Immersed in the world of Tokyo in the 1960s, Norwegian Wood is a novel by Haruki Murakami, published in 1987. It seems at first very foreign and obscure, Norwegian Wood proves that even over a period of almost five decades, little social change has taken place. Toru Watanabe is a student in Tokyo who falls in love with the attractive but unstable Naoko, then the demonstrative and lively Midori. Watanabe is a serious person by nature, but as with most things in life, appearances can be deceiving because he cares more than he lets himself show. Naoko, plagued by mental illness, serves as an entry into Watanabe's life as she is the only woman Watanabe initially takes a liking to. Midori, the latter of the two main love stories, is too mentally tormented by the deaths of loved ones, yet seems more composed mentis than Naoko. Naoko and Midori like Watanabe for different reasons, one being more about comfort and the other more about actual physical attraction. 1960s Tokyo serves as the backdrop for Norwegian Wood as Watanabe navigates love, life and death; However, familiarity breeds contempt and the things worth cherishing in life are always fleeting. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essay Toru Watanabe, the protagonist and narrator of Norwegian Wood, faces complicated circumstances as he tries to discover who he is and what its place in the world means. The truth is, and Watanabe himself states: "In the ten months between Kizuki's death and his graduation, I was unable to find a place for myself in the world around me." (24). Watanabe is deeply hurt, it takes him two chapters to admit it and ten chapters to show it. Reiko, Naoko's roommate at Ami Hostel, notices Watanabe's distress and gives him advice: "If you want to take care of Naoko, take care of yourself too" (116). Watanabe, at first unwaveringly in love with Naoko, finds himself between a rock and a hard place, loving both girls for different reasons. Watanabe befriends Naoko after Kizuki's death, only to find himself at her mercy, when she desperately needs comfort. Midori, meanwhile, enters Watanabe's life unexpectedly, lively and outgoing, with an inventive imagination accompanied by her hidden but depressing past. Watanabe is fundamentally complex because he is desperately trying to find himself. Watanabe traveled to Tokyo, more than 600 miles from home, to find a new environment and discover the meaning of his life, which ironically seems to be the same for Naoko. Watanabe thoroughly portrays the 1960s with his description of his roommate's radio gymnastics. and nude photos in his dorm room, as well as the use of payphones, repeated mentions/singing of Beatles songs, and even mental health treatment. Fortunately, Watanabe is a very visual and observant person by nature, making sure to pick up on the smallest details and calling things as he sees them. The environment around Watanabe seems very strange to him, and to me too, since I had no idea what 1960s Tokyo was like, and neither did Watanabe until I went to school there. Even as the story progresses, the differences and similarities between modern-day New York, where I go to college, and 1960s Tokyo, where the novel takes place, eventually became similarities. Watanabe's room is exactly the same as mine and his friendslook a lot like mine too. All the walking, going out for drinks and coffee, late night studying, romantic problems, finding oneself and the suicide/death of loved ones all factor into Toru's reality, as well. than mine. Although it was not Watanabe's intention, the psychiatric treatment provided in Tokyo in the 1960s is shown very clearly by the number of people that Watanabe and other characters in the story know committed suicide, probably due to lack of access to useful resources or support. Naoko, still grieving the suicide of her boyfriend Kizuki and her older sister, cannot determine her own existence in the world. Naoko's emotional stability is severely damaged, resulting in an extended stay at Ami Hostel, a psychiatric facility for psychiatric patients. Naoko's illness leads to deep feelings of regret and guilt as she is distraught over Kizuki's death and memory: "So if Kizuki had lived, I'm sure we would have been happy together, loving and becoming little little unhappy... Because we should have repaid to the world what we owe it” (128). Naoko feels that she and Kizuki avoided facing the realities of life and failed to "pay the bills when they were due" (128), leading to Kizuki's suicide and stay at the 'Ami Hostel. When Toru confesses his love for Naoko and his determination to be there for her at her disposal, Naoko's only response is "You're wasting your life getting involved with me" (146). The love between Naoko and Kizuki is important to consider, because it is radically different from the love that forms between Naoko and Watanabe. Naoko and Kizuki's relationship is built on many years of trust and feelings and has been built organically since they were both three years old, unlike Naoko and Watanabe, which is more like a doctor-patient relationship since Watanabe is there for the sole purpose of comfort. Naoko and Watanabe having sex made things more complicated as Naoko cried on all fours because Naoko wasn't able to enjoy sex with Kizuki, which resulted in some of her guilt. I find that Naoko contradicts a lot of what she says, perhaps due to the circumstances of her "illness". It is ironic that Naoko tells Watanabe, “the dead will always be dead, but we must continue to live” (111), knowing the outcome of his life. Midori, Naoko's opposite, is more of a true partner than Naoko because her relationship with Watanabe begins as a friendship, without a bond formed by the memory of a lost loved one. Midori, often expressing the sexual thoughts she has about Watanabe, wants to date Watanabe and have a real relationship with someone, something Midori has lacked her entire life. Midori took care of her grandparents, mother, and father before they passed away. Midori does not have a good relationship with these people, as she treats them all with a bit of disdain and derision. Midori, sexually frustrated with the boyfriend she has when Watanabe first meets her, is all the more willing to commit carnal acts with Watanabe. Midori expresses how the people in her life build up her personality: "My father, my mother, they never paid any attention to me, and my boyfriend, well, he's just not that type of guy" (227). However, there is more to Midori than meets the eye since her reaction to her father's death is not to sob or some other natural reaction, but to say "we are used to funerals" (196). The main characteristic of drawing Watanabe and Midori together is their ability to act apathetic towards things,?”