Murakami’s Literary Universe

Upon reading several of Murakami's works, we can see his tendency to incorporate in each work a regular set of elements: mirrors, loneliness, investigation, numbers, surrealism, interest in western media, cigarette brands, and so much more. Some of them are simply mentioned in passing. Based on some interviews, it wouldn’t be a bad guess that Murakami has said that these don’t specifically symbolize anything, even if they probably do. Often when I read his books or stories, the text to me feels like Murakami's writing. Maybe it is his unique style as well, but the cameos of various objects or personalities always seem to appear, as if the stories all take place in the same universe. This sort of “universal symbolism” is just like the blending of the American culture into the Japanese language, which without the mentions of Japanese cities, wouldn't immediately imply the story took place in Japan. There is a constant element in Murakami's writing that despite its various forms, is ever present. His book The Strange Library is what I think is a play on his writing with these characters as his cast. It combines the surrealism all together into a story that gives me excitement every time something familiar appears.

-River