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Midori Kobayashi
Naoko’s roommate at the Ami Hostel who becomes both her and Toru’s close friend. A woman in her late thirties whose lifelong battle with depression has caused her to “snap” and lose her mind several times, Reiko has a kind, frank, congenial demeanor but is hiding a dark, traumatic past. In spite of her own fears about living in the world and participating in life—fears that mirror Toru’s and Naoko’s but run much deeper—Reiko is happy and at peace with herself and determined to share her gift of music with those she loves. An accomplished guitarist and former piano prodigy, Reiko eventually reveals to Toru that a sordid incident from her past, in which one of her young piano pupils seduced her, then claimed Reiko raped her, has torn Reiko from her life and made her too ashamed to rejoin society. By the end of the novel, however, after Naoko’s suicide—and with the support of Toru’s friendship—Reiko decides to live in the “real world” and take a job in the far north of Japan in a town called Asahikawa. Reiko travels to Tokyo to stay the night with Toru, and she tells him that Naoko left her all of her clothes. The two of them mourn Naoko by playing her favorite Beatles songs all night, and then have sex. The next day, Reiko leaves for Asahikawa, and Toru bids her a tearful goodbye, promising to visit her soon. Asahikawa is a spiritual place in Japan, often viewed as the door between the world of the dead and the world of the living—a more avant-garde interpretation of the novel suggests either that Reiko, too, is planning to kill herself and journey to the realm of the dead along with Naoko and Kizuki. Or, it could be that Naoko, in bestowing her “clothes” upon Reiko, somehow possessed Reiko’s body after her death and has finally achieved her desire to enjoy sex with Toru once again before departing at last to the spirit world. Jovial, talented, and often lewdly or provocatively funny, Reiko represents an externalization of Toru’s fears about participating in life to the fullest and making himself vulnerable to others in spite of what the costs may be down the line.
Reiko Ishida Quotes in Norwegian Wood
The Norwegian Wood quotes below are all either spoken by Reiko Ishida or refer to Reiko Ishida. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 6
Quotes
“You’re one of us while you’re in here, so I help you and you help me.” Reiko smiled, gently flexing every wrinkle on her face. “You help Naoko and Naoko helps you.”
“What should I do, then? Give me a concrete example.”
“First you decide that you want to help and that you need to be helped by the other person. Then you decide to be totally honest. You will not lie, you will not gloss over anything, you will not cover up anything that might prove embarrassing for you. That’s all there is to it.”
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“That song can make me feel so sad,” said Naoko. “I don’t know, I guess I imagine myself wandering in a deep wood. I’m all alone and it’s cold and dark, and nobody comes to save me. That’s why Reiko never plays it unless I request it.”
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Chapter 11
Quotes
Gripping the receiver, I raised my head and turned to see what lay beyond the telephone booth. Where was I now? I had no idea. No idea at all. Where was this place? All that flashed into my eyes were the countless shapes of people walking by to nowhere. Again and again, I called out for Midori from the dead center of this place that was no place.
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Get the entire Norwegian Wood LitChart as a printable PDF.
Reiko Ishida Quotes in Norwegian Wood
The Norwegian Wood quotes below are all either spoken by Reiko Ishida or refer to Reiko Ishida. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 6
Quotes
“You’re one of us while you’re in here, so I help you and you help me.” Reiko smiled, gently flexing every wrinkle on her face. “You help Naoko and Naoko helps you.”
“What should I do, then? Give me a concrete example.”
“First you decide that you want to help and that you need to be helped by the other person. Then you decide to be totally honest. You will not lie, you will not gloss over anything, you will not cover up anything that might prove embarrassing for you. That’s all there is to it.”
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
“That song can make me feel so sad,” said Naoko. “I don’t know, I guess I imagine myself wandering in a deep wood. I’m all alone and it’s cold and dark, and nobody comes to save me. That’s why Reiko never plays it unless I request it.”
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Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 11
Quotes
Gripping the receiver, I raised my head and turned to see what lay beyond the telephone booth. Where was I now? I had no idea. No idea at all. Where was this place? All that flashed into my eyes were the countless shapes of people walking by to nowhere. Again and again, I called out for Midori from the dead center of this place that was no place.
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