Essay Questions

How is femininity portrayed in the novel?

The novel portrays women in a highly sexualized manner. The adult female characters, Aomame in particular, are shown as characters whose huge part of their personality involves sexuality and sexual behavior. Concepts of manic pixie dream girls and femme fatale are applicable. Aomame is the depiction of a femme fatale, a professional seductive killer. The introduction of Fuka-Eri’s character is problematic, because the teenage girl is portrayed as an ambiguous character whose behavior transcends her age and her appearance is described in a sexual manner through the eyes of Tengo.

How is the concept of religion portrayed in the novel?

Air Chrysalis and the depiction of little people as well as concepts of dohta and maza are all allusions to religious concepts. The little people are described as creatures that existed since the beginning of times, and always looked for a way to interfere with the humanity on a physical level. They are portrayed as neither good nor evil, but impartial when it comes to the human fate. It can be deducted that this concept is more of a negative take on religion.

What is the significance of the story about the cat town?

The cat town story is a complex short story within the novel. It is a story about a boy stumbling upon a town inhabited only by talking cats with no human in sight. The boy spends one night hiding observing the cats. When the next day comes and the train stops at the station he decides to follow his curiosity and stay for one more night to find out more about the cat town. The following night the cats smell his presence but can’t see him despite coming nose to nose with him. The boy finds it odd as well and decides to leave the cat town when the next train arrives. Unfortunately, the train does arrive, but doesn’t stop. The boy realizes that the train will never stop there again and that he was meant to be lost there. The story contains several important messages, one of which is the danger of excessive curiosity. Another important messages include to not take things for granted, take the opportunity as it comes because you never know what tomorrow entails.