Oral Discussion

Through the interactive oral, my understanding of Japanese culture and the behavior of the characters became better. In turn, this understanding shed light on the significance of the sexual and violent scenes in Kafka on the Shore, and now I see these scenes through a more intricate and meaningful lens.

During the discussion of differences in Japanese traditional culture and western culture, it was mentioned that our society is very technological based, logic and reason based. People are always in a rush, and never take time to stop and smell the roses. It became obvious to me that Nakata represents a polar opposite of western culture, as he lives a very simple, quiet, slow life. In turn, this means that there is a representation of something more complex than logic and reason in the book. Perhaps with a more simple and slower life, one could look beyond logic, and grasp a more obscured or supernatural understanding of the world

Keeping this in mind, I began to make connections with the supernatural and the sexual and violent scenes in the book. As mentioned during the discussion, the sexual and violent scenes are very unrealistic: and unexpected hand job, sexual relations with an older woman, and a man ripping cats hearts out and eating them. The scenarios Kafka and Nakata are exposed to obscure their thought process, forcing the two characters to abandon reason, and comprehend something greater than it. Of course, this ties into the acceptance of the obscure or supernatural, which is a recurring theme in the book, and even a part of Japanese culture.

The concept of time in the book gained importance in my view during the discussion. While reading, I noticed a recurring theme in the book. The characters would describe time with different speeds at different times, whether it was slowing down when Kafka was at the cabin, or when Hoshino felt time altered when he was with nakata.