Kitchen Literary Elements

Fiction; Novella

Tokyo in the 1980s

The story is told by Mikage, a first-person narrator.

Tone: contemplative, introspective, comforting, poignant, meditative

Mood: nostalgic, peaceful, melancholic

The protagonist is Mikage Sakurai, a young woman suffering from the loss of her grandmother. An antagonist in the story is the man who kills Eriko, the person who took Mikage in and gave her a new outlook on life.

There is not a major conflict in the way we see in other novels; to the extent that there is one, the conflict is whether or not Mikage will attain a level of happiness and contentment—potentially with Yuichi—in the aftermath of her grandmother's death.

Eriko is murdered by a crazed man at the club, throwing Mikage back into melancholy, Yuichi into serious depression, and their potential for happiness into doubt.

1. When Yuichi and Mikage are in the elevator together, they talk about the moon influencing what one cooks. Yuichi mentions "udon," which foreshadows that he will be rescued from his depression by Mikage bringing him katsudon.
2. After Yuichi tells Mikage about Eriko's life, she says, "What an amazing life story!", to which Yuichi replies, "She's not dead yet." This foreshadows Eriko's death later on in the novella.

N/A.

1. There are numerous allusions to Western culture, including, but not limited to, Charles Schultz's "Peanuts" cartoon, the TV show "Bewitched," and the Jungle Cruise at Disneyland.
2. Mikage compares meeting Eriko to Helen Keller understanding 'water' for the first time; Helen Keller was a famous deaf/blind writer and activist.
3. Mikage says she feels like Joan of Arc.

Throughout the novella, the weather mirrors Mikage's feelings. For example, when she suggests cooking for Eriko, the image of the room becomes bright, indicating her happiness: "The entire apartment was filled with light, like a sunroom. I looked out at the sweet, endless blue of the sky; it was glorious." There is also a lot of imagery regarding plants as living things.

Mikage thinks to herself after her dream that Yuichi apparently shared, "What had happened was utterly amazing, it didn't seem so out of the ordinary, really. It was at once a miracle and the most natural thing in the world" (41). Obviously, it is paradoxical that something can be both amazing and ordinary, miraculous and natural.

After the death of her grandmother, Mikage is so depressed that she cannot complete the simplest tasks. Yuichi and his mother nurture her until she recovers. Similarly, Mikage nurtures Yuichi when he grieves over the loss of his mother.

N/A.

1. When Mikage sleeps at Eriko and Yuichi's house, she notices how "the plants breathed softly, resting" (16) This emphasizes that she considers the plants a symbol of life, and finds comfort in their proximity.
2. "It was then that a miracle, a godsend, came calling one afternoon" (5). Mikage is referring to Yuichi.
3. "I'll stare death fearlessly in the eye" (4).
4. "Lit by a small fluorescent light, all kinds of plates silently awaited their turns; glasses sparkled" (9).
5. After Mikage parts from Sotaro, "the feeling traveled to some infinitely distant place and disappeared" (26).