Alienation and After Dark

ABSTRACT

Haruki Murakami confronts the readers of After Dark with the extreme alienation and anomie of a Tokyo city street at night. This backdrop echoes the physical representation of the distance that lies between each of the characters throughout the story and their own separation from both themselves and others. The book illuminates the limitations of both language and interpersonal relationships, and posits the question of whether or not the characters can form meaningful connections after prolonged periods of extreme alienation. Through the interactions of the characters, both their tentative approaches toward self-disclosure and rapprochement and their acts of violence that attempt to reinforce the distance between themselves and others, Murakami has created an image of a society that has itself lost a sense of meaning and is groping for a new identity

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. Murakami, 148.

2. “Love Hotel” is a sub-type of hotels that are common in Japan. These are typically used for sexual trysts and emphasize privacy, often staff members and guest are never visible to each other and entrances are partially hidden to allow persons to enter and exit without being observed. Rooms can be rented by the hour or by the night.

3. Otaku culture is used to describe the fan community in Japan, particularly that of popular media such as anime or manga. Long associated with mental instability as well as social disfunction, this subculture has become increasingly more socially acceptable.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Barbara Greene

Barbara Greene is an Assistant Professor in Tokyo International University's Institute for International Strategy. Her research focuses on modern Japanese literature and popular media.