Taufiq Yves's Reviews > 1Q84

Each time after finishing 1Q84, I jotted down a few thoughts here and there. To be honest, when I try to gather them now, I'm not quite sure what I wrote. It seems like my feelings about the book change each time I read it.

Haruki Murakami and George Orwell are 2 authors I admire greatly, but they're also the most challenging for me to understand. Every 1 of their books requires careful consideration. You can't rush through them; you have to slow down and savor each plot point and psychological description. Their books are always filled with subtle foreshadowing.

I believe many readers (myself included), are still pondering the deeper meanings in 1Q84. This is often the case with Murakami’s work. To truly appreciate his writing, you need to immerse yourself in his world, exploring his influences, from music to his personal habits. And my review is simply my own interpretation.

So what is 1Q84 all about?

Simply put, 1Q84 tells the story of 2 lovers, Aomame and Tengo, who, by chance, enter a parallel world and eventually escape.

This novel employs a classic dual narrative structure. The stories of the 2 protagonists seem unrelated at first, but they are actually interconnected by a myriad of subtle threads, like two kites flying in the sky. As the story progresses, these threads gradually tighten, drawing the 2 distant kites closer together.

Aomame is an assassin who disguises herself as a masseuse to carry out her missions. Her targets are selected by an elderly woman and are typically abusive men who have harmed women and children. By chance, Aomame enters the parallel world of 1Q84 and completes her final assassination: killing the leader of the cult Little People, - Shimada. This cult is notorious for raping and abusing women. After successfully completing her mission, Aomame hides in an apartment to evade the cult's pursuit and eventually reunites with her lover, Tengo, escaping 1Q84 together.

Tengo is a novelist. He was once classmates with Aomame. Aomame's parents were members of the Witness Protection community. The oppressive environments of their respective families led them to find solace in each other and develop a deep connection. However, they were separated due to their studies. Tengo becomes involved in the world of 1Q84 after being commissioned to help a young writer, Fukaeri, revise her novel. Through this involvement, he learns about the inner workings of the cult Little People. Eventually, Tengo reunites with his childhood love, Aomame, and they escape 1Q84 together.

Why did Haruki Murakami write a utopian story like this?

In March 1995, Japan was shaken by the Tokyo subway sarin gas attack, a horrific act of terrorism carried out by a Japanese cult. Deeply disturbed by this event, Murakami said that he halted his regular writing schedule to investigate the incident. His findings profoundly influenced his approach to fiction writing, altering his perspective on the world. It led him to ponder questions such as: Why do humans create utopian societies? And how can people become so ensnared by seemingly benevolent goals that they end up confining themselves and harming others? He explored these questions in this novel, creating a parallel world strikingly similar to the real world in 1984.

This parallel world, a so-called "utopia," attracts individuals disillusioned with reality. The world's controllers manipulate people into becoming puppets of their leader, demanding their money and lives for a fantastical dream, even leading them to kill their fellow humans. Through this novel, he exposes the terrifying cruelty of such systems, expressing his aversion to blind faith and oppression. He wants his readers to understand that once people are beguiled by a false ideal of perfection, they easily lose their independence of thought and surrender themselves to cold, impersonal rules, committing evil acts without realizing it.

But how does Murakami's anti-utopia differ from others?

Firstly, Murakami’s 1Q84 is a homage to George Orwell’s 1984. Unlike a completely fictional utopia, he constructs a parallel world that is strikingly similar to the real world. This parallel world, while imbued with a touch of magical realism, is grounded in reality. He aims to remind us that dystopias are not merely fictional constructs or distant future nightmares, but can manifest in our present reality.

Secondly, he argues that evil utopian systems are not limited to governments or state machinery. They can manifest in religions, corporations, or even non-profit organizations. He delves deep into Japan's entrenched societal systems, revealing their potential for corruption. When people blindly submit to collective cultures at the expense of their families and freedoms, or when they entrust the value of their lives to groups without critically examining their own internal values, they may unknowingly find themselves in a 1Q84-like situation.

Lastly, Murakami takes this concept a step further by suggesting that while utopias may exist in external environments, their deeper roots lie within the human psyche.

In this novel, the Little People spin threads from the air to create cocoons, from which offspring emerge. These offspring are identical to their parents in appearance but are, in fact, alienated beings without independent thought. They are mere puppets. The Little People symbolize ideology; they are not an external evil force but something that has infiltrated the minds of individuals.

Therefore, to escape from a utopian dystopia, 1 must not only be aware of their situation but also possess the courage and ability to break free from their former selves and be reborn. This courage is originated from within each individual.

To truly understand 1Q84, there are 5 key threads to follow:

First is Janacek’s Sinfonietta. This novel frequently mentions Janacek’s Sinfonietta, and Aomame’s encounter with it marks her entry into the world of 1Q84. Intrigued, I researched the piece and found its bold brass fanfares and layered orchestration give it a distinctive, almost otherworldly atmosphere.

The music itself isn’t literally played on black keys - it’s an orchestral work - but the metaphor of black keys works beautifully to describe its unusual tonal color and sense of strangeness. Black keys, raised above the white keys, offer a distinct feel yet depend on the white keys for harmony.

In the world of 1Q84, with its 2 moons, reality itself feels like a piece played on the black keys. It’s familiar yet altered, grounded yet uncanny. Aomame’s encounter with Janacek’s Sinfonietta becomes the threshold into this parallel world, where abstract concepts are transformed into concrete realities.

At the end of the novel, Tengo and Aomame escape 1Q84, though it’s left ambiguous whether they return to the real world or enter a third 1.

I’ve often wondered if interpreting 1Q84 through the lens of white and black keys is overanalyzing. But then I realized my readings of Murakami’s works have always been speculative. Perhaps he didn’t intend the meanings I’ve ascribed - yet the process of interpretation itself is the true joy. Every object, every dialogue, every event in his books seems to exist for a reason, and exploring those reasons is what makes his works so endlessly fascinating.

Second thread is the Cat City. This novel introduces a tale of a person boarding a train that stops at a city populated entirely by cats. When this person disembarks, they find a city devoid of humans. The cats, active at night, engage in human-like activities. However, despite sensing the person's presence, the cats cannot see them.

In my view, the Cat City can be interpreted in 2 ways: Firstly, entering the Cat City symbolizes the consciousness escaping from the physical body. This explains why the cats in the city cannot see the person. But venturing into this unknown realm implies the dangers of a wandering consciousness.

Tengo describes his visits to his father's nursing home as trips to the Cat City. In this Cat City, he comes to terms with his father's seemingly harmful actions from his childhood. However, as his father is often confused, Tengo's reconciliation is ultimately with himself. A nurse warns him about the dangers of staying in this state, suggesting that an extended escape of consciousness can be harmful. Therefore, in the Cat City, Tengo reconciles with himself and then leaves to return to reality. This is the true significance of the Cat City: reality is where humans belong.

However, if one cannot reconcile with oneself and remains trapped in a detached consciousness, they risk becoming alienated from their true selves. This is akin to the societal perception of the mentally ill, who may harm themselves or others.

Secondly, the Cat City can be equated with 1Q84 itself, serving as an alternate name for this world, because when Tengo and Aomame discuss escaping 1Q84, Tengo refers to it as Cat City. Thus, the Cat City can be understood more broadly as representing the world of 1Q84, a world constructed on the black keys of a piano, where the evils of the real world are made tangible, and metaphors become concrete.

Next thread is “The Offspring and the Parent Body”. Let me ask you this: if you had a separate entity, an offspring detached from yourself, and someone were to harm this offspring, would you consider that person to have harmed you?

I believe that in the context of this novel, this offspring symbolizes a consciousness that has detached itself from the original self in an attempt to alleviate suffering. Thus, in the real world, this offspring doesn't physically exist; it represents a state of mind. It suggests that while the "self" in the real world has indeed been harmed, the "self" cannot bear this pain and so creates this imaginary offspring.

This is essentially what happens to Fukaeri. She has an offspring that is separate from her, and her father, the leader of the Little People cult, sexually abuses this offspring.

On a real-world level, Fukaeri finds the experience of being sexually assaulted so traumatic, shameful, and repulsive that she separates this negative aspect of her consciousness from herself. Although this offspring doesn't exist physically in the real world, it manifests as a concrete entity in the world of 1Q84.

In real world, people who suffer severe trauma may develop dissociative disorders, meaning they try to disown painful memories by creating separate identities or "alters." This allows them to distance themselves from the traumatic event and seek psychological relief by claiming, "That wasn't me."

Next, is the Little People, that have existed in the world of 1Q84 since ancient times. The novel mentions that they require both a "Perceiver" and a "Receiver". In the story, the leader of the Sakigake cult is the Receiver, and his daughter is the Perceiver.

The leader sexually abuses his daughter and other young girls, which the Sakigake cult justifies as a multifaceted union between the Perceiver and the Receiver. This is a truly disturbing concept.

The Little People can emerge from any opening and lack a sense of morality. It's unclear whether they are opposed to a divine entity. I believe they represent the more extreme aspects of human consciousness.

The Little People - Sakigake cult, influenced by this distorted consciousness, believes they possess the sole key to heaven. They invert morality, viewing evil as good. This demonstrates how different groups can hold opposing views on the same actions.

I define a cult as a group that views the violation of others' autonomy as good or right. They justify their harmful actions, as seen in the Sakigake cult's belief that they are only harming the "offspring". This is an extremely distorted and biased perspective.

The distorted consciousness represented by the Little People needs to be balanced by reason. Fukaeri, in the novel, resists the Little People because she possesses reason.

When people lose their ability to reason and balance this distorted consciousness, it leads to a reversal and confusion of moral values. The good that society values is the opposite of the good that cults believe in. This is why cults are so despised in the real world.

The last thread is religion. As a person of faith, I tend to hold strong beliefs about many things.

In 1Q84, we learn about Aomame's childhood. Her family were members of the Witness Society, and they took her with them on missionary trips. Aomame was reluctant to participate in these activities. Due to the influence of this faith, her words and actions differed from those of her peers, making her an outcast.

Similarly, the Sakigake cult, which dominates much of the novel, sexually abuses underage girls and prevents them from receiving a normal education. While the Witness Society may seem less overtly harmful than the Sakigake cult, does this mean it's a completely correct and trustworthy faith?

I don't think so.

God is benevolent and selfless; it can be inferred that God doesn't place many demands on humans.

However, the religious organizations in this novel impose various requirements on their followers, such as praying loudly before meals.

My understanding of God is that His existence cannot be fully comprehended by human limitations. His power to make us believe in Him is beyond our understanding, and His wisdom is infinitely greater than ours. Therefore, humans cannot and should not speak for God.

Of course, cults like the ones depicted in the novel do exist in our world. These groups may believe that because God is selfless and benevolent, He won't hold them accountable for their actions. Thus, they exploit God's benevolence for their own selfish gain.

At the end of the novel, Tengo and Aomame manage to escape together. However, the leader of the Sakigake cult had previously told Aomame that it was impossible to return to the real world from 1Q84. Similarly, Aomame speculates that they may not have returned to their original reality but have instead entered a third, different world. This new world has only one moon, unlike the 2 moons of 1Q84.

Despite this uncertainty, Aomame and Tengo no longer feel isolated or afraid. They have each other's companionship, and Aomame is pregnant with their child. Love serves as both a shield against the chaos of the world and a source of redemption in the face of unknown dangers.

It's interesting to note that while Aomame is pregnant with Tengo's child, they haven't actually had physical intercourse. Fukaeri acts as a medium, transferring the essence of their love into Aomame's womb.

In the world of 1Q84, abstract concepts such as distorted consciousness, traumatic memories, and love are made concrete. The Little People embody distorted consciousness, Fukaeri's offspring represents traumatic memories, and the new life growing within Aomame symbolizes the power of love. This is a crazy world.

I love it!

5 / 5 stars

My other reviews of Murakami's Work:
The City and Its Uncertain Walls
Norwegian Wood
1Q84
Hear the Wind Sing
Kafka on the Shore
Sputnik Sweetheart
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
South of the Border, West of the Sun
After Dark