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Chapter 12: Broome, 1940
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
Dr. Ibaraki and Stanley Suzuki strike up a friendship, chatting about their families. Stan tells Ibaraki about a girl, Isabelle, whom he has liked for years. Stan’s mother wrote to say that she asked about him, but Isabelle believes he is in the army, and he does not want to tell her he is interned. Stan asks Ibaraki if he has a wife, and he says yes but avoids talking about her and leaves the room.
The development of Ibaraki and Stan’s friendship demonstrates that sharing aspects of one’s life and oneself contributes to healthy connections. Still, his inability to talk about Kayoko indicates that Ibaraki still has healing to do before he can share that part of himself with his friends.
Themes
Dr. Ibaraki checks on Harada. As he watches Harada sleep, he thinks of his devotion to Minnie. Harada stayed with Minnie instead of going back to Japan, where it was safer for him. Ibaraki contrasts this with his own choice to leave Japan and lose contact with Kayoko. Ibaraki reflects that perhaps he stopped writing to Kayoko too quickly—he sent two letters from Broome but never got a reply and stopped writing after that. He reflects that Harada would have fought for the woman he loved, pride aside.
The next day, when Dr. Ibaraki goes to check on Stan, he senses a divide between them. Ibaraki confesses that he and his wife are separated because he was not able to be there for her in her time of struggle. He tells Stan that not saying more to Kayoko before he left is his biggest regret, and he encourages Stan to write to Isabelle. He tells Stan to dictate the letter while Ibaraki writes. Ibaraki helps him infuse more sentimentality into the letter. Ibaraki has a memory of his wife helping him study his medical vocabulary.
Ibaraki’s decision to tell Stan about his situation with Kayoko in order to heal their friendship demonstrates a huge amount of personal growth on Ibaraki’s part. When he helps Stan inject more sentimentality into the letter, he shows his capacity for that sentimentality, which he has not demonstrated in the novel thus far.
Themes
By late June, the last of the sleeping huts are complete. Whereas before, Dr. Ibaraki slept in a tent with eight men, he now sleeps with 50 men in a cabin. He welcomes the change, relaxing in the new dynamic. He begins to spend more time with his teammates on the baseball team. A week before the championship, Johnny Chang and two other men go to their hearing in Melbourne. One day in the canteen, Dr. Ibaraki runs into Mr. Yamada. Yamada asks him about Stan’s return to camp. Yamada praises Ibaraki for the success that the baseball competition turned out to be and encourages him to come to the championship despite his shift in the infirmary.
Ibaraki’s changing social situation highlights the personal growth that he undergoes in the camp, existing in solidarity with his fellow internees. On the other hand, Johnny’s upcoming hearing provides Johnny with hope. Yamada’s encouragement of Ibaraki to come to the baseball game throws his character further into question—though Yamada may have been the cause of Stan’s suicide attempt, he also seems to be a friend to Ibaraki.
Themes
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That night, Dr. Ibaraki wakes in the middle of the night to find one of the old men in his tent staring at the floor. The man points out that the dirt on the floor, which is a lighter red than most of the dirt at the camp, is shaped like a fan. Ibaraki marvels at its beauty and ponders the way that wind can change everything.
This philosophical moment in the novel reminds Ibaraki and the reader of the possibility that circumstances can change at any time.
Themes
