The Good and Evil in People

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Some of the greatest minds in the world experience a lack of this displacement from society around them. In fact, one does not need the title of “greatest” to feel this way; displacement is a natural trait that occurs in all humans during different stages of their lives. Katagiri is one of them. Haruki Murakami's "Super-Frog Saves Tokyo” textually illustrates mild-mannered Katagiri’s journey through reclaiming his own self-worth is a social commentary on accepting the duality of human personas.

The story starts out as Katagiri enters his apartment finding a giant six-foot frog, later known as Frog, towering over “five-foot-three" meek Katagiri. Frog immediately takes charge of the situation and instructs Katagiri to remain calm; this is interesting because even though it is Katagiri’s place, Katagiri acts as this he is the actual guest instead of Frog. Katagiri’s actions towards Frog makes readers question what type of life Katagiri lives as Katagiri’s acts of cemented shin instantly label him as a “loser.” How can Katagiri break from this mold?

To visualize Katagiri achieving this goal, some readers interpret Frog as a manifestation in Katagiri’s head that displays the inner strength Katagiri holds. Frog's actions show signs of great bravery and confidence. After calming Katagiri down somewhat, Frog gets down to business by stating that he" [came] here to save Tokyo from destruction” (Murakami 93). Whereas Katagiri is constantly nervous, Frog shows great confidence; the same confidence inside Katagiri that he himself refuses to acknowledge. Frog shows Katagiri the person that Katagiri is on the inside and what Katagiri can be if he takes the initiative to stand up for himself. Because the task of saving Tokyo seems daunting, ...

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...n from such categories. Murakami creatively constructs societies’ categorical process through Katagiri’s materialization of Frog and Worm. Despite the fact that Frog defeats Worm, Frog cannot survive without worm like people cannot survive without their best and worse qualities. Murakami's “Super-Frog Saves Tokyo” perpetually distorts reality; this mandates people to question what exactly is good or evil, and why is it necessary to make a clear distinction when they intertwine?

Works Cited

"Love/Lust: Vampires." Love/Lust. Sundance Channel. Television.

Murakami, Haruki, and Jay Rubin. "Super-Frog Saves Tokyo." After the Quake: Stories. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2002. 91-114. Print.

Palahniuk, Chuck. Fight Club. New York: W.W. Norton & Co, 2005. Print.

Yamamoto, Mitsu, and Robert Louis Stevenson. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. New York, NY: Baronet, 1990. Print.

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