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A Critical Analysis of Natsuo Kirino's Grotesque University of Oslo

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A Critical Analysis of Natsuo Kirino's Grotesque University of Oslo A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF NATSUO KIRINO’S GROTESQUE ØYVOR NYBORG MASTER’S THESIS IN EAST ASIAN LINGUISTICS (EAL4090) (60 credits) Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages (IKOS) Faculty of Humanities UNIVERSITY OF OSLO Spring 2012 © Øyvor Nyborg 2012 A Critical Analysis of Natsuo Kirino’s Grotesque Øyvor Nyborg http://www.duo.uio.no/ Print: Reprosentralen, Universitetet i Oslo Abstract This study is based on the Japanese novel Grotesque (Gurotesuku) by Natsuo Kirino. I use Judith Butler’s theories of gender performativity and interpellation as a framework to analyze the four main female characters, the unnamed narrator ‘Watashi’, her sister Yuriko, and her classmates Kazue and Mitsuru, and how they are formed and re-formed by the power structures surrounding them. How does the environment we grow up in form whom we become, or to ask in a different way; how much do our surroundings have to say in the constitution of us as discursive subjects? Using Bourdieu’s concepts of habitus and field, and different forms of capital, I put Butler’s theories in a social context, and explain how the main characters in Grotesque can be said to be influenced by the social rules and unwritten norms surrounding them. I also look into some aspects of translation theory, and how the way Grotesque has been translated into English can be said to affect the way it can be read and interpreted. Table of Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... v Table of Contents .......................................................................................................................... vii Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ ix Structure .......................................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1 - Introduction .................................................................................................................. 3 The Purpose of the Study ............................................................................................................ 6 Method .................................................................................................................................... 6 Style Choices .......................................................................................................................... 9 Chapter 2 - Theory ........................................................................................................................ 11 Introduction to Grotesque ......................................................................................................... 11 Composition and Style .......................................................................................................... 11 Background ........................................................................................................................... 17 Analytical Framework .............................................................................................................. 23 Judith Butler .......................................................................................................................... 23 Bourdieu ................................................................................................................................ 28 Chapter 3 - Harmful Interpellations .............................................................................................. 31 The Complex Relationship of Yuriko and Watashi .................................................................. 31 The Incidents at the Rotenburo and the New Year Party ...................................................... 35 What Words Wound? – The Interpellating Power of Words ................................................ 37 Abandonment ........................................................................................................................ 39 Watashi’s Ambiguous Sexuality ........................................................................................... 41 The Objectified Yuriko ......................................................................................................... 43 The Family Field – Kazue and the Importance of Hierarchical Ranking ................................. 45 The Power Structures in the School .......................................................................................... 49 The Four Girls Position within the Educational Field .......................................................... 52 Survival ..................................................................................................................................... 61 Sex as a Weapon ....................................................................................................................... 68 vii Short Summary and Conclusion ............................................................................................... 69 Chapter 4 - Reality and fiction ...................................................................................................... 70 Consequences of a Competitive Society ................................................................................... 70 Mitsuru and Aum Shinrikyo ..................................................................................................... 71 a ue and ‘T den satsu in i en’ ....................................................................................... 73 Short Summary and Conclusion ............................................................................................... 75 Chapter 5 - Translation ................................................................................................................. 76 Translation Issues ..................................................................................................................... 76 The Role of the Publishers .................................................................................................... 78 From Novel to Crime Fiction.................................................................................................... 78 Examples of Changes in Grotesque .......................................................................................... 81 Foreignization and Domestication ............................................................................................ 84 Some Examples of Linguistic Problems in the Translation ...................................................... 85 Short Summary and Conclusion ............................................................................................... 89 Chapter 6 - Conclusion and Further Research .............................................................................. 90 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................. 93 viii Acknowledgements I would like to thank my excellent advisors Reiko Abe Auestad and Bjarke Frellesvig for all their support and patience while writing this thesis. I would especially like to thank Auestad for all her excellent advice and constructive criticism, and for help looking over and commenting my translations. Thank you for introducing me to Grotesque and Natsuo Kirino, as well as the fascinating theories of Judith Butler. This thesis would not have been possible without your help and guidance. Many thanks to Ema Hosoya Cabral for accompanying me in (almost) weekly lunches at Fredrikke, as well as joining me in numerous trips to the library. Special thanks to Marianna Shibanov and Rio Kasai, for many inspiring conversations about Japanese literature, feminism, and women’s position in Japanese society, which have been a great source of inspiration. Thanks to Therese Vangstad and Warda Holm for proofreading this thesis. I would also like to express my gratitude to my family for all their help and support. All mistakes are my own. Oslo, May 2012 ix x Structure In Chapter 1, I will first give a brief introduction to this thesis, and explain the reasons for choosing this particular topic, before presenting my main goals and method, as well as limitations and style choices for this thesis. In Chapter 2 I will first give a brief introduction to Grotesque, focusing on its style and composition. Then I will give a brief account of the time period when Grotesque was written, and the incidents and topics that can be said to have influenced it. Then I will turn to the theory I intend to use as frameworks to analyze Grotesque. I will present the main points of the theories of Judith Butler and Pierre Bourdieu that I will focus on, while giving some examples of how these theories can be used to offer new insight when analyzing Grotesque. Chapter 3 contains the main analysis, where I explore further how the novel can be read in light of the theories of Judith Butler and Pierre Bourdieu. I will examine how these analytical frameworks can shed light to problematic situations that occur in the different social fields, and how this can be said to affect and influence the four main characters. In Chapter 4, I explore the novels link to reality, taking a closer look at the incidents that inspired Grotesque, and how they are linked to the events and characters in Grotesque. I will try and link the content of Grotesque to real life social problems in Japan.
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