While Murakami's writing is filled with figurative language, I especially noticed his imagery and similes. I know that we talked about this scene last week, but I'm going to bring it up again:
"Each row of cedars bordered on neatly mowed turf, which sloped down in banks dotted with azaleas and hydrangeas and other plants beyond my powers of identification. A flock of starlings rushed, en masse, left and right across the lawn, like the aimless migration of a sand dune." (page 80).
I think that quote speaks for itself. I can honestly picture that image perfectly. Despite the rarity of these beautiful images (as we discussed last week), they are very impressive. As for how that affects the main character, the only conclusion I've made is that we always know when a scene really strikes him, because that is when this imagery pops up. This setting was very different from what he had ever seen before, so it was described in full detail and beauty.
In that same quote was a simile, "A flock of starlings rushed, en masse, left and right across the lawn, like the aimless migration of a sand dune." (page 80). This seems to have a similar affect as the imagery, I can picture those birds perfectly. His similes occur everywhere, and they really do make you think. And they're fun. These similes may show the main character as more of a round character, as they vary from similes that show an image to many other quirky statements.
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These quotes seem to reinforce our idea that he's somewhat obsessed with beauty (think about the ear girl). He doesn't spend much time describing ugly things, does he? Maybe I'm just remembering wrong though...
ReplyDeleteThat's true. He mainly spends time describing beauty. Except I do remember some quote about the building being like rows of tombstones. I'm not quite sure what to make of that, but he definitely didn't consider it pretty.
ReplyDeleteOk so he acknowledges ugly things, but he quite obviously didn't like those apartment buildings. He seems to enjoy nature very much and he spends next to no time describing Tokyo. Maybe this book is supposed to be against human development?
ReplyDeleteIt does seem quite true that he focuses on beauty a lot. He seems to be living in his own little euphorial world amidst all the depression of his life. I can just imagine all his thoughts wandering of to a landscape of rolling hills and meadows filled with vibrantly colored flowers.
ReplyDeleteI really like the first quote that you mentioned in your blog post. Many similes and lots of imagery was used in this portion of the book. Here is another good quote that I found from page 80, "Behind us was the gravel road which we'd come on, trailing away in an all-too-picturesque course of twists and turns to the front gate in the distance." This quote does not outright describe the trees or the road or the gate, yet I can clearly picture this setting in my head. Murakami is a magician of words.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Reed. The thoughts and the scenery seem related somehow. Like the setting reflects the main character's thoughts.
ReplyDeleteAlso, with the quote Reed pointed out with the "twists and turns" portion, could this also be foreshadowing. Not only are there twists and turns in the literal sense, put also in the future of the plot.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think the dude's a fairy, but whatever. :) Anyway, I disagree that the similes and imagery presented are purely a product of the main character's thought. It's not like he's going around thinking up those weird comparisons. Instead, I feel like it is a mechanism utilized by Murakami to make what the main character is perceiving relatable to the audience. I talked about this on Athena's post a bit, but yeah, the similes are not concrete products of the main character.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everyone! Not only is the foreshadowing connected to similes and imagery in a way the moves a person through the descriptions but it is also an important element that improves the writing of the book. Earlier when Rebecca and Athena were referring to beauty in the book I would also have to agree with the main character’s obsession with beauty, also considering the ear girl, yet I also feel that his kind of beauty is different from most people’s interpretation.
ReplyDeleteI think that a part of the similes and descriptions are supposed to give us a glimpse inside the main character's head, but also to make it relatable. I think that this is why Murakami is so talented. He can have the charcter's toughts seem to be his own and also seem to be relatable to the reader.
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