Kafka on the Shore
Commentary on Kafka On The Shore
Childhood is an important part in each and every one of our lives. It has a huge impact on our character, personality and even sociability as we grow up. Some of us who come from good, stable family backgrounds would have pleasant memories from our childhood while some others who faced the cruelty of life at a young age would hate to even think of their childhood. In this excerpt from Kafka on The Shore by Haruki Murakami, the author writes about a 15-year old Kafka’s childhood. It shows the kind of relationship the boy shared with his father and his personality. I will be writing about how language is used in this excerpt to tell us about the boy and his childhood.
The author uses imagery in this excerpt. For example he says ‘My sister’s looking off to one side so half her face is in shadow’. This gives a mysterious feel to the sister and tells us that she probably was a significant figure to the boy. Furthermore he writes, ‘hers a floral-print one-piece, mine a baggy old blue trunks’. The author describes the sister such that she seems better dressed and better looking than Kafka. It suggests that he looks up to his sister and thinks highly of her. It also shows the love that he has for his sister as he decides to take that picture along with him. He also mentions that he is ‘staring straight ahead, undaunted’ in the picture. He then asks himself ‘how could I have looked so happy’ referring to the same picture. By considering him to be happy in the picture; it shows the extent of unhappiness he has with his family and life at the moment.
Kafka started planning for his run away from home since his junior high years. He took steps in order to prepare for it by practicing judo and training in the gym from that time itself. This shows how clear he was about his decision to run away from home. He knew exactly what he wanted to do and was very certain about it and also worked towards it. Thus Kafka is an emotionally strong person.
Childhood is an important part in each and every one of our lives. It has a huge impact on our character, personality and even sociability as we grow up. Some of us who come from good, stable family backgrounds would have pleasant memories from our childhood while some others who faced the cruelty of life at a young age would hate to even think of their childhood. In this excerpt from Kafka on The Shore by Haruki Murakami, the author writes about a 15-year old Kafka’s childhood. It shows the kind of relationship the boy shared with his father and his personality. I will be writing about how language is used in this excerpt to tell us about the boy and his childhood.
The author uses imagery in this excerpt. For example he says ‘My sister’s looking off to one side so half her face is in shadow’. This gives a mysterious feel to the sister and tells us that she probably was a significant figure to the boy. Furthermore he writes, ‘hers a floral-print one-piece, mine a baggy old blue trunks’. The author describes the sister such that she seems better dressed and better looking than Kafka. It suggests that he looks up to his sister and thinks highly of her. It also shows the love that he has for his sister as he decides to take that picture along with him. He also mentions that he is ‘staring straight ahead, undaunted’ in the picture. He then asks himself ‘how could I have looked so happy’ referring to the same picture. By considering him to be happy in the picture; it shows the extent of unhappiness he has with his family and life at the moment.
Kafka started planning for his run away from home since his junior high years. He took steps in order to prepare for it by practicing judo and training in the gym from that time itself. This shows how clear he was about his decision to run away from home. He knew exactly what he wanted to do and was very certain about it and also worked towards it. Thus Kafka is an emotionally strong person.