Kafka on The Shore': Analysis of a Prologue 'The Boy Named Crow'

'The Boy Named Crow' is an excerpt and prologue of sorts from the novel 'Kafka on the Shore' by the Japanese author Haruki Murakami. It was published in the year 2002, with an English translation released later in 2005 which was named one of 'The 10 Best Books of 2005' by The New York Times. The story centers around a 15-year-old boy named Kafka who plans to leave his home to escape an Oedipal curse and to find his long-lost mother and sister, with his conscience named Crow who gives him advice, warns him in dangerous situations, and gives him a harbinger of protection. Themes of isolation and surrealism can be observed in the story. The purpose of a story is to delight the reader with interesting plots and scenes that revolve around reality and fantasy.

As the novel begins, our main character, Kafka's reason for leaving is a violent relationship with his father, a famous sculptor. Kafka's father, talented but terrible, curses Kafka on the eve of his escape: Kafka will murder his father and eventually sleep with his mother and sister. Sadly, Kafka does not know his mother or his sister as they escaped from his father eleven years prior. Kafka has no recollection of them. When Kafka is preparing to run away from home, sits in his father's study with the so-called Crow (his imagined persona). Kafka is nervous, Crow advises him to be tough and strong, and make sure he has taken enough money to survive, at least for a while. Crow warns Kafka that he will have to weather a storm 'a storm that he will not be able to outrun because it is within Kafka himself'. Upon arriving in a town on the outskirts of Takamatsu, Kafka comes to a small private library where he finds refuge. Kafka's tale runs parallel to another character: Nakata, whose story is told in alternating chapters with Kafka's. Nakata is a mysterious old man who is also traveling to Takamatsu. As the novel carries on, Nakata and Kafka's separate lives become one story. Nakata kills Kafka's father (curiously at the same time an evil character Johnnie Walker is killed) and follows Kafka to Takamatsu, but does not meet him. Nakata states that his purpose is to perform great magic - like opening the entrance stone. The entrance stone is presented as the way for mortals to gain knowledge from other worlds.

Time is short for both the old man and the boy as the police are hot on their trail regarding the murder of Kafka's father. Sensing Kafka's need for help, Oshima decides to hide Kafka in his family's cabin. Kafka struggles with the weight of his father's curse and has to decide between accepting it or fighting it. As Kafka battles his inner demons, Nakata and Hoshino escape the police by hiding in an apartment on the edge of the city. Kafka and Nakata never meet, though Nakata has become Kafka's savior, freeing him from the curse of his violent father. The novel ends with Nakata dying and Kafka living - facing his past in hopes of creating a better future. Hoshino continues Nakata's magical work in remembrance of the old man.

After reading the story, I was a little confused because I couldn't understand what the story was trying to portray. When you first read the story you wouldn't understand who the boy named crow but if you use critical thinking you will know that Kafka and the Crow are the same people, not different people. Crow is Kafka's conscience or an imagined persona of Kafka. This story has a lot of hidden messages that excite me to read the whole story, what I also like about this story is that it has a lot of lessons in life that all of us can relate to. Specifically, when the crow tells Kafka about the sandstorm, the sandstorm that the crow was telling is about the problems, challenges, and trials that we will face in our journey in life and the consequences of facing the reality. Everyone faces challenges, and those challenges challenge a person's growth. These challenges will reveal not what we are, but who we are, such as what potential and capabilities we have. Every problem makes a person better. It makes someone stronger and bolder. The challenges in life have taught us a lesson that each of us can learn and learn how to manage ourselves.