IndexIntroductionKafka On The ShoreAnalysisConclusionIntroduction Haruki Murakami is an acclaimed Japanese writer and his books are perhaps the most translated from Japanese to English. Loved by everyone around the world, the release of his books is greeted by crowds of people lining up to get his latest work. Growing up, Murakami identified closely with works outside Japan and, rejecting traditional Japanese ways, began to appreciate jazz and Hollywood, which contributed greatly to his current works. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Taking inspiration from the Western world, Murakami ran a jazz bar in central Tokyo when he was 29 years old. It was then that he first had the urge to write, and he later produced his first novel "Hear the Wind Sing", which earned him the New Writers Award. In his first novel “Hear the Wind Sing,” he wrote the first few pages in English and later translated them into Japanese just to hear how they sounded. He is also a translator and has translated many other English works, most notably "The Great Gatsby" into Japanese. Although proficient with the English language, Murakami writes in Japanese, which is then translated into English by his personal translators. In an interview he stated that he never reads his works in translation, as reading his works in a different language might be disappointing. “My books exist in their original Japanese version. That's the most important thing, because that's how I wrote them." Kafka On The Shore Kafka On The Shore was published in 2002 in Japan and later translated into English by Phillip Gabriel. It tells the story of two castaways, Kafka Tamura and Nakata. Kafka, the first refugee, flees from his home and his father who kills cats to make flutes from their souls, and ends up at the home of Mrs. Saeki, owner of a library. Nakata's story begins with an X-File recording by Americans about a group of fourth graders going up into the mountains to look for mushrooms before seeing a UFO and fainting. They wake up shortly after, with the exception of Nakato, who remained in a coma for a few days before waking up, disoriented, but with the ability to talk to cats. Kafka and Nakato's lives become intertwined when Nakato kills Kafka's father, who he thought was Johnnie Walker. It is a surreal, coming-of-age novel, featuring the struggles of all the characters in battling their personal demons. I chose this particular translated book by Murakami because it is very different from his other works, a new style of writing. Murakami's other previous works were about adults and their stories. But with Kafka On The Shore, he writes in the language of children, Kakfa is a bright boy of fifteen, and Nakata, a man of sixty who has never developed mentally beyond that of a child. Philip Gabriel also explained that translating this book was a different task as some details required days of experimentation and finding the right voice for the characters in English. Analysis Umibi no Kafuka, which translates to Kafka On The Shore was translated by Philip Gabriel, and the English version can definitely feel the presence of the new translator. The problem I find with translation is that the author's voice changes very often. In other works of Murakami, Jay Rubin was an important translator and one could see the difference in the ways of translation of different English writers. In the original text, the essence of the small village of Japan, the puzzles left by the original author, and certain words and phrases were so strong that the translation simply did not.