Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami -- Book Review

Norwegian Wood

By Haruki Murakami.  New York: Vintage Books/Random House. 2000

  

This is an analysis that will reveal details and the ending which you may not wish to know if you haven't read the book.  If that is the case, read it first, and then come back to this review.  I do recommend reading it, but read it with fresh eyes and then look at my review and see if the book impressed you in the same way. 

Haruki Murakami is a very gifted writer who has extraordinary acuity for observing and describing the small details of life in both the physical surroundings and in people. Mannerisms, dress, personal style, and subtleties in behavior are sensitively and effectively used to create vivid portrayals of his characters. I would compare him to an artist who can craft the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle in the most exquisite detail, but when he assembles them, the picture that results doesn’t quite make sense.  His ability to create atmosphere and mood in the setting gives his writing a strong feeling of authenticity; however, on the other side I often found his characters unconvincing in the way their personalities were drawn as well as in some of their behavior.

The protagonist, Watanabe, I did not like. He is probably the most well drawn character in the book, but he is a rather colorless, bland personality lacking in drive and direction. He has numerous attractive women who practically throw themselves at him, but he has a hard time bringing himself to engage them sexually, even though they make their willingness obvious, if not blatant. However, he is able to come forth sexually when he accompanies his friend Nagasawa, a Don Juan type character, on pick up excursions to the Shinjuku area of Tokyo. Nagasawa, however, is not well drawn and in my opinion Murakami does not understand this type of person. These sex adventures with Nagasawa don’t really make sense and don’t seem to fit with Watanabe’s rather listless personality.

The character of Naoko is developed in some detail, though not in as much detail as I would like. She is a troubled young woman who appears to be on her way to schizophrenia. Murakami portrays her as a very gentle, almost angelic figure. However, this very placid, pastoral picture of Naoko is betrayed by the very striking symptom of painful sexual intercourse lacking a physical cause. This indicates intense ambivalence toward her partners and perhaps a rejection of sexuality altogether.  I would expect to see other manifestations of her inner turmoil in her behavior and in her relationships, but we don’t see it. She comes across as a sweetheart, but my feeling is that she should be more of a bitch. She sort of reminds me of The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath. However, the way Murakami draws her is not convincing.

Reiko is the most appealing character in the book, but her life revolves around an incident that does not make sense, namely, a seduction attempt by a thirteen year old piano student (female), which Reiko violently rejects with a hard slap in the face after it had progressed to the point where they are both naked in her bed. I felt my penis stirring as I read it, but I don’t really buy this tale as Reiko tells it. It’s not that children do not attempt to seduce adults. They do it all the time. But Reiko presents herself as being helplessly swept away by the girl’s advances. I don’t think so.  I think there was a strong mutual attraction, which Reiko admits, but there must have been precursors to it that convinced the girl that Reiko could be had. The fact that she almost succeeded illustrates Reiko’s cooperation and probable encouragement. The girl’s aggressiveness, that approximates the determination of an adult man, is not credible, nor is Reiko’s violent rejection of the girl. What’s more likely is that Reiko encouraged the girl and participated willingly in the sex. I don’t know why Murakami shies away from it. He doesn’t seem to be comfortable with it.  Or maybe the publisher thought it wouldn't sell.  He just can’t accept that a thirteen year old girl and a thirty one year old woman could be sexually attracted to each other.  But this incident kicks off a series of events that leads to Reiko’s divorce and her eventual admission to this rehab institution where she meets Naoko. This one abortive seduction becomes the pivotal moment in her life. Again I do not find this scenario convincing. There are also strong sexual undercurrents between Reiko and Naoko that Murakami does not develop, but which under these circumstances I think would have been very natural to carry forward.  Generally, I didn’t like any of the characters portrayed in this book, with the exception of Reiko, and none of the characters were developed in a way that made their behavior seem consistent and comprehensible in light of their personalities.  Reiko’s development and struggles as a musician did sound very informed and authentic. Throughout the book there are references to music, both classical and popular, which do convince me that the author knows something about music and musicians.

There is a lot of death and a lot of grief in this book. There are four major suicides and none of them really make sense. They appear to come out of nowhere, but this is not credible. If more information were available their possibility could have been foreseen.  Naoko’s should have been foreseeable, especially by Reiko. If their relationship had had the intimacy that was portrayed, Reiko surely should have known of its possibility. 

The book ends on a decisively positive note in the private funeral for Naoko shared by Reiko and Watanabe. It consisted of a long, sensuous evening of music and drinking and impassioned sex. Sex counteracts death. Sex repudiates death. Sex assuages grief.  In spending the night in bed in unrestrained sex Reiko and Watanabe affirm their engagement in the human world and their commitment to life. They repudiate Naoko’s choice of death.  They enable themselves to move forward with decision and purpose and even enthusiasm. It is a good message. It is echoed in Midori’s private funeral for her deceased father, where she stands before his photograph at the family altar stark naked displaying her private parts. “See, Daddy, these are my tits; this is my cunt. I came from your sperm, so why shouldn’t you see me this way.”  She, too, affirms her sexuality as a bulwark against grief and death.

I think this book would appeal to young people because it is beautifully written and deals with the issues they are interested in: sex, relationships, finding ones way, and suicide. Psychologically I’m not sure they will learn much from it, but if they take away this affirmation of sexuality as the crux of human engagement in life and as a force for the healing of grief and as a repudiation of death, then I think it will leave them with a positive impact.