The Flying Tobita Sisters
I thought this story had an interesting commentary on how not all (technological) advancements are gifts. It felt slightly unsettling to see how everyone had wings and skinny legs and feet like birds and that no one even used their legs anymore. But when I think about it, this is how we as humans have evolved over time - once we find make a technological advancement and become dependent on it, why would we keep old methods of doing things in practice? We’ve got so many things like electricity and phones and the internet that we can’t imagine our life without, just like the people in the story can’t imagine not using their wings. It’s so interesting how we can see from the narrator’s perspective how society has shifted and adapted fully to a winged existence.
I Chase the Monkey…
I found this story to be kind of confusing, with how long and run-on the sentences were and how the topics seemed to switch from one to the next (a wooden chair to beetles to taking a bath etc). The writing felt very intense; the frustration was palpable across the page. I wonder if the story hints at trauma from sexual assault because it mentions the narrator being touched and uses rather vulgar imagery at times. The description of the monkey chasing the narrator and the narrator chasing the monkey, where both are simultaneously chasing and fleeing each other could point to how the narrator can’t avoid her trauma/psyche. The whole piece feels almost claustrophobic - the words are dense on the page and it goes in circles, sometimes mentioning the same things like the bath, the mirrors, and looking up her skirt.
Mogera Wogura
This story fascinated me. It was interesting reading from the perspective of the “mogera wogura” and how he views human society. The humans who have no more spirit to live and are “eating away” at their surroundings and themselves was a relatable concept. People can get so drained from their lives or a fear of the future that they become void of passion and drain out their surroundings in the process. It’s difficult for me to explain, but there are people who I’ve met (or even times I’ve done this myself) who are so drained and burnt out that they affect the people around them. People’s energies are contagious. I also found it interesting that the narrator mentions how the humans make such a big fuss over death and get really sad over it, but still toss out the babies who look like the mogera wogura without a second thought. Also interesting that the narrator describes how the only time he sees the humans “light up” is when they shed tears. It shows the paradox of human emotion, and it made me think: do we enjoy crying?
A Peddler of Tears
A Peddler of Tears was slightly unsettling because the narrator found so much gratification in sacrifice. Is it because she feels like her sacrifice is love? It was interesting yet uncomfortable to see the narrator go through pain and cry just to make the musicians sound better. Maybe this shows how emotions and grief are commodified in art - sob stories become bestsellers, and grief is considered high art.
My Baby
What stood out to me the most from this story was the question of “is it right to get rid of something we fear even if we don’t know if it’s malicious?” This is in reference to the Mies, whom the mother in the story worries incessantly about and wants them gone, even though the father reassures her that they don’t even know if the Mies are baby-eaters. I was a little confused what the “peeling” referred to. What does it mean to peel a cliff?
Paprika Jiro
The men-in-suit invaders felt cartoonish in this story, with the scale of destruction they cause. I also couldn’t really tell if the invaders were real or not, because it’s mentioned that after no one believes in them anymore, they kind of start disappearing. It was interesting how the marketplace just accepted the invaders as a part of daily life, accepting the destruction as ordinary.
No comments:
Post a Comment