Woman In The Dunes Belonging

themselves from society through escaping their oppressive environment. In The Woman in the Dunes, Abe explicitly points out Niki’s fieldwork as an escape by saying “Many disappearances, for example, may be described as simple escape” (1). Similarly, Murakami also clarifies Mari’s behavior as an escape through Takahashi’s question to her: "You're not a runaway, are you?” (35). Faced with a hostile environment and unable to communicate with others effectively, Niki and Mari choose to withdraw from society. However, their alienation cannot solve the problem of identity loss; just the opposite, this retro-gradation further leads to a static and passive social relation which will continue trapping them in an oppressive world. The second

This reflection further helps himself to redefine his previous life in the city and prepare his new life in the dunes. When Niki watches the woman cleaning away the sand and spending her entire time in bleak surroundings, he begins to realize that his seemingly meaningful profession has no difference with the woman’s job. They both have to repeat their alienating and valueless work in an endless cycle (Currie 6). In front of the “mirror,” Niki uncovers his self-deception and admits that his aboveground life is like “deeply buried rock at the bottom of the current” (80). From the mirror image, he redefines his past and discovers the reason for his sense of oppression. With a clear self-realization, he is now ready to form a new identity and accept a new life in the desert. Contrary to Abe who regards “mirrors” as a reflection of the past existence, Murakami argues that others as mirrors can show the present self. For example, in After Dark, Takahashi’s and Korogi’s words act as mirrors from which Mari can redefine herself. When the story begins, Mari has little confidence. Comparing with her outstanding sister, she always considers herself as a useless person. However, through her conversion with Korogi, Mari begins to see her