It is often the people who are in your life that have the greatest influence on you. This can be more than what you choose. Norwegian Wood’s Toru watanabe is introduced to a series of women who have a profound impact on his outlook and life. Naoko is the embodiment of Watanabe’s past. Her mental instability reminds him of his friend’s suicide, and he therefore associates her with it. Hatsumi lives in a comfortable environment and is a well-adjusted person, but Hatsumi finds her boyfriend’s behavior to be frivolous despite their prosperity and success. Reiko is Naoko’s caregiver and a reflection of Watanabe. Reiko shows how even those who are broken can heal once they accept their failures. Midori is Watanabe’s future. Midori has let go of all her regrets in the past and now lives only for the present. Each of the women who appear in Norwegian Wood is a woman from Watanabe’s adolescence and helps him transition to adulthood.
Naoko continues to haunt Watanabe, a part from his past. She is an emotional burden that he must carry and a memory that he cannot escape. Naoko tells Watanabe that Kizuki has died, but he is still her only connection to the outside world. Kizuki was a great lover of you, and so am I. We didn’t intend to hurt, but it is likely that we did. It is possible that we wound you deeply in the heart. Naoko is acknowledging the emotional scars she has left on Watanabe. Watanabe becomes emotionally bound to her when Naoko says he is the “only link she has with the world outside”. Naoko explains that Watanabe feels a heavy burden because of the reminders that Kizuki died. But she doesn’t do anything to alleviate Watanabe’s struggles or help him. Naoko’s death has not changed the fact that she remains a psychological obstacle for Watanabe, who is trying to connect with reality. Watanabe’s love for Naoko is recalled when he hears “Norwegian Wood”, many years after Naoko killed herself. He reflects on the moment and thinks: “The more I forget about Naoko, the deeper I understand her. She begged me to never forget her. I am filled with a deep, almost unbearable grief at the thought. Because Naoko didn’t love me” (10). Watanabe’s promise to Naoko is forever etched in his memory. Her existence is also immortalized. Watanabe suffers more because of Naoko’s permanence in his memories. It forces him to admit that Naoko had more emotional dependence on him rather than romantic love. Watanabe’s regrets over Naoko and Kizuki are piled up as he thinks more about her. Naoko will always be Watanabe’s past. She is the personification of all his memories of his college years.
Hatsumi is Watanabe’s adulthood, his future. But her frustrations in her relationship with Watanabe’s dormmate Nagasawa and her suicide show him that adulthood may not be the easiest way to escape the past. Watanabe recalls that Hatsumi and Nagasawa had a heated argument when Nagasawa held a dinner celebrating her new job. It’s all a joke. Nagasawa stated that “nobody is hurt”. ‘I get hurt,’ said Hatsumi. Why are you not satisfied with me? ‘” (208). Watanabe admires Nagasawa, Hatsumi, as the model couple for success. They are beautiful, prosperous, and invincible. Nagasawa’s unfaithfulness is a way for him to relieve his stress of trying to achieve success. It shows that some aspects of adulthood are not attractive. The sparkling facade of adulthood hides an inadequacy that is constant and difficult to express. Hatsumi’s disillusionment grows as the scene unfolds. As she confronts the boyfriend, “’Don’t You Care Whether I Understand You or Not ?’…’So… Is it wrong to feel I want someone to understand me — by you, say?’” (210). Watanabe is shocked to see this moment unfold. He realizes there’s little honesty in adulthood. People grow more jaded with age. They barely recognize or act like themselves. Hatsumi’s raising of her voice breaks the subservient character she has been playing for years. It is almost as if Hatsumi, Nagasawa, and all adulthood are just a facade. Watanabe, however, describes the moment he spent with Nagasawa and Hatsumi as “the image flashed in my mind…It’s a kind childhood longing that has always been — and will forever be — unfulfilled…What Hatsumi brought to me was a deep part of myself that was long dormant…Someone had to have done something — anything-to save her” (211-212). Watanabe recognizes that Hatsumi is a reminder of the life that has been wasted waiting for Nagasawa’s marriage. Hatsumi waits for her lover to marry her and has dreams that she will never achieve. Hatsumi’s suicide ends this vicious cycle. It reveals that even couples who seem perfect are actually corrupt.
Reiko is Watanabe’s reflection. She is healing from crippling failure and loss, but eventually she learns to move on and begin anew. Watanabe reflects on Reiko’s note about Naoko’s death and sees parallels with him. “Just as Naoko shared Kizuki with me, Reiko shared Naoko with me” (279). Watanabe says that while Naoko’s loss will bring them closer together, it is death itself, or the feeling of loss, which brings people close. Sharing their grief helps them accept death. Reiko tells Watanabe to not worry about anyone else and grab the happiness that you can get. My experience shows that we are given only a few chances to be happy in life, and that if you miss out on them, it will haunt you for the rest your life. Reiko’s words are based on her own experience. She suffered the same regrets as Watanabe, and wants him to overcome his grief. To do this, she asks Watanabe for forgiveness and to begin a new journey. Reiko gives Watanabe advice on life until they finally part at a station, after Reiko has left Ami. Watanabe recalls, “We lived, we both did. Reiko told us to be happy as we boarded a train. ‘I’ve told you everything I know. It’s all I can say. Be happy. Take my portion and Naoko’s, then combine them to make your own. Reiko offers Watanabe one last piece of advice: to find true happiness. It is something Reiko herself was unable do, so she sent Reiko away to Ami. She asks Watanabe, who has lost her and Naoko’s happiness due to living in Ami. Reiko gives Watanabe advice on how to let go and accept the death of Naoko, Kizuki and their obligations. Watanabe now has a new lease on life, as he is free of Naoko’s memories. Reiko also shows Watanabe how he can live his life normally and still have a chance to enjoy it.
Watanabe sees Midori as freedom, a break from the past. She has been plagued with death throughout her life and rejects all social expectations which bind her. She enjoys each moment she is in. Midori does not seem to mourn her losses or hold onto regrets. Watanabe’s concern for Midori, after the death father, is dismissed by Midori. “Nah. Funerals are easy.” We’ve done it before…My sister and I were exhausted. We were too tired to cry. We couldn’t even cry. When you do this, they begin to whisper about you… The bastards. They wanted us to cry more, so we worked harder to not give them satisfaction. Midori has seen so much death throughout her life that now she does not care. She doesn’t dwell on the past or on people she knew. Instead, Midori focuses exclusively on her present relationships. She doesn’t care about death or funerals, and considers those who criticize it as lacking sympathy. Midori is determined to defy the expectation that her father’s death is something she should mourn. To do so, she keeps herself from crying. Midori’s eccentricity is also evident when Watanabe comes to visit her and Midori says, “Night-night Daddy…I know you are not suffering.” If you’re suffering, you need to complain. Tell them that it is just cruel. I hope both of you do this… “Give it all that you’ve Got” (230). Midori’s ability to be lighthearted when addressing the subject of her father’s death shows that he is not a concern anymore. She tells sexual jokes to her father who is in heaven instead, demonstrating that she has let go quickly of what happened. She doesn’t dwell on her father’s death or grieve it — she feels relieved that his suffering is over. Midori is able to deal with her grief in a variety of ways.
Watanabe finally succeeds in letting his past go because he is attracted to Midori’s independence. He also realizes that his love of Midori will liberate him. Midori tells Watanabe that she has been waiting so long for her perfect relationship. She is looking for the perfection of selfishness. You tell me I want strawberry shortbread… And you bring it back…and offer it to me…and I throw it away. That’s all I’ve wanted” (76). Midori is so used to serving and accommodating other people that she has forgotten her own needs and wants. Midori needs a partner that will be as flexible as she can be. She likes to live in each moment and change her mind at any time. Watanabe falls in love with Midori due to her personality. He wrote to Reiko saying, “there exists a decisive finality for what we have between us.” It is an irresistible force that will sweep me forward into the future. Watanabe is affected by Midori’s love as much as Naoko is. Watanabe feels alive with Midori. His love for Midori is as vibrant and dynamic as the woman herself. Watanabe can let Naoko leave and follow Midori into freedom because his love will “sweep” him “into future.” Watanabe follows Midori and finds his future through living in the now, while looking to the future.
Watanabe is defined and shaped by the women he meets on his journey through young adulthood. Watanabe’s life is marked and defined by the women he meets as he journeys through early adulthood. Hatsumi is Watanabe’s vision of adulthood. However, she is still unhappy as she waits in vain for the future she will never have. Reiko is a survivor of loss, death, rejection who guides Watanabe to the light at the end of the tunnel. This advice helps him live for himself in the present. He can then begin a romance with Midori. Watanabe’s wish to move past his painful history leads him to Midori. Midori is a free-spirited girl who lives life in the moment. Watanabe becomes attached to each of the women, with the exception of Midori. She remains a tangible presence in his life. Watanabe learns a valuable lesson from each woman and is led to the finale with Midori.
