Japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in Haruki Murakami’s colourless Tsukuru Tazaki

Japanese indigenous terms such as uchi/soto (inside/outside) and omote/ura (front/back) are common dichotomies employed to understand the differences between expected behaviours associated with group dynamics such as promoting collective harmony rather than individual uniqueness. Haruki Murakami...

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Main Authors:	Sheba D. Mani, Ravichandran Vengadasamy, Shahizah Ismail Hamdan
Format:	Article
Language:	English
Published:	Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2017
Online Access:	http://journalarticle.ukm.my/10659/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/10659/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/10659/1/14429-47848-2-PB.pdf

id	ukm-10659
recordtype	eprints
spelling	ukm-106592017-09-11T02:27:07Z http://journalarticle.ukm.my/10659/ Japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in Haruki Murakami’s colourless Tsukuru Tazaki Sheba D. Mani, Ravichandran Vengadasamy, Shahizah Ismail Hamdan, Japanese indigenous terms such as uchi/soto (inside/outside) and omote/ura (front/back) are common dichotomies employed to understand the differences between expected behaviours associated with group dynamics such as promoting collective harmony rather than individual uniqueness. Haruki Murakami advocates that the Japanese need to move away from these dichotomies in order to embrace the true self and assert an individual voice. This dictum comes after he concluded his observations on the tragic 1995 sarin gas attacks in Japan and noted that individuals should be more assertive in forming their own voice rather than conforming to the collective voice. In his latest novel, Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage (2014), he presents a new narrative on individual negotiations with group consciousness. This article seeks to reveal the sense of individuality presented through the frame of the Japanese dichotomies and the psychological response of the main character, Tsukuru. The character will be analysed in relation to the group that he belongs to: in the context of the Japanese uchi (inside) or soto (outside) and within each context, representations of his omote (front) or ura (back) is examined. The findings expose that both uchi and soto are significant in developing individuality. More importantly, how the individual responds while in these contexts determines his ability to construct his identity. This reading suggests that Murakami fulfills his agenda by empowering the individual to explore various ways in being independent. The novel also indicates that the Japanese society is gradually manifesting a growing sense of individuality by departing from its codes of group consciousness. Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2017-02 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://journalarticle.ukm.my/10659/1/14429-47848-2-PB.pdf Sheba D. Mani, and Ravichandran Vengadasamy, and Shahizah Ismail Hamdan, (2017) Japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in Haruki Murakami’s colourless Tsukuru Tazaki. GEMA: Online Journal of Language Studies, 17 (1). pp. 77-88. ISSN 1675-8021 http://ejournal.ukm.my/gema/issue/view/897
repository_type	Digital Repository
institution_category	Local University
institution	Universiti Kebangasaan Malaysia
building	UKM Institutional Repository
collection	Online Access
language	English
description	Japanese indigenous terms such as uchi/soto (inside/outside) and omote/ura (front/back) are common dichotomies employed to understand the differences between expected behaviours associated with group dynamics such as promoting collective harmony rather than individual uniqueness. Haruki Murakami advocates that the Japanese need to move away from these dichotomies in order to embrace the true self and assert an individual voice. This dictum comes after he concluded his observations on the tragic 1995 sarin gas attacks in Japan and noted that individuals should be more assertive in forming their own voice rather than conforming to the collective voice. In his latest novel, Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage (2014), he presents a new narrative on individual negotiations with group consciousness. This article seeks to reveal the sense of individuality presented through the frame of the Japanese dichotomies and the psychological response of the main character, Tsukuru. The character will be analysed in relation to the group that he belongs to: in the context of the Japanese uchi (inside) or soto (outside) and within each context, representations of his omote (front) or ura (back) is examined. The findings expose that both uchi and soto are significant in developing individuality. More importantly, how the individual responds while in these contexts determines his ability to construct his identity. This reading suggests that Murakami fulfills his agenda by empowering the individual to explore various ways in being independent. The novel also indicates that the Japanese society is gradually manifesting a growing sense of individuality by departing from its codes of group consciousness.
format	Article
author	Sheba D. Mani, Ravichandran Vengadasamy, Shahizah Ismail Hamdan,
spellingShingle	Sheba D. Mani, Ravichandran Vengadasamy, Shahizah Ismail Hamdan, Japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in Haruki Murakami’s colourless Tsukuru Tazaki
author_facet	Sheba D. Mani, Ravichandran Vengadasamy, Shahizah Ismail Hamdan,
author_sort	Sheba D. Mani,
title	Japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in Haruki Murakami’s colourless Tsukuru Tazaki
title_short	Japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in Haruki Murakami’s colourless Tsukuru Tazaki
title_full	Japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in Haruki Murakami’s colourless Tsukuru Tazaki
title_fullStr	Japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in Haruki Murakami’s colourless Tsukuru Tazaki
title_full_unstemmed	Japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in Haruki Murakami’s colourless Tsukuru Tazaki
title_sort	japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in haruki murakami’s colourless tsukuru tazaki
publisher	Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
publishDate	2017
url	http://journalarticle.ukm.my/10659/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/10659/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/10659/1/14429-47848-2-PB.pdf
first_indexed	2023-09-18T19:58:03Z
last_indexed	2023-09-18T19:58:03Z
_version_	1777406661903777792

Japanese dichotomies and the individual identity in Haruki Murakami’s colourless Tsukuru Tazaki

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