Banana Yoshimoto comparative essay
Garber 1
Dylan Garber
Ms. Ursula Misztal
The Contemporary Short Story
May 6th, 2013
How Banana Yoshimoto Brings
The Unconscious to Life in “Newlywed” and “Helix”
Banana Yoshimoto effectively portrays various common themes and motifs in both “Helix” and “Newlywed”, in revealing the subconscious state of mind of the respective protagonists. Although the storylines are quite different, we get the feeling that many themes and strategies such as isolation, incredible poetic effect, and the recurring use of a helper figure used to develop the characters, are relatively interchangeable. These literary patterns allow for the protagonists to both escape the shallowness that plagues them, and bring to light the deeper meaning behind their subconscious (now conscious) struggles, especially those relating to their true feelings for their personal companions.
Isolation is a recurring theme that is a catalyst for the subconscious state causing the climactic epiphanies within the protagonists of both stories. This is comparably portrayed through the blatant representation of shallow urban relationships. In “Helix”, we witness this theme of shallowness through the personal thoughts of the protagonist at the beginning of the story. In a moment of reflection, the protagonist exclaims, "I feel as if my heart will stop beating, because once I know that much about a woman, it can never work out between us". (Helix, 651) Alluding to his lover, this theme of shallowness is difficult to ignore as the narrator is transparently portraying his ability to write off a relationship on incredibly superficial grounds. In “Newlywed” however, Banana uses the same approach in order to portray this theme of isolation, yet goes to quite an extreme to illustrate her character’s subconscious thoughts. The transformation from bum to beauty is a symbolic element of the story, and is supposed to confuse both the narrator and the reader at first, but it soon becomes clear that there is a deeper
Dylan Garber
Ms. Ursula Misztal
The Contemporary Short Story
May 6th, 2013
How Banana Yoshimoto Brings
The Unconscious to Life in “Newlywed” and “Helix”
Banana Yoshimoto effectively portrays various common themes and motifs in both “Helix” and “Newlywed”, in revealing the subconscious state of mind of the respective protagonists. Although the storylines are quite different, we get the feeling that many themes and strategies such as isolation, incredible poetic effect, and the recurring use of a helper figure used to develop the characters, are relatively interchangeable. These literary patterns allow for the protagonists to both escape the shallowness that plagues them, and bring to light the deeper meaning behind their subconscious (now conscious) struggles, especially those relating to their true feelings for their personal companions.
Isolation is a recurring theme that is a catalyst for the subconscious state causing the climactic epiphanies within the protagonists of both stories. This is comparably portrayed through the blatant representation of shallow urban relationships. In “Helix”, we witness this theme of shallowness through the personal thoughts of the protagonist at the beginning of the story. In a moment of reflection, the protagonist exclaims, "I feel as if my heart will stop beating, because once I know that much about a woman, it can never work out between us". (Helix, 651) Alluding to his lover, this theme of shallowness is difficult to ignore as the narrator is transparently portraying his ability to write off a relationship on incredibly superficial grounds. In “Newlywed” however, Banana uses the same approach in order to portray this theme of isolation, yet goes to quite an extreme to illustrate her character’s subconscious thoughts. The transformation from bum to beauty is a symbolic element of the story, and is supposed to confuse both the narrator and the reader at first, but it soon becomes clear that there is a deeper
Cited: Yoshimoto, Banana. “Helix”. Lizard. Ed. New York: Washington Square Press Publication of Pocket Books, 1993. 1-18. Print. Yoshimoto, Banana. “Newlywed”. The Art of the Story: An International Anthology of Contemporary Short Stories. Ed. Daniel Halpern. New York: Viking Press, 1999. 650-655. Print.