The Art of Haruki Murakami’s Narrative in Pinball, 1973

Abstract

Abstract

Pinball 1973 comprises the second part of a trilogy and is the second novel written by Haruki Murakami. It is a shorter work as compared to his other novels; almost like a novella. The reason that I have chosen this particular novel for the explication of his art of narration is not only because it is a fascinating novel in all aspects, but also because, despite it being an early novel and despite its brevity, it brings all the Murakamian techniques and concerns to the forefront. Any discussion of narrative techniques must begin with the crucial distinction between ’s tory? and ?plot?. Peter Barry explains: The ’s tory? is the actual sequence of events as they happen, whereas the ?plot? is those events as they are edited, ordered, packaged, and presented in what we recognise as a narrative?the ’s tory?, being the events as they happen, has to begin at the beginning?and then move chronologically, with nothing left out. The ?plot??may well begin somewhere in the middle of a chain of events, and may then backtrack, providing us with a ?flashback? which fills us in on things that happened earlier. (Barry 223)