Blind Willow Sleeping Woman

Conflict is constantly present in many people’s lives, but it often makes them stronger. In Haruki Murakami’s engaging short story collection Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman, many stories center around inner conflict: in “Hanalei Bay” a mother deals with losing her son, in “Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman” a young man recalls an unresolved memory about past friends, and in “A “Poor Aunt” Story” a man learns about compassion for others, while discovering his true self simultaneously. In Haruki Murakami’s short stories “Hanalei Bay”, “Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman”, and “A “Poor Aunt” Story” from his collection of short stories Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman, symbolism represents character development and the resolution of inner conflict. Symbols introduce
Later, a shift to Sachi’s personal life reveals her piano playing talent; however, she could only “produce accurate imitations, not music of her own” (“Hanalei Bay” 279). This detail foreshadows Sachi’s potential trouble dealing with her own emotions, as she can imitate others better than she can come up with her own ideas. Also, “soon after her husband died, Sachi opened her own small piano bar”, connecting music directly to death and revealing music’s ability to help Sachi deal with her internal sadness (“Hanalei Bay” 281). Overall, the symbol of music in “Hanalei Bay” introduces Sachi’s talented yet reserved character and connects music to death. Next, in “Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman”, the symbol of the bus reveals the main character’s unresolved conflict with past friends. The protagonist is riding the bus because he is taking his estranged cousin to the hospital, and the “span of time had created a translucent barrier between [them] that was
In “Hanalei Bay”, music allows Sachi to process the death of her son. When her son first dies, “she played and played and played that first year, almost without letup” (“Hanalei Bay” 282). The repetition creates a quick pace and tense tone, keying readers in on Sachi’s strained emotions. Also, while Sachi admits “she had never really liked her son”, music connects her to him and his surfing, where “riding the waves” has a melodic sound (“Hanalei Bay” 283). Music distracts Sachi and connects her to the death of her son. In “Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman”, the symbolic bus represents the protagonist’s uncovering of an unresolved memory. Murakami connects the bus to the treatment of time, as the it often leads the protagonist to get lost in memory and lose track of reality, such as when “the bus had passed by seven or eight bus stops when [his] cousin anxiously looked up at [him] again” (“Blind Willow” 8). Also, “no one pushed the button to get off” the bus, representing the protagonist’s inability to advance to the next stage of his life until he deals with the past memory (“Blind Willow” 9). While the bus does not directly connect him to dealing with the memory, it triggers the thought of it and leads to character development. Finally, in “A “Poor Aunt” Story” the poor aunt represents the protagonist’s development of sympathy for others. When the poor aunt initially appears,