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Chapter 9: Tokyo, 1935
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in After Darkness, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Dangers of Nationalism
Isolation and Trauma
Kindness, Compassion, and Selflessness
Racism, Xenophobia, and Division
Guilt and Atonement
Summary
Analysis
One day in April, Dr. Ibaraki receives an invitation to a celebration at President Kanemori’s house. The occasion is tenchosetsu, a celebration of the Emperor’s birthday. Ibaraki learns that the Japanese community of Broome celebrates the holiday in a big way. On the day of tenchosetsu, Ibaraki attends a ceremony at the Japanese Association’s headquarters, where he sees Japanese women dressed in their fine kimonos, a rarity for Broome. Many of Broome’s white residents also attend the ceremony.
The celebrations of the Japanese community demonstrate the community’s dedication to maintaining their cultural traditions. The white attendees at the ceremony remind the reader that Broome society was somewhat integrated.
Themes
After the ceremony, Dr. Ibaraki attends the celebration at President Kanemori’s house. At this event, the guests are mostly Japanese with no white attendees. Ibaraki finds himself being more social and less self-conscious than usual. He feels lucky to be in Broome. Once the crowd thins out and all that’s left are the men who came without their wives, he leaves the party.
Ibaraki’s high spirits at the party show that community gatherings can have a positive effect on one’s mental health. The fact that only single men remain at the end of the party highlight Ibaraki’s separation from his wife and reminds the reader of the ways that this separation affects his existence in the social world at large.
Themes
On Dr. Ibaraki’s walk home, he begins to crave a shaved ice lemon drink from Ellies’, a local café. When he arrives at Ellies’, William Ellies greets him by name. Suddenly, Sister Bernice calls Ibaraki’s name. Ibaraki tells her how much he enjoyed the holiday, and she tells him that she is glad to see him so happy and that he deserves to take more time off. Ibaraki walks Sister Bernice home and they discuss their childhoods. Sister Bernice shows him the boab tree and tells him that the beauty of its flowers make her feel at home in Broome. Ibaraki feels light, as though the weight of the past has been lifted.
Ibaraki’s craving for an Ellies’ shaved ice highlights his integration into the town of Broome and its establishments. Ibaraki’s walk with Sister Bernice reminds him that human connection partially comes from sharing information about oneself. When Sister Bernice says that the boab tree makes her feel at home in Broome, she encourages Ibaraki to find what makes him feel at home in Broome.
Themes
