The weight of this Oedipal prophecy is particularly heavy for Kafka, abandoned by his mother and sister at the age of three and without a clue what they look like or where they live. Fifteen year old Kafka labors under the weight of an omen laid upon him by his father, a renown Tokyo sculptor who tells Kafka that he is destined to murder his father and sleep with his mother and sister. But it's no fairy tale, believe me.' And yet, it is. The first person of his own tale, Kafka Tamura begins by informing us, 'On my fifteenth birthday, I'll run away from home, journey to a far-off town, and live in a corner of a small library. Murakami's characters typically sojourn through tales sprinkled liberally with vaguely symbolic encounters, emissaries from the spirit world, and for good measure, a dash of sex. The Oedipus myth is often cited as an example of self-fulfilling prophecy, and became associated with Freudian psychology after Freud developed the theory of the “Oedipus complex.” Characters in Kafka on the Shore discuss the Oedipus myth often because Kafka believes himself to be the subject of an Oedipal prophecy.By Mark Flanagan, Reading a Haruki Murakami novel is always a bit like listening to a Brian Eno composition - mesmerizing, ethereal. When he finds out what has happened, Oedipus blinds himself in anguish. Unwittingly, Oedipus fulfills the prophecy. In the myth, Oedipus receives a prophecy from the oracle at Delphi that he will kill his father and marry his mother. Kafka on the Shore also draws heavily on the ancient Greek tragic myth of Oedipus, immortalized in dramatic form by Sophocles in his play, Oedipus Rex. Kafka on the Shore has also drawn much comparison to Murakami’s other long surrealist works, including The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle. Like Murakami, much of Kafka’s work, such as his short story “The Metamorphosis,” blends unsettling fantastical elements with realism to portray isolated characters dealing with the absurdity of modern life. At the same time, Murakami has also been criticized within Japan for his unconventional style, which draws inspiration from European writers including Kurt Vonnegut and the Czech novelist Franz Kafka. I-Novels typically use a first-person, confessional style, often to take on extremely dark and personal subject matter. Kafka on the Shore is one of many works by Murakami written in the style of the traditional Japanese “I-Novel,” which emerged in the early twentieth century.

Murakami employs a distinct form of magical realism that blends elements of the Japanese literary tradition with foreign influences.

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