Murakami Haruki: Wind/Pinball

“There is no such thing as perfect writing, just as there is no such thing as perfect desperation.”

In 1978 Murakami, well into his thirties, managed a jazz bar in Tokyo, and being an author was a notion far removed from his mind. Yet, one day, following a sort of heavenly illumination, he began writing – in his own words, 'on the kitchen table', at night or anytime he could manage. The result: two little gems, Hear the Wind Sing and Pinball.

While the two short novels are the author's debut works, up until now they had never been published outside of Japan, following Murakami's own desires. They are his debut works, the novels that allowed him to first express himself and his worldview through the written word. Appropriately, they are both life stories, chronicles of their character's personal evolution.

The two short novels narrate the lives of two young men: a restless student who dreams of becoming an author, and his friend (nicknamed Rat), a cynical loner disillusioned with life.

It's impossible not to notice the similarities between the student and Murakami himself, both set on a journey made out of untold effort and painful discoveries. So, Hear the Wind Sing takes place in a very narrow time frame: “this story begins on August 8, 1970, and ends eighteen days later, on August 26 of the same year.” A time frame during which the protagonist, in between drinks and chats with Rat at Jay's Bar, meets a girl. A very special encounter, which will lead him to rediscover long buried memories and desires.

If you're looking for action, events and happenings, Murakami is not for you. Wind/Pinball fully focus on character psychology, as expressed through small gestures, situations and dialogues which might seem at times unreal and out of context; yet, inevitably, they enrich the larger picture that the novel portrays.

Every time I write, I recall that summer afternoon. That grave, and that surrounding vegetation. Every time I think: how nice it would be to write for the cicadas, the frogs, the spiders... for the summer grass and the breeze...

What remains surprising, both for veterans and newcomers of Murakami, is the great difference in writing style compared to all of this contemporaries. A style that, due to its minimal ties with Japanese tradition, has earned Murakami both praise and scorn in his motherland.

He explains it all in the foreword to Wind/Pinball. He tells us how he began writing, and why he kept going. He narrates his own growth, with all its difficulties and disappointments before he finally managed to find his own way of doing things. Unlike most of his colleagues, he thinks and writes first and foremost in English: the shorter sentences of a language he does not fully master keep his phrasing fresh and clear.

By writing in English, and then translating into Japanese, I wanted to create a neutral and disadorn style, which afforded me more breathing room. I wasn't looking for a 'less-Japanese Japanese language', but simply a language that was as far removed as possible from a mainstream literary style, so that I might experiment and grow at my own pace.

A peculiar technique, traces of which still remain even in translation. Murakami's style might be an acquired taste, but it surely fits the content of his works, just as it fits his characters and settings. It might very well be one of the reasons for the global success of this author 'born at a kitchen table'.


 



 

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