Power and Choice

About 200 pages in, I already have much to say about 1Q84. It follows two story lines, one focusing on Aomame, a reserved yet passionate woman in her twenties who carries heavy secrets inside herself. The second story is that of Tengo, a cautious man who has found himself in a dangerous plan he can no longer get out of. There is also Fuka-Eri, an extremely damaged seventeen year old who seems to be the key to understanding the "world that bears a question."

The first thing I noticed was the powerlessness that permeates many of the characters' lives. Both Aomame and Tengo had tough childhoods that took away their opportunities to be normal children. They were forced to follow the narrow lives of their parents, in both cases being ordered to go door-to-door harassing strangers on weekends. And though they eventually get away from their parents at very early ages, the suffocating feeling they had to deal with as children never leaves either Aomame or Tengo. Aomame finds that even as an adult many of her life-style choices are still influenced by the way her parents lived, even though she hated their extreme frugality. In contrast to this powerlessness, the choices that Tengo and Aomame make independently speak a lot about their character. Aomame tends to resort to extremes, murdering men she deems evil and contemptible and having a wild night once every month. With Tengo, though, the ability to decide things for himself is not so strong; even his decision to re-write Fuka-Eri's story seems to be a result of his boss's intense persuasion. He comes to the decision as if impelled by something greater than himself.

Then there is the topic of love. 1Q84 is my kind of love story! It wasn't until yesterday, when I was pretty far in, that I learned that Aomame has been in love with Tengo since they were in fourth-grade together. She has not seen him in years and has spoken to him only once, in elementary school. Still, Aomame waits, knowing he is the one person in the world she is in love with. No excess clichés, no acting silly. Just a beautiful belief that "if you can love someone with your whole heart, even one person, then there's salvation in life."


A good friend recommended an article on Murakami, but I am waiting until I finish the novel myself to read it; I want the thoughts I post to be as unadulterated as possible! Now, I'm off to read! Happy Halloween everyone! I recommend Kwaidan: Japanese Ghost Stories to anyone interested in some Halloween reading :)