BOOK REVIEW

INTRODUCTION

The book ‘Breasts and Eggs’ , written by Mieko Kawakami portrays a radical and sensitive account of modern working class womanhood in Japan, documenting the journey of women in a world where the odds are stacked against them. The novel Breasts and Eggs, was formerly published in Japanese in 2008 as “Chichi to Ran”, was originally a short novel which was awarded the 138th Akutagawa Prize. In 2019, Kawakami published the novel “Natsu Monogatari” , a longer rewritten version of Chichi to Ran. This version, was translated into English and published in 2020 . It was regarded as the ‘Notable Book of the Year’ by New York Times .

Born in Osaka (Japan) , Mieko Kawakami made her literary debut as a poet in 2006 . Her writing is known for its poetic qualities and its insights into the female body , ethical questions and the dilemmas of modern society .

CONTEXT OF BOOK REVIEW

Choosing this particular book for a review is based upon the intimate theme of the book . Mieko Kawakami puts an entirely different perspective into the picture which inculcate a sense of reflecting and questioning the choices we make and our mindset behind making these choices . The Author exhibits some of the peculiar issues in the lives of women which trace their genesis from the deep rooted patriarchy in the society , but displays the courage of women who in turn sail their ways by making such bold choices which gives this novel a challenging notion for the conventional tenet . While reading this book , there were times where this book has shaken my core understanding of ‘how things should be’ and I ended up getting a totally different perspective which has actually added value to my cognitive abilities . This book forced me to think about certain questions like : Is there anything regarded as the ‘complete use’ of women’s body ? Is it wrong to bring a new life into this world where it will certainly end up in misery and pain?

I was intrigued to think about the bodily conceptions of women set by this society and questions pertaining the role of ‘sex’ in ‘making women as women’ . This encircles the theme of the book which surrounds around a women who wants to have a child and feel like a ‘complete women’ , but without having any bodily contact with a male. Moreover , in the course of this review , I will be presenting it in more of a feminist perspective and how the theme of this book is complimenting it .

A BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE BOOK

The book is divided into two parts :

When her older sister Makiko (39 years old) and her 12-year-old daughter Midoriko visit her from Osaka, Natsuko Natsume (30 years old) is shown as a struggling writer. This section focuses on Makiko's obsession with undergoing breast augmentation surgery and her trip to Tokyo to look into reasonably priced solutions. Contrarily, Midoriko hasn't talked to her mother in six months, is secretly preoccupied with her changing physique, and seeks solace in her notebook . Midoriko is attempting to understand what is happening with her body as she was stepping into the age of adolescence where her body was undergoing several feminine changes which were irksome for her and decides not have children in her entire life .

The second part is set 10 years after the first. It explores Natsuko's desire to become a mother and her reluctance to do it the traditional way because, for her, sex was “never enjoyable or comforting or fulfilling” and she had a sensation of ‘dying’ after doing it . She had decided that a thing like ‘sex’ was never meant for her . Over the course of the book, the readers see Natsuko evolving into a published author but, even more than her struggle to write a novel, she wrestles with her desire to have a child . Without a partner, Natsuko seeks other possible means of ‘Donor- conception’ to fulfil her deepest wish to be a mother as she continues to grow older alone.

ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION OF THE BOOK

One of the core element of the book revolves around the struggle faced by single mothers . Natsuko’s father left them when she was in elementary school and was violent in nature . Makiko was also raising her daughter as a single mother . In our society , women’s capabilities are always doubted , but this book perfectly enunciate the empowerment of women and their abilities to do everything a man can do . Often , it happens that men are highly judgmental towards women . They always want to tell them what to do and how to do . Such instances in the book includes Natsuko’s new editor as he says that Natsuko lacked ambition and can never be a writer . Her ex boyfriend , Naruse said that “she wasn’t doing enough and had to do more in life.” Men live with a notion that they are better off than women in every respect . On the same line of thought , Mary Wollstonecraft argued that “women had the potential for full rationality and consequently were as capable as men of complete moral responsibility” . Moreover , Natsuko took her maiden name ‘Natsume’ contradicting the patriarchal systems of lineage .

The book delves into understanding the attitude of young girls about their bodies when they step into adolescence as we can see Midoriko’s reflections over the outlook of menstruation created by the society . She had a different perspective of looking at such things. She wonders about the word ‘men’ in ‘menstruation’ . She wonders that “if menarche has nothing to do with men , then why to pronounce it that way ? . This serves as an example that how patriarchy is intrinsically present in every aspect of a women’s life . Moreover , She doubts the idea of calling periods as a ‘gift’ by people. She says , “ Life is hard enough with just one body , why would anyone want to make another one ? She feels it to be depressing and decides that she will never have children . Midoriko says that “ I was set up to give birth even before I was born “ . Through this , it is enunciated that how gender roles on the basis of sex are rigidly set by the society and everyone expects women to adhere to work as per their sexual requirements . As a reader , it forced me to delve deeper and introspect about what I, as a women , owe to this society.

Standards for Bodily Perfection are deep-rooted in this patriarchal society and this book captures it very profoundly . Makiko desired to get breast enhancement surgery . She even tried painful procedures to enhance the so-called beauty of her nipples to make them ‘pink’ through chemicals . The problem lies when the women feel themselves to be subordinated to these so – called beauty norms which exist in our society . These make them so conscious about their bodies that some women stop feeling beautiful if they are unable to meet these norms as happening with Makiko .

Moreover, even Natsuko had a lack of confidence about her breasts at a time . She wanted to have body which was regarded as ‘sexy’ in movies , magazines and a body which provokes sexual fantasy. She wanted to be touched , to feel pretty and to be valued by men .

Women are always expected to abide by the standards set for them , either in terms of clothing or beauty . Rika Yusa , when invited to an award function , came with her head shaved wearing jumper and jeans, carrying her baby . She challenged the traditional notion about the requirement of women to be perfectly dressed and was there any perfection in real sense of terms ? and what was the need of such perfection when it comes to women ? . Here , the notion of false perfection perceived by society is challenged by her .

Our Society has ascribed sex roles on the basis of biological traits of a being and this brings ‘Androgyny’ into question . For instance, while judging breasts of every women in the bathhouse , Natsuko and Makiko came across a women who looked like a ‘tomboy’ and Natsuko says that, whether they should be allowed on the women’s side ? Was that okay to be naked for the other women in front of that tomboy? . This poses a significant question of assigning identities on the basis of bodily traits . However , the Radical Feminists are of a view that there should be no characteristic assigned to any person on the basis of sex as a major criteria . And if any part of these role definitions are left , then the disease of oppression will assert itself .

As per Rie’s husband , giving birth is natural for women and they shouldn’t take too much time to recover . In the same wave of this thought , when Natsuko asked Rika Yusa that “How do you build trust with a man?” , to this she replied that “ No man will ever understand the things that matters to a women the most i.e. , the pain : how much it hurts to be a woman . Men are taught to believe that their penises make them superior and women are just for it . Men have excessive pride in being men and think that women are made for the gender roles assigned to them . Feminists argue that from an early age , gender is constructed in a way that deliberately undermines the status of females and puts them at a disadvantage throughout their lives .

Rie’s dad used to beat her mom out of no reason and her mom used to laugh it off . Her mom thought that he is the ‘only one’ for her . The sex roles are so deeply embedded in our society that for some women , they have become their way of life . Rie says that “my mum was a free labor with a pussy.”

Women are always sexualized by men in one way or another regardless of their age. The myth of fulfilment of sexual gratification is always attached to women . Subsequently , Natsuko never enjoyed sex . It felt wrong to her and she felt alone and kind of immersed in darkness but she couldn’t tell this to her boyfriend . She always thought that it was on her to fulfil his sexual desires as it was women’s job to go along with man . With this comes out the ugliest side of patriarchy which envisions women as a tool to fulfil sexual desires of a man and give them sexual gratification .

Natsuko also questions that does being single and not having sex nullify the right of a women to have children ? Natsuko’s introspection of her womanhood is clearly visible when she askes herself that ,”Am I really a women?” . She starts questioning her identity based on the societal narrative due to her aversion to sex . This deals with a very pertinent question that what completes a women or what fulfils the purpose of being a woman ? When asked Rika , she suggests that just because Natsuko don’t have a partner doesn’t mean that she has to give up on having a baby. Natsuko wanted to have babies through donor – conception in order to feel the complete essence of womanhood . She somehow believed that “women should have full use of their bodies.” But is there really something called as “full use ?” This reflects the patriarchal sex roles which makes woman to question her own identity . I believe that there cannot be any one identity attached to all women and identities are variable for all . The generalization of specific identity and making all women to adhere to that makes them disconnected to their bodies and soul .

In the end , when Natsuko had a baby girl , she decided to raise her alone as a single mother .

CONCLUSION

The book Breasts and Eggs expertly addresses the difficult issues that many women face on a daily basis. Is my body up to standards? Am I up to the mark? How am I perceived by others? All of these inquiries are crucial in helping a woman become her authentic self. The book neither condemns the decisions made by people nor offers any answers to the challenging issues it raises.

The book provided a well – defined framework towards the peculiar questions of one’s life and leave upon the readers’ discretion to decode them . I think this book will help readers to comprehend deeper meanings of sexuality and put an end to the binaries imprinted in our minds .

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BY : ANADHI SHARMA

Sharmaanadhi25@gmail.com