Murakami Wanes in `After Dark
By Seo Dong-shin
Staff Reporter
For many South Koreans who went to university during the 1990s, Haruki Murakami's books and their characters are stamped in their memories.
His signature book ``Norwegian Wood'' particularly struck a deep chord among the 20- and 30-somethings here, capturing something of a zeitgeist of the '90s with its melancholic sentiment. Translated into Korean with the title ``Age of Loss,'' it sold over 700,000 copies. A sizeable, dedicated Murakami following has risen since then, paving the way for more contemporary Japanese literature to be introduced here.
The trademark characteristics of his books seem to work well across the East and West: a short and simple hard-boiled style that captures signs of the abyss lurking behind the ordinary and trivial, usually based on young protagonists' growing-up.
The 57-year-old Japanese writer's books have been translated into several languages including English and German. Last year, his name appeared as a candidate for the Nobel Literature Prize on online betting sites. Last month, when his 2005 book ``After Dark'' was published in English (translated from Japanese by Jay Rubin; Knopf (U.S.), Harvill Secker (U.K.)), most major English-language media gave the book long, serious reviews, reflecting the writer's growing global popularity.
The book is based on one night in an amusement district in Tokyo, between midnight and dawn.
At the center of the story is Mari Asai, a 19-year-old university student whose elder sister is a ``real cover girl'' fashion model, Eri Asai. Eri continuously languishes in a sleep that is not normal in that it is ``too pure, too perfect.'' In contrast, Mari remains awake in an all-night restaurant, reading, smoking and drinking coffee.
There she meets Takahashi, an introspective yet affable amateur jazz trombonist and law student. When Mari was in high school, the two were once dragged on a double date by Eri and her then boyfriend, who was a friend of Takahashi.
The chapters chronologically depict the hours where ``we,'' an ``imaginary camera,'' follows the dialogue of Mari and Takahashi. Alternately, ``we,'' a ``pure viewpoint,'' also observes the mysterious sleeping state of Eri and her surroundings. At one point a masked man appears to intently watch the sleeping Eri by her bedside. Another time, Eri finds herself awake on the ``other side'' of a TV screen in her room.
Readers also get a taste of the underworld system in Tokyo, as Mari, a Chinese language major, is asked by Kaoru, the manager of a ``love hotel'' and friend of Takahashi, to translate Chinese. A young Chinese prostitute who cannot speak Japanese is mugged and beaten in Kaoru's hotel by her client, a Japanese salaryman. The workings of a dangerous Chinese gang, and the violence of the seemingly ordinary salaryman reveal a menacing netherworld.
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But ``After Dark,'' which marked Murakami's 25th year as a writer, comes across rather dull compared to his other signature works such as ``The Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World'' or ``The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle.''
The slow-paced novel deftly delivers a sense of alienation and hidden longings of the characters, as well as the strange interconnectedness between them. But one cannot help but feel that something is missing and out of balance.
On the one hand, Murakami doesn't give readers the slightest hint as to the mysteries surrounding Eri's death-like sleep or what they imply. On the other hand, the writer is blatant about what he wants to say, such as when Mari recounts to Takahashi her once close experience with her now-alienated elder sister. Or when Takahashi describes his feeling of hopelessness and deep terror while observing a trial; he feels that a giant octopus-like creature _ sometimes taking on the shape of ``the nation,'' sometimes ``the law,'' and sometimes more difficult and dangerous ones _ is sucking every human being into darkness.
It is typical for Murakami to weave an enchanting story that combines fantasy and reality. Only, this time the connection between the two worlds is not as seamless as before.
The book is, in part, stylish and even poetic. But his long-time fans will likely find ``After Dark'' a little disappointing.