Sputnik Sweetheart
Encyclopedia
is a novel
by Haruki Murakami
, published in Japan
, by Kodansha, in 1999. An English translation by Philip Gabriel
was published in 2001.
The novel's protagonist, Sumire, is an aspiring writer who survives on a family stipend and the creative input of her only friend, the novel's male narrator, 'K'. 'K' is an elementary school teacher, 25 years old, and in love with Sumire, though she does not quite share his feelings. At a wedding, Sumire meets an Ethnic Korean woman, Miu. The two strike up a conversation and Sumire starts to work for the older, married woman. Over time, she realises that she is attracted to her, and thus, that she might be a homosexual. Miu tends to encourage Sumire's quest for companionship and even intimacy, though she suggests a more realistic estimation of the younger woman's aspirations and ideals.
Miu proposes that Sumire accompany her on a business trip to France. Sumire obliges her. In France, they meet a gifted British writer who suggests the two women make use of his vacant house on a Greek Island. Miu takes Sumire to Greece and their relationship blossoms. They bathe in the nude and reveal deep-seated secrets with one another. One of these secrets involves an incident that Miu believed fractured her spirit.
The next night, Sumire makes sexual advances that Miu does not respond to appropriately. Her lack of excitement disenchants the younger woman, who goes back to her own bed. The following morning, Miu discovers that Sumire is missing. She telephones 'K' and asks him to fly out to Greece, to help find his friend. 'K' obliges but their extensive efforts to locate Sumire are unsuccessful.
With the new school season approaching, 'K' and Miu return to Japan separately. 'K' goes about returning to his old life. He never hears from Miu again, despite her promising to keep in touch.
As with other Murakami works, Sputnik Sweetheart lacks a clear, concise ending. If the plot is to be taken literally, devoid of subjective interpretation, then one night, out of the blue, Sumire calls 'K' and tells him that she is back in Japan. She conveys that she is ready to reciprocate his feelings, and asks him to pick her up at the same phone booth she always called him from.
While Sumire is an emotional and spontaneous individual who often appears to be a misfit in society, "K", the narrator, is a person who has through sheer force of will moulded himself into another person, one who integrates seamlessly into the wider society and culture around him, and the transition leaves him emotionally stunted and unable to express his feelings. When Sumire is also, through her interaction with Miu, forcibly shaped into a person other than she is, the transformation is neither permanent nor successful.
The book's major themes include loneliness and people's inability to truly know themselves or the people they love. This is symbolized by the recurring metaphor of the Sputnik satellites orbiting at a distance from the earth. As in The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
and Dance Dance Dance
, Murakami uses (or rather, suggests) alternate worlds as a plot device. "K", the narrator, is a markedly different protagonist from those of Murakami's other novels. He is considerably less given to or adept at wisecracks, maintains a respectable and stable profession as a schoolteacher, and is less self-confident and much more introverted and conflicted than any other Murakami protagonist.
Many elements of the plot remain deliberately unresolved, contributing to the idea that true knowledge is elusive, and actual events of the story are obscured in favour of the characters' perceptions.
The book ends with the theme of The Telephone, which appears in numerous books by Murakami, usually when telephoning from a far-away place, whose location is unclear.
, while a passage of the book was used in channel 4's tv drama Nearly Famous
.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Haruki Murakami
Haruki Murakami
is a Japanese writer and translator. His works of fiction and non-fiction have garnered him critical acclaim and numerous awards, including the Franz Kafka Prize and Jerusalem Prize among others.He is considered an important figure in postmodern literature...
, published in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, by Kodansha, in 1999. An English translation by Philip Gabriel
Philip Gabriel
J. Philip Gabriel is a full professor and department chair of the University of Arizona's Department of East Asian Studies and is one of the major translators into English of the works of the Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami....
was published in 2001.
Plot summary
The plot features three main characters: Sumire, Miu, and 'K'.The novel's protagonist, Sumire, is an aspiring writer who survives on a family stipend and the creative input of her only friend, the novel's male narrator, 'K'. 'K' is an elementary school teacher, 25 years old, and in love with Sumire, though she does not quite share his feelings. At a wedding, Sumire meets an Ethnic Korean woman, Miu. The two strike up a conversation and Sumire starts to work for the older, married woman. Over time, she realises that she is attracted to her, and thus, that she might be a homosexual. Miu tends to encourage Sumire's quest for companionship and even intimacy, though she suggests a more realistic estimation of the younger woman's aspirations and ideals.
Miu proposes that Sumire accompany her on a business trip to France. Sumire obliges her. In France, they meet a gifted British writer who suggests the two women make use of his vacant house on a Greek Island. Miu takes Sumire to Greece and their relationship blossoms. They bathe in the nude and reveal deep-seated secrets with one another. One of these secrets involves an incident that Miu believed fractured her spirit.
The next night, Sumire makes sexual advances that Miu does not respond to appropriately. Her lack of excitement disenchants the younger woman, who goes back to her own bed. The following morning, Miu discovers that Sumire is missing. She telephones 'K' and asks him to fly out to Greece, to help find his friend. 'K' obliges but their extensive efforts to locate Sumire are unsuccessful.
With the new school season approaching, 'K' and Miu return to Japan separately. 'K' goes about returning to his old life. He never hears from Miu again, despite her promising to keep in touch.
As with other Murakami works, Sputnik Sweetheart lacks a clear, concise ending. If the plot is to be taken literally, devoid of subjective interpretation, then one night, out of the blue, Sumire calls 'K' and tells him that she is back in Japan. She conveys that she is ready to reciprocate his feelings, and asks him to pick her up at the same phone booth she always called him from.
Themes & Literary Interpretation
Murakami explores familiar themes such as the effects of prolonged loneliness, growing up emotionally stunted in an overwhelmingly conformist society, and the conflict between following one's dreams and clamping down on them in order to assimilate into society.While Sumire is an emotional and spontaneous individual who often appears to be a misfit in society, "K", the narrator, is a person who has through sheer force of will moulded himself into another person, one who integrates seamlessly into the wider society and culture around him, and the transition leaves him emotionally stunted and unable to express his feelings. When Sumire is also, through her interaction with Miu, forcibly shaped into a person other than she is, the transformation is neither permanent nor successful.
The book's major themes include loneliness and people's inability to truly know themselves or the people they love. This is symbolized by the recurring metaphor of the Sputnik satellites orbiting at a distance from the earth. As in The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
is a novel by Haruki Murakami. The first published translation was by Alfred Birnbaum. The American translation and its British adaptation, dubbed the "only official translations" are by Jay Rubin and were first published in 1997...
and Dance Dance Dance
Dance Dance Dance
is the sixth novel by Japanese writer Haruki Murakami. First published in 1988, the English translation by Alfred Birnbaum was released in 1994. The book is a sequel to Murakami's novel A Wild Sheep Chase, although the plot lines are not entirely contiguous...
, Murakami uses (or rather, suggests) alternate worlds as a plot device. "K", the narrator, is a markedly different protagonist from those of Murakami's other novels. He is considerably less given to or adept at wisecracks, maintains a respectable and stable profession as a schoolteacher, and is less self-confident and much more introverted and conflicted than any other Murakami protagonist.
Many elements of the plot remain deliberately unresolved, contributing to the idea that true knowledge is elusive, and actual events of the story are obscured in favour of the characters' perceptions.
The book ends with the theme of The Telephone, which appears in numerous books by Murakami, usually when telephoning from a far-away place, whose location is unclear.
In popular culture
The book is mentioned in the movie Paris, Je T'aimeParis, je t'aime
Paris, Je t'aime is a 2006 anthology film starring an ensemble cast of actors of various nationalities. The two-hour film consists of eighteen short films set in different arrondissements...
, while a passage of the book was used in channel 4's tv drama Nearly Famous
Nearly Famous
Nearly Famous is a television drama mini-series about a group of British teenagers at a top London school of the performing arts. It is shown in the UK and Ireland on E4. The show has been compared to other teen drama series such as The OC and Skins. The show debuted on E4 on 8 November 2007 and...
.
See also
- Sputnik program
- Jack KerouacJack KerouacJean-Louis "Jack" Lebris de Kerouac was an American novelist and poet. He is considered a literary iconoclast and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his spontaneous method of writing, covering topics such as Catholic...