8 Haruki Murakami Tropes And What They Really Mean

6. Jazz On The Brain

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhFs8DOZsPs What It Is: Jazz! Everybody knows what jazz music is. Can you name one Murakami novel that doesn't feature a single reference to jazz music? The truth is that it would be extremely difficult €“ perhaps even impossible. So what's up with all the jazz? What It Really Means: Aside from the fact Murakami loves jazz music (it's well-known that he used to own and run his own jazz bar) it serves a particular literary function: establishing the tone. Though the vast majority of people won't know what specific pieces of music Murakami is referring to, you almost definitely know what jazz sounds like, and the images that are associated with it. Smoky bars. Melancholy drinkers. Totally standard fare for Murakami, and the kind of scene you'd find in stories written by one of his biggest literary inspirations, British/American detective fiction writer Raymond Chandler. By mentioning jazz music, Murakami establishes a tone without even having to describe it.