ABSTRACT
In Chapter 5, using Kafka on the Shore, I delve into Murakami’s emphasis on the use of metaphor as a device to build distance through monogatari. In this novel, the protagonist’s avoidance of others goes further and even creates an Other for his exclusive use in his mind, an alter ego described as Crow. I argue that the story describes the process in which a 15-year-old boy learns the productive effects of metaphor in order to deal with his past trauma of losing his mother and build relationships with others.
The novel was written after Murakami conducted research on Aum shinrikyo and his understanding of the cult leader Asahara’s “skilful” creation of narratives to attract young people reflects Murakami’s description of the boy who is expected to learn the function of “good” narratives.
Murakami wrote Kafka on the Shore after he returned to Japan from America after staying there for three years. His growing global popularity and his experience of teaching Japanese literature at universities in America led him to grow his consciousness as a Japanese writer. Through this experience, he developed his interest in employing the effects of distancing himself from Japan, Japanese culture, and Japanese language.
