Charmaine - Final Thoughts

Before this semester, I had always seen Murakami's writing as magical realism, and hadn't questioned this author-to-genre association. In this past semester, as I continued to read more Murakami as well as compare his work to those of other authors, whether he drew inspiration from their writing or not, I found myself questioning whether it really was as cut-and-dry as that. There were so many sides to his writing that it was hard to pinpoint whether one could simply associate him with just one writing genre. And delving into the books even more had allowed me to enjoy Murakami's work at a deeper level, better understanding so many aspects to each individual novel as well as his writing as a whole.

However, in the end, I still believe that Murakami's writing is mostly magical realism, with hints of other genres here and there. 

In my final paper, I focused on Murakami as a magical realist, and how his writing portrays his own, original form of the genre. Drawing examples from two of my favorite Murakami novels, A Wild  Sheep Chase and Kafka on the Shore, I tried to elaborate on the points in which I thought made his writing specifically magical realism. In this way, I also found myself learning new things from each novel. During the process of writing my final essay, I was inspired to go back and re-read the Murakami novels I've already read before, as well as continue reading more of Murakami's works, so that I can further develop my understanding of his writing that I've enjoyed so much of since I was first introduced to his novels.