The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa - Book Summary, Analysis, Review
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- čas přidán 22. 07. 2024
- Welcome to the CodeX Cantina where our mission is to get more people talking about books! Let's talk about "The Memory Police" this week by Yoko Ogawa. I think this piece can be hard for many to feel comfortable in offering an interpretation. We think the marketing of this one was tough with it appealing to SciFi as well as Literary Fiction fans. Maybe it sat between genres? Maybe there are many meanings? Let's talk about how she pulled this off and some of the possible interpretations to help bring meaning to our reading.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS:
0:00 Introductions
0:50 Publication Info
4:48 Plot Summary
7:31 Discussion
33:20 Wrap Up and Ratings
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I will forever be obsessed with the fact that the final 6 pages of the book are blank. Makes you think words have disappeared as well
❤️
I DIDNT NOTICE
my book didn’t have those pages.. could it be just a printing thing😬
I loved this book! No need to over analyse it. It's just wonderful and surreal and sad. Are you like the island people who forget and just adapt without giving a fight, or like R, who tries to recover what might be lost for ever? Should we be in the middle? Should we just learn to identify when we need to fight an when we need to let go?
Great advice
The biggest surprise/let down of this book is the role of Memory Police never really developed and the absence of WHY things are disappearing. I guess WHY does not matter much or intentionally avoided, I guess it is more about ‘SO WHAT’ or ‘WHAT NOW’ ….
I think a lot of people felt that way
Seconding this!!
I agree 💯.
Also the total absence of any kind of resistance by the people who do remember makes it feel unrealistic - like not even one person feels any anger or curiosity - that is alien to me.
Like why are the memory police taking away people who remember…why is this such a threat to those in power?It’s so suspicious. And so what if some people remember - so what? Why go to such lengths to enforce disappearances ? Plus the memory police is not afflicted with the disappearance of the left leg- more suspicious now. The sheer passivity is mind numbing, soul sucking and frustrating.
Plus though I understand why the ending is what it is- it falls flat for me. Like you blow up a ballon waiting for it to pop instead it deflates making a slew of farting noises.😅
There are many things I like about Memory Police but these were a few core points that didn’t work for me.
I think it was because of, at least for me, reading it through a western perspective we expect something different. It seems to have a much more eastern perspective that focuses on the effects of these realities on the people and the relationships. The why isn't the focus, the why gets in the way and steals focus from the effects of the powerless situation they find themselves. The characters' quiet acceptance is juxtaposed to the characters' sense of loss. It's frustrating at first, but the leaning into the reality and looking around and pushing forward is often where we find ourselves in most situations of loss.
My perspective is western, but I've been reading a lot more Japanese writers lately and I've noticed this more recently.
The process of translation has obscured the meaning of the book. The original Japanese title translates literally as “Secret Crystallisation” which places the focus on the island’s inhabitants and how their passive acceptance of loss leads to a dystopian society. By changing the title to “The Memory Police”, our focus is on authoritarian rule- the citizens are now victims rather than enablers. The context of each edition also impacts the meaning- in 1994, Japan was highly conformist and grappling with its own wartime history. When translated to the US in 2019, Americans see parallels with the rise of Trumpism and fascism and the book is viewed in the same way as Orwell’s “1984”.
I just finished reading this book. I love how it left me empty with tons of questions. I want to keep it that way, but I still went here to hear your take on it. Thanks for the great review ❤
Awesome. Nothing wrong with that!
As someone that doesn't do well with wordy novels and struggles to read "adult" books. I was able to get through this one, not that it was hard to read but it was so haunting and the depth left me exhausted. I read it as more of an allegory than a dystopian world. I thought it had maybe ties to dementia or memory loss. But I think in the end it was all those things, but the key thing I took from it is, it doesn't come on fast, change, oppression it's little by little, you might notice but nothing huge, until one day you look back it's all changed and it's gone. Maybe I'm rambling but this book touched me mentally and spiritually
Great take on it. I’m sad it was haunting but glad it could touch you. That’s the best when we can connect with a book!
@@TheCodeXCantina I think why it was so haunting, and what a lot of people do with books that don't tell you what is going on or guide you how to feel or think. Is you take out of it what resonates with you, for me I take care of my Mom 65 and step Dad 81. who has dementia and watching someone not know what day it is time, ask if this is their house. Watching someone lose who they are right in front of you is truly heartbreaking.
The conversation about totalitarianism and how it affects the people instead of learning about HOW the government is doing stuff is interesting. Because it would make sense for the normal people to never learn why or how something happened. Also the memory loss discussion but that the objects are still around. I still have no idea what I think about the book!
I recently found out about split brain syndrome and Cameron and I watched several videos on it and it's so fascinating!
Fancy timing on that! I have a personal history with that back when I was looking at post bach programs.
I think gratitude is a huge factor in this read. Loss is inevitable. Appreciate what you have.
The most thorough review I've stumbled upon. Thank you so much for this!
You're very welcome!
Thanks guys for the interpretations. It really helped
Our pleasure!
Thanks!!!!!!!!! Actually I like this book besides the ending. I've read it I I thought: omg I have no idea what it was about, no closure, no explaination. I did not expect the plot, I've only been waiting for beautiful story and thanks to you it's more clear right now :)
Thank you so much for this video! I found it so beneficial and interesting to watch! 😊
Glad it was helpful!
Oh I am so glad I stumbled across this video! I recently read it and I enjoyed the writing and the book as a whole so much. I loved that the writing has just enough embellishments, not too many, not too few. Those type of books, that make you reflect a lot and leave you almost empty at the end are really right up my alley. Contrary to what I've seen, I didn't go into this expecting a revolution or rebellion against the government. I felt like the way people dealt with the loss and the disparitions in such a casual manner sometimes was quite reflective of the reality. Hear me out .... the humans, and especially nature, tend to adapt and conquer any calamity you throw its way. Look at us in the past years for example, going through a pandemic and we still found ways to move on and solve the problems ... to create new ways of doing things. I actually found it quite sad how they accepted their faith without putting up a fight, however, I didn't find it strange because, in my opinion, that is how the majority of people would comply to it in real life as well. There's also another message I found reflected in those pages, and that is : no matter how much you suffer the world won't stop spinning for your pain. No matter what you loose, no matter how hurt you are ... the world in the end will keep moving on with or without you.
I love it. Thanks for sharing
I have been not so patiently waiting for this video... I do like a pretty good plot... but I still am just so fascinated with the premise of this book.
For sure. What would you rate it overall?
Great vid and discussion for the book!
Thanks
very good discussion..i love this book but at the same time it makes me wonder about how real it is that we slowly settle at loosing things we love and know....
Very sad. A good thing to reflect on for our own lives! Thanks for watching.
After thinking about it I really like the idea that this is all in her mind.
It was the one that hit me as the most interesting
Interesting discussion:) . I finished the book a month ago and did not understand some of the ideas, but the writing was beautiful, so I was able to enjoy the rest of the book.
Enjoying it is the most important part! Cheers
Thoroughly enjoyed this discussion and our other conversations around this book. It was definitely an enjoyable experience if I I didn't particularly like the book. Thank you for the discussion. Really enjoyed getting to see all the work you put into your notes as well
Glad you enjoyed it! Were you the five? I think there was a 5, two 6s, and a 7, right?
@@TheCodeXCantina Yes, 5 or 6 I can't remember now
This channel should have more viewers
Oh, why thank you!
Hi both ..late to the party but welcome your insights , as always ...I read this book as a fable and had no issue with it's form or with some of the lack of believability/ explanation / exposition ...I found the Shinto ideas very interesting as I did have the feeling when reading that a Japanese reader would be reading this at another level . I loved it ...so much to think about beyond a framework that sees simply a story about totalitarianism or grief .. I'm a medic so the whole notion of the brain and how it functions and defines us makes sense ..and that room where R was was a liminal space suspended between floors that allowed mental traffic between two worlds...and the old man living on the shore , another liminal space...even the novel within a novel is the narrator's liminal space which she gradually looses ...I get what you say about the shallow characters but with no memories to draw on it's harder to give characters depth without a back story ...so I went with that ...
Great comment as always! Such a strange story where we all connect and disconnect from it in so many ways
So happy I found your channel. This is my second read of Memory Police. I read it two years ago and had no one to chat about it. I run a book club and I suggested it for our December read. I like the idea that it's an island for people who are losing their memory. I think the narrator is there because she is losing her memory and the Memory Police are actually there to monitor the people. However, her mother was taken away along with others....and the family believed they would be taken away too. I guess I don't understand why an entire family would be living on the island or why they feared for their lives so much that they had to leave.
I know it's been some time since you guy read the book. Your memories may have faded by now, so I don't know if you'll have any thoughts about the book. I really enjoyed your analysis. Thanks so much!
I can see that. Thanks for sharing
Great discussion on the book and Yōko Ogawa. Can’t say I was a big fan of this one but I’m pleased to see so many people read it. I hope Stephen Snyder continues to translate more of her books, hopefully some of her more recent works. I am curious to see how she improved as a writer. For example most people recommend _The Housekeeper and the Professor_ which she wrote before _The Memory Police_ but I was more drawn to _Revenge_ it’s darker and more complex, and since they are eleven inter-connected stories, might be a better suggestion for you guys
Knowledge Lost I wanted to read Housekeeper first. Everyone raves about that one. We did this just as some other friends were interested too. It didn’t turn me off from her writing, but it didn’t scratch that itch like I thought it would. Thanks for the recommendation. My library has Diving Pool. Have you read that one by her?
I have read Diving Pool a few years ago, it was decent collection of novellas. I can’t say much more about it because it was hundreds of books ago and sadly didn’t write anything about it
The only thing I listened to was the final ratings to see how desperately I need to find a copy to read. Sounds like it may be more of a library read to start. Hope you both have a great weekend.
Cheers, Jack
Yeah, for me it was for sure a backlog it for our Wrap Up. I think Krypto is going to rate it higher though. It's this really strange space where you find yourself thinking about it for a long time...
"The discussion was more fun for me than the book itself" haha been there!
"No plot" AND "no character"...😩
It’s a unique experience. Not many authors will do thematic writing
@@TheCodeXCantina I love theme, but not often at the expense and character and plot Haha.
Have you guys read Mark Dunn's 'Ella Minnow Pea"? I really didn't fancy this book, though the idea of persistence of vision disappearing former memories of those things is quite an interesting one.
You didn't fancy Ella Minnow Pea or The Memory Police? I just looked up EMP and it looks rather fascinating from a linguistics exploration. I haven't read it yet
@@TheCodeXCantina Sorry yes confusing syntax. Ella Minnow Pea is wonderful, simple & yet so subversive. It was the Memory Palace I didn't fancy
Despite being the direct descendent of Holocaust survivors I didn't really latch on to the totalitarianism of the story. Perhaps because the memory loss came across as such a supernatural thing outside of even the Memory Police's control (though it seems odd that they seemed unaffected, as shown when limbs started disappearing). They came across to me more as damage-control than full-on control. That kinda makes me prefer the "this is all in someone's mind" idea but I'm also open to the idea that it could be more abstract than that or that my Western ideas/ways-of-thinking might be holding me back from a deeper meaning, as the story-within-the-story escapes me. Was definitely an interesting read.
Thanks for sharing. It was definitely something different
Awe!! Krypto living on in Una's heart!! I can't.... I just can't.... ❤️ You guys!
This sounds like such a trip
Lol. Noah, there's always a room for you in our hearts too
@@TheCodeXCantina 🥺
Just as info, the audio book had a slight noise like wind blowing on paper at the start and at end of the novel parts of the book.
That's so cool!
Glad Krypto went into it with the same expectations I did and we rated it about the same! Also what are you doing taking my brand and explaining the science in the book??? Just kidding of course, loved it and all the things you guys pulled out of it
You had first crack! Your video couldn't have been more accurate with how much fun it is to think about after the fact!
@@TheCodeXCantina Honestly never thought of the interpretation haha I need to remember to point my boyfriend to these videos. I think he would really like this and our Sirens of Titan discussion
Goodluck for yeare 12. Get a 98 atar'
Question how was her story manipulative
The narrator or the author's? Been a while since I read it now...
It made more sense to me that it was losing her memory by the "police" rather than war with police like during the nazi regime. Especially with the ending of her just completely fading away
I think that's a popular one!
Personally, and I mean no disrespect to Ogawa's premice or skill, but I couldnt help but think that this is really a childrens book. There are some nice touches but if you go for skillful or dense prose, this book isnt for you. I can imagine enjoying it aged about 13. And there is nothing wrong with that at all.
NOT A GOOD BOOK wouldn't recommended it to anyone... Great review though 😁
😂
this book is mid lets be honest