1Q84

The quality most shared by 1Q84’s three perspective characters is a profound sense of loneliness. More than that, the three characters have been lonely for so long that they become fully accustomed to feeling this way, hamstringing efforts to overcome that loneliness. The lack of parental love Aomame received as the daughter of Society of Witnesses members, combined with her outcast status at school as a religious zealot, make her feel most comfortable when she is alone. Only two times in adulthood does she open herself up to female friendship, and those two friends die violent deaths—Tamaki by suicide to escape an abusive husband and Ayumi by strangulation by a presumed male sex partner.

Before and shortly after entering 1Q84, Aomame copes with this loneliness by treating sex as nothing more than a physical need—a valve to be released at regular intervals with men whom she has no interest in beyond a single evening. Meanwhile, the only emotion she affords herself is her love for Tengo, a person she hasn’t since they were children. This is a convenient coping mechanism, given that there is little chance they will ever cross paths again. Aomame explains her reasoning to Ayumi: “If you can love someone with your whole heart, even one person, then there’s salvation in life. Even if you can’t get together with that person” (192).

However, because 1Q84 is a staging ground for individuals to work out their feelings of loneliness, the alternate universe places Tengo directly in her path. Aomame must still take active steps to reunite with him, first by saving his life when she kills Leader and later when she follows Ushikawa from the playground—two moves that put her at great risk. Thus, the book shows that bold, fearless action is required to overcome loneliness and reunite with a lost love.

Meanwhile, Tengo is required to make similar bold and fearless moves to overcome his loneliness, though he takes emotional risks, not risks to his life. Given that his loneliness is rooted in his father’s cold and loveless upbringing, Tengo must reconcile his feelings about his father by traveling to the sanatorium in Chikura. He does so in a train ride that is framed as Tengo’s own crossing into 1Q84—or as he refers to it, “the town of cats.” Just as important, Tengo must choose not to linger too long in Chikura so he can move forward. At his father’s funeral, Nurse Adachi tells him as much: “Leave that up to cats. [...] Better to think about the future” (861). In short, it is a two-part process: Only by reconciling with the past and then letting go of it can Tengo emotionally prepare himself to be Aomame’s lover and partner.

Unfortunately, Ushikawa does not learn these lessons fast enough to avoid a grim fate. Although his encounter with Fuka-Eri’s piercing glare through his camera’s viewfinder is enough to jolt him out of his lonely complacence, he takes no steps to change his life or attitude. This is expressed by the ease with which he accepts the appearance of a second moon: “Principles and logic didn’t give birth to reality. Reality came first, and the principles and logic followed. So, he decided, he would have to begin by accepting this reality: that there were two moons in the sky” (845). While Aomame’s reaction to a second moon is to believe there is either something wrong with the world or something wrong with her, Ushikawa is content to ignore these warning signs and continue on his same track—which leads to his death at the hands of Tamaru.