of older generations, such as when Nakata showed confusion over Johnnie Walker’s assessment that the Governor was “. . . going make Nakata a soldier and order [him] to kill people? . . . Why in the world would the Governor do that?” (Murakami 103). This is representative of the Imperial wartime norm in Japanese society that authority must absolutely be trusted, and even worshipped.

The Governor is a distant, omnipresent figure, almost like a god in Nakata’s eyes-- similar to how Emperor Hirohito was seen by Japanese citizens at the time. As is expected for someone of his age, Nakata cannot fathom viewing the authority figure whom he reveres so deeply in a negative light. This reverence is further explored when “[Nakata] looked like he was still in shock. His eyes were blank, and [his teacher didn’t] think he could hear what [she] said” in the incident at Rice Bowl Hill (Murakami 72). Nakata’s shock encapsulates an emotional and mental breakdown. It is the loss of a child’s trust in authority to properly nurture and not abuse him in a scenario where the light both literally and metaphorically dissipates from his eyes. However, despite this, Nakata relies on and trusts authority figures almost to a fault as an elderly disabled man, a sign of the cognitive dissonance that he and many others in his generation experience. This is representative of the way the generation born immediately post-World War II maintain their ideals in the present day despite the trauma and disillusionment they grew up with. Rather than acknowledge that they were abandoned by those whom they were told they could trust, they believe that the authority figures they revere are good and just, worthy of the respect given to them. In this way, Murakami illustrates the dichotomy between younger and older generations of Japanese people as well as how they are affected physically and mentally by societal norms. Through these four characters, Murakami exposes the different kinds of problems that arise from the prioritization of conformity and respect for authority figures and subtly calls for a change in this aspect of Japanese society.

Haruki Murakami’s novel Kafka on the Shore is a novel whose meaning as a whole is defined by its astute social commentary on the ills of Japanese society. Murakami dissects the way Japan is harming all of its citizens by lingering onto the past ideal of prioritizing respect of authority figures, forcing citizens to maintain false appearances to appear favorable to others, and not allowing citizens to take time to discover themselves and positively maintain their personal well-being. Murakami takes into consideration Japanese history and culture from the middle of World War II to the early 21st century and uses both setting and characters to expose the problems that have become deeply entrenched in Japanese society over the past sixty years. In doing so, he also explores the effects that these problems have on Japanese people from different generations. It is through this exposure that Murakami is also able to make a quiet yet defined call to action to Japanese citizens to change current flawed societal norms in order to allow for more social autonomy of its citizens, thereby improving their lives-- for society as a whole cannot suppress the individuality of its citizens.