distinction. On the contrary, he believes that the essence of a person is always there within a subconscious it is simply up to the individual to unveil it. person’s – III. Lack of Identity This doubt of existence stems from the fact that and the Japanese of one’s Tōru his generation are lacking a concrete identity. At first does not fully understand the Tōru concept of an and is disappointed that he has no external characteristic that ‘identity’ distinguishes himself from anyone else. In the beginning of the novel, believes that Tōru having an identity is equal to having external uniqueness and does not comprehend that ultimate source of self comes from within. However, Malta Kano, the medium, is one’s able to identify immediately when they first meet in a café despite the fact that he is Tōru not wearing the polka dot tie that he told her he would be wearing. This indicates that although is not aware of his own identity yet, Malta Kano sees the potential of an Tōru identity forming within him; essentially, identity is something that exists mainly in the internal world. This concept of identity as being something that is developed internally rather than externally continues with the death of Mr. Honda, a type of medium that Kumiko and visit at the wish of her parents. Upon his death, Mr. Honda specifically leaves Tōru empty box, which is delivered by Lieutenant Mamiya, who served in the war Tōru an with Honda. was absolutely empty. All that Mr. Honda had left me was an empty “It states. He is not sure what to make of the box at first. But it becomes clearer box,” Tōru as the novel unfolds that the box represents identity: it is empty because he has Tōru’s
distinction. On the contrary, he believes that the essence of a person is always there within a person’s subconscious – it is simply up to the individual to unveil it. III. Lack of Identity This doubt of one’s existence stems from the fact that Tōru and the Japanese of his generation are lacking a concrete identity. At first Tōru does not fully understand the concept of an ‘identity’ and is disappointed that he has no external characteristic that distinguishes himself from anyone else. In the beginning of the novel, Tōru believes that having an identity is equal to having external uniqueness and does not comprehend that one’s ultimate source of self comes from within. However, Malta Kano, the medium, is able to identify Tōru immediately when they first meet in a café despite the fact that he is not wearing the polka dot tie that he told her he would be wearing. This indicates that although Tōru is not aware of his own identity yet, Malta Kano sees the potential of an identity forming within him; essentially, identity is something that exists mainly in the internal world. This concept of identity as being something that is developed internally rather than externally continues with the death of Mr. Honda, a type of medium that Kumiko and Tōru visit at the wish of her parents. Upon his death, Mr. Honda specifically leaves Tōru an empty box, which is delivered by Lieutenant Mamiya, who served in the war with Honda. “It was absolutely empty. All that Mr. Honda had left me was an empty box,” Tōru states. He is not sure what to make of the box at first. But it becomes clearer as the novel unfolds that the box represents Tōru’s identity: it is empty because he has
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