Starting with Realizing Fun Things Through Water, two things stood out to me. Firstly, true family vs. "forced family." Secondly, water is repeatedly brought up throughout the story - it begins with it, and it also ends with it. As the story progresses, it is clear that Hatsuoka was never super interested in being with Hakozaki. She admits herself that she did not really feel the same way towards him, but she ended up going out with him regardless. This begins a running theme across the stories we read of characters being caught in unfulfilling relationships. It is clear that her sister, Hinata, represents her true family. When Hakozaki comes along, in a way, he becomes her "forced family," if we take into consideration the pressure of marriage, having a family, and having kids. Further supporting that point, we see that Hatsuoka is heartbroken when her sister disappears. Hakozaki becomes increasingly controlling, and he attempts to get her to leave the apartment that she once shared with her sister. She refuses to, showing that Hinata was always her true family - not one that is incentivized. As for water, its function is a little less clear to me, but it seemingly serves as some kind of protective force for Hatsuoka. For example, she shares her private, innermost thoughts with water - thoughts which she is unable to share with any sentient being. Furthermore, to calm herself, at one point in the story, she submerges herself in the tub to clear her head. Lastly, when we finally hear from Hinata at the end, she is in a seemingly foreign land with only a well. On top of that, she is on her way to catch a boat. Now that water is referenced through Hinata, it seems to connect them in some way. After all, earlier in the story, she says, "There are some things you can only say to the sea."
Speaking of water, Sea Horse was probably my favorite story of the lot. Again, our main character is caught in a string of unfulfilling relationships where she is mistreated, ignored, abused, and more - unfulfilling relationships which society coerces. She longs for the sea, and in this case, the sea seems to represent a place of total freedom and autonomy. However, she is stuck on land, suffering a dehumanizing fate - "He placed a metal ring around my neck and linked it to a long chain bolted to a stake." However, things were not always like this - at a younger age, our protagonist appeared to be a much different person, free from the demands of society. She says about her 4th child (the daughter who resembles her) - "There was also something vast and boundless about her. While years and years of training had tamed my spirit, hers was like mine had once been." I really loved this sentence, and it made me think of John Locke's blank slate - you start as a blank slate, or as I like to say, an empty attic. As you progress through time, the attic, or mind, fills up with experiences, and as the attic fills, you are molded into an amalgamation of experiences, experiences which cannot be unlearned. In other words, your once free spirit is tamed, and you are restricted into lines of thinking that are pulled from experiences. In this case, her spirit has been tamed, but since her daughter is so young, she recognizes that freedom that she once had. As for the carried in the crate metaphor, that was quite unsettling for me. It showed a complete lack of autonomy for our protagonist, and it was a poignant representation of how dehumanized some women have been throughout history AND still are - some have tragically existed, as Hiromi Kawakami says, to do men's bidding.
It has been quite a long time since I have visited Convenience Store Woman, so it was nice to revisit it through the context of the other stories we are reading. I suppose little has changed - Shihara is as insufferable as ever. However, reading it within the context of the other stories, it did make me realize something - this story almost feels like a parody of the previously discussed stories. For example, both of those stories confront the idea of being coerced into marrying someone for the sake of society. In that context, the relationship is very unfulfilling, and the couple often have little to no chemistry. This story comes across as a funny, extreme example of what happens when you are forced into those previously discussed relationships - although both are ostracized by society, and although both experience parallel pressures that men and women face in society, they COULD NOT be more different. Keiko is timely, organized, well-mannered, and clean, whereas Shihara is simply the opposite of all of those things - I mean even she is repulsed by him. However, they get together due to societal benefits, and they both benefit from this unhinged "relationship." Of course, there are much larger themes at play within the story, but this stood out to me in this instance.
I will go ahead and bring Picnic up now as it seems to fall in line with the theme of unfulfilling relationships. The first half of the story progressed quite rationally, and at first, the couple really did seem normal. However, our protagonist eventually reveals that he believes his wife is a witch - a witch who cannot remember his name. Although they did seem well-suited at first, cracks begin to form when we hear the protagonist say, "we are happy!" Because after this, Kyoko responds - "That's good." It almost seems as if she did not get a say in the decision, and it similarly feels like they are "playing" relationship rather than having a true, deep bond. She claims that she cannot see him "well" in the house, and I struggle to interpret what this could mean. My inclination is to think that she finds it strange when they are under the same roof - as in, she finds it strange to be in a relationship with him like this (as if it is not natural love but more artificial). Our narrator expresses, "No doubt the thing she has found most surprising about married life is the fact that my existence is unpleasant and incomprehensible to her. I am a contamination..." Again, an unfulfilling, seemingly forced relationship.
I do not have strong thoughts on Dissecting Misogyny A Live Demo!, but I found one of the quotes to the audience members to be interesting - "You know I really wouldn't be inflicting this on you if it wasn't necessary..." For some reason, dissecting the body violently in front of the audience needs to happen. Once the bones have been removed, our narrator says, "And that concludes my live demonstration! So now you see what misogyny looks like!" After this, she informs the audience that the knives are selling for $99 + tax, encouraging the audience to purchase the knives and perhaps do their own "dissections." I do not have strong thoughts, but it seems to encourage the women in the audience to take control of their lives by purchasing their own knives, which will be used by them to dissect misogyny on their own.
I also really enjoyed Tomo-Chan's Happiness. As well known as Banana Yoshimoto is, I have not read much of her work. Tomo-chan has experienced a lot of trauma in her life - sexually violated at 16, her father's absence in her life and infidelity, the death of her mother, etc. Due to her trauma in Hokkaido, she forms a disdain for it. This was my favorite part of the story - how memory associates with locations, and as humans, we form a liking or disliking for a place based on the memories that stem from said place rather than its physical properties. She hates Hokkaido because of her father, but regarding Misawa-san who she loves, she says, "If I could go to Hokkaido with you, I know I'd fall in love with it." I think that is a really poetic sentiment, and I loved that. The ending was my favorite part, as even after the death of her mother, Tomo-chan does not feel alone. Tomo-chan feels watched over, as the narrator expresses, "Tomo-chan was safely held. By the velvety glow of the night, the touch of the wind as it drifts slowly past, the blinking of the stars, the voices of the insects... Somewhere deep down, Tomo-chan knew this all along. And so she was never really alone." I thought these ending remarks were beautiful. Even if there is no one physically around her, the world/nature all around her is alive, and she is a breathing part of it. As long as there is wind, insects, or stars, she cannot truly be alone
No comments:
Post a Comment