I’ve just finished reading this novel, my first from Kazuo Ishiguro (aside from a few short stories), and found it to be an incredibly affecting story of failure, denial and legacy.
Ono is such a well realised and believable character, as a deeply narcissistic man whose very identity is brought into question in the wake of the end of the Second World War, and as Japan changes before his very eyes.
No scene better encompasses his cowardice and sheer denial better than him deciding against confronting his sensei, presumably out of fear of having his world view threatened or his confidence on his work shaken, and instead reassuring himself his work was valued and justified (and that he will be vindicated by history).
By the end of the story, the pleasure district has changed beyond recognition. As a reader, you would assume this is something he would be horrified by, but he even seems to be in denial about this. Ono is a man who cannot bring himself to face any of his feelings or do any form of genuine introspection, because doing so would force him to re-evaluate his entire identity and possibly reach the conclusion his contribution to the Japanese war effort ended in ruin.
Ultimately, I think the novel is a very well observed and real introspection of how people distance themselves from harmful work or views, and deny their responsibility and culpability, by building up layers of denial as the years pass and distance builds. This is done entirely to protect their own egos, and to convince themselves their legacy is secure and that they didn’t spend their youths doing active harm to a country they supposedly love. It’s the perfect representation of the contradiction and cognitive dissonance behind nationalism.
It’s also possibly the best unreliable narrator story I’ve read up to now. Every moment, from Ono’s story about helping a colleague get a job (to show his obsession with social standing and his high opinion of himself), to him placing more positive words on his world view in his loved ones’ mouths and (presumably) imagining his sensei’s speech on the futility of regret, perfectly accentuates Ono’s denial of his own complicity and his loss of relevance in wider Japanese society.
I’m very excited to read more from Ishiguro, possibly after a lie down and a lighter read first. I’d love to hear anyone else’s thoughts on the novel.
by StupidDream3