Figurative Language In Banana Yoshimoto

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In Banana Yoshimoto’s Kitchen, Yoshimoto comments on the Japanese cultural standard of dealing with emotion - specifically grief - individually. She utilizes vivid imagery, syntax, and figurative language to first explore individuality and the process of grieving in Japanese culture, and later juxtaposing it with how resolution can be found by combating these cultural practices and the benefits of expressing emotions with others. Yoshimoto’s opinion of this cultural standard shines through in the novella and helps the reader understand the pressures of Japanese society and the suppression they face, and how they may be changed. Yoshimoto begins to explore the difficulty of expressing emotion and dealing with grief in Japanese society by depicting …show more content…

Together, the scene Yoshimoto sets through the sky and the nature of running helps explore the way that one may often deal with emotions in Japanese society, and how dealing with these emotions individually may often only lead to temporary relief. Yoshimoto adds multiple other instances of characters dealing with emotions individually and how it often leads to unsatisfactory results. After Mikage hears of Eriko’s passing, Yoshimoto explores her frustration and her willingness to suppress it, writing “In spite of the tempest raging within me, I walked the night path calmly” (48). Yoshimoto illustrates Mikage’s internal conflict, providing another example of Japanese suppression of emotion. Though Mikage has gone through tragedy and emotions are bubbling inside of her, to the outside world she appears calm and normal, conforming to the expectations of the culture. The juxtaposition created between what Mikage feels and what she expresses shows how much the culture influences the characters and the people of Japanese society. Yoshimoto implores this solitude in various other ways throughout the novella, such as when Mikage runs to an ally to cry and express her emotion, assuring nobody would see her, as well as creating a somber mood with dark imagery numerous times throughout the

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