I seldom read non-English speaking authors, so I have Carl over at Stainless Steel Droppings to thank for pointing me to this vivid little book, After Dark by Haruki Murakami. After Dark came out in Japan in 2004 and was published in English in 2007.
I wonder how much the translation to English altered Murakami’s prose? What we get is stark. Crisp dialog and vivid details suggests little of Japanese culture. It’s almost as if world culture has all melded together. After Dark had more American pop culture in it than Japanese. Was the cultural specifics converted for American readers, or do people in Japan eat at Denny’s and pick up milk at 7-Elevens?
Murakami plays with narration, telling the reader to pretend to be a movie camera, while weaving in unexplained fantastic elements. The novel was beautiful to listen to, but it caused so many questions to enter my mind while listening. Am I learning about citizens of Tokyo from reading this story? How many of them love American music and old LPs? Is the percentage about equal to American kids who love Anime, or is American pop music very popular in Japan? Is crime part of their culture like it is in ours? Why is the prostitute Chinese? Is Japan becoming an Asian melting pot?
Mari, the 19 year-old main character seems no different from young female characters in American novels. Now these observations are not meant to be critical of Murakami’s writing. What I’m exploring here is how much we’re all alike. One hundred years ago, stories from Japan made their people seem exotic and even alien. This story only confirms the Los Angelization of the world. Is that good or sad?
The story is full of detail observations, like Mari sitting at Denny’s smoking and drinking coffee, or surreal views of her sister, Eri, sleeping like Snow White. All the reviews I’ve read are positive and mesmerized by the writing. I know I was too. The writing is real and meta-real which pushes me to believe that After Dark has something to say, but I’m never sure what.
The story starts with Mari accidentally meeting with Takahashi, a jazz lover and musician late at night, who just happens to know her model beautiful sister. Mari has a mild adventure during the seven hours covered by the novel, and gets a glance at the seamy side of life. It’s not a major story with a gripping plot, but a quiet tale allowing the writer to show off his writing chops.
To be honest, this story left me wanting more. Like I said at the start, I live in the American pop culture and study English lit, so I don’t get far from my own language. I read books like Memoirs of a Geisha to travel to places and times I’ll never get to see on my own. That’s sad, but I try to make do. This book makes me want to know a whole lot more about Tokyo today. I wished my cable company got the Japanese equivalent TV show like our CBS Sunday Morning or The Today Show.
What is the best way to transmit a snapshot of culture from one part of the world to another, while changing languages at the border? Do movies do a better job? Did Priceless give me a good view of life in Paris? How accurate was The Band’s Visit of Israel? Or how does Jane’s Austen teach us about England in Pride and Prejudice?
Am I expecting too much by trying to travel via novels and movies?
Jim
Auxiliary Memory 
“pushes me to believe that After Dark has something to say, but I’m never sure what.” Exactly! And yet there is something so captivating about his writing that I am not bothered by that fact. It is a rare thing for me to find an author that does that in a way that makes me okay with it.
I thought the same thing about translation. I believe the same translator is on all of his books (though I am not sure) and would think that this would hopefully be some indication that there was a good working relationship there and that what we are getting is the closest possible thing to actually being able to read the story in Japanese. From what little I know there does seem to be an obsession with American pop culture in Asian cities and I believe the references are probably not translations but are accurate of what he wrote. Obviously I don’t know that for sure but that is what I suspect.
Have you seen Wong-Kar Wai’s film Chungking Express? Have we had this conversation before? It too has some American pop culture references in it, especially in the second story (the second half of the film). I’d love to know if you’ve seen it to see if you see similarities between it and After Dark. I do, in the way that we are following people around at night mostly. Maybe it is just that the two share a kindred spirit of sorts.
I am glad you enjoyed this book. I certainly would not have taken the plunge if a good friend hadn’t shown such enthusiasm…and I would have really been missing out. I plan to read more of his books as part of Bellezza’s Japanese Reading Challenge as I have certainly become a fan.
I’m not sure how books and movies function as far as giving us an accurate picture of ‘traveling’ there. I certainly do my traveling to those places in the same way. However I know that my favorite films certainly give idealized, idyllic views of these places that honestly may be exactly what I would see as a tourist but are probably not the realities of those who live there. For example Jeunet specifically digitally enhanced scenes in Amelie to present an idealized Paris (digitally removed graphitti, trash, etc.)…all in trying to represent the spirit of the place. I think books and movies can certainly allow us to travel to the spirit, or ‘a’ spirit, of a place even if they are far from what we would see as an objective observer.
And although it can be viewed as sad that we all cannot travel the world over, I certainly enjoy being able to do so via books, films, and television documentaries. When done well they can be pretty satisfying alternatives.