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Book 1, Chapter 4
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Reality and Subjective Experience
Free Will
Desire and Irrationality
The Personal Impact of War
Social Alienation
Summary
Analysis
The next day after breakfast, Toru rides his bike to the laundromat to pick up his tie. The owner is annoyed that Toru did not come to pick up the tie sooner and tells him there is a good chance it is lost. However, when the owner goes to look for it, he finds it right away. After obtaining the tie, Toru calls Kumiko and gives her the good news. Kumiko is glad Toru found the tie, but she does not have time to talk, so the phone call is brief.
Malta’s prediction came true, which suggests that there is some truth to her claims of supernatural powers. Here, Toru starts taking Malta’s words seriously. He even finds the whole experience exciting, so he calls Kumiko to share the good news with her.
Themes
Back at home, Toru is bored and does not know what to do with his time. Eventually, he decides to look for the missing cat, even though it is raining outside. If nothing else, Toru feels his effort will make Kumiko happy. As Toru leaves his house, he hears a phone ringing. He thinks it might be his phone, but he is unsure. Regardless, he ignores it and starts walking through the alleyways behind his home.
Although Toru initially does not mind his lack of employment, he quickly becomes bored with it. He has no one to talk to all day and spends much of his time thinking rather than doing. However, again, the cat motivates Toru to get leave the house.
Themes
Toru returns to the abandoned house where he met May a few days before. Something about the abandoned house attracts Toru. He looks around to see if anyone is observing him. When he sees that no one else is around, he decides to trespass. The yard of the abandoned house is overgrown, as no one has tended to it for quite some time. There is something about the property that reminds Toru of his childhood. While standing on it, he feels like no one else can see him, which is a feeling that reminds him of being a child. He starts whistling The Thieving Magpie.
Toru’s boredom and time off from work lead him to act in ways that previously would have been out of character. Although trespassing is not a major transgression, it is a transgression, nevertheless. However, the property has a certain enigmatic aura that lures Toru to it. The relationship between Toru, his childhood, and the abandoned house is significant and will be important later in the story.
Themes
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Suddenly, a voice interrupts Toru’s search. Toru turns around and sees May. May asks Toru what he is doing, and Toru says he is looking for his cat. May tells Toru that it does not look like he is looking for the cat, considering he is just standing still and whistling to himself. Toru formally introduces himself to May, who tells him she does not like his name. She asks him for a nickname instead. Toru does not have a nickname, but eventually makes one up to satisfy her: “Mr. Wind-Up Bird.” May finds the nickname strange and asks Toru to explain himself. In response, Toru explains the sound of the wind-up bird, which he and Kumiko hear every day.
Just as Noboru is associated with cats, Toru is associated with birds. Thus, symbolically, this could position Toru as Noboru’s prey, though that relationship has yet to play out in the novel. However, the wind-up bird has other symbolic associations in the book, including free will. As “Mr. Wind-Up Bird,” Toru could be the one who winds the spring of the world, as Kumiko put it at the beginning of the novel. Alternatively, Toru could be the wind-up toy itself, which springs into action only after an outside source winds it and thus is not in control of its actions.
Themes
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May looks at Toru and tells him that his hair is thinning. May’s comment bothers Toru, who realizes she is right. He asks May what she knows about baldness. May explains that she works for a wig company, which is why she knows a lot about men’s hair. Then, she asks Toru if he would like to come and work with her since he does not have a job. Toru says he will come with her sometime because he has nothing better to do.
Although May’s comments are blunt, she does not mean them to be unkind. However, to most people, they would be considered rude, which is perhaps why May spends her time talking to men twice her age rather than any friends she might have. Throughout the novel, Toru meets several individuals like May, who are socially alienated from their peers and are desperately looking for connections with other people.
Themes
Then, May asks Toru if he wants to see a dried-up well near the abandoned house. Toru says he would, so May leads him to it. Toru takes the cover off the well and looks into it. Toru can tell the well is deep, but it is too dark to see how far it goes. May explains that the well is dried up, and Toru wonders what happened to the water. Additionally, the thought of water reminds him of Mr. Honda. After a moment, Toru returns the cover to the well and returns home.
Wells are another important symbol in The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, though at this point, their purpose is not entirely clear. Of course, wells hold water, which is significant for Mr. Honda and Malta. Traditionally, water is a symbol of life, which makes a dried-up well an ominous symbol.
Themes
