Haruki Murakami fans discussion

Hi everyone,
I'm working on a paper that discusses the use of surrealism on the short stories of Murakami, specifically in "Super Frog Saves Tokyo", "A Shinagawa Monkey", and "The Elephant Vanishes". I'm having a little trouble answering the following questions and was wondering if you guys could help me:
1. What is surrealism? What is its purpose in art and more specifically, these stories?
2. How do supernatural elements in these stories intertwine with surrealism? (in other words, What is the author doing and for what effect?)
3. What effect does surrealism have on these stories? (Kind of goes with question 2)

Thanks guys, I would really appreciate it if you could help me out!

Hi Sam,

Cool topic!

1) On the most obvious level, surrealism incorporates imagined departures from reality into otherwise plausible settings. But to understand it more fully, it's helpful to remember that surrealist art emerges in the wake of Freud. Freud sees dream state images as symbolic manifestations of the dreamer's unconscious desires. Artists were able to use this idea to incorporate symbolic elements into their art in much richer ways with a new level of freedom. Frida Kahlo and Salvador Dali are the painters I most associate with the movement. Kahlo uses dreamlike images in her paintings both to explore her feelings about her disability (She was bedridden for much of her adult life from injuries sustained in a bus accident) as well as her feelings about her husband (she was madly in love with him but was deeply wounded by his many infidelities). She infuses surreal images into her paintings to enrich the emotional expression. Dali mirrors Freud more closely. He described how many of his paintings, rich in dreamlike images, were an exploration of his own sexual desires.
2) I've only read one of the stories you're studying and it was a long time ago, so I can't really help with them specifically. But I would encourage you to contrast the mundane elements of the character's life with the surreal elements. So much of Murakami's fiction centers around the protagonist's internal struggle to figure out who they are in reference to other people, sometimes in terms of a romantic relationship, sometimes more general melancholia, but the theme of detachment is always there. Kafka on the Shore is deeply Freudian, to the point I found it almost alienating (and I have a masters in psychology). Ask yourself what the character is struggling with. Think of the surreal elements as the trail of breadcrumbs that are guiding him on his journey. In a surrealist world, the imagined elements are almost always of the observer's own making. His own dreams are his own truth personified, trying to get out into the open.
3) Surrealism empowers the author to bring a level of vividness to the narrative and the theme that he/she couldn't otherwise. It's symbolism amped up to the extreme in that the symbols can be personified and literally interact with the characters.

I hope that helps!

Todd

Nice comment todd!
I can only answer the first question as I have not read the short stories yet.
I think surrealism is beyond reality unbound by rules. Just in dreams, everything can happen without reason. By applying rules you would have fantsasy.