1Q84

What is the significance of the song “It’s Only a Paper Moon”? Look up the lyrics and read them while listening to the song. How does the song act as a sort of anthem for the book 1Q84?

What do you believe the Little People symbolize? Murakami keeps the meaning of the Little People fairly obscure, so there is no one right answer. That said, you should reference the text carefully when answering this question.

How would you characterize Fuka-Eri’s motivations throughout 1Q84? Does she aim to undermine the Little People or support them? Consider her possible status as either a maza or a dohta?

What do you think it means to enter 1Q84? What tends to happen to individuals shortly before they see the second moon, indicating that they are in the new world? And do you think it’s a conscious choice when individuals enter 1Q84?

How would you characterize the book’s sexual politics surrounding consent? How do the events of Book 2—in which Leader justifies his acts as a serial rapist and Fuka-Eri herself rapes Tengo—complicate the work the book has done to center the experiences of trauma survivors up to that point?

What do the three perspective characters have in common? What makes them differ from one another? And why do you think these three particular people see the second moon, signifying their entry into 1Q84?

To what extent is Ushikawa responsible for his death? Could his death have been avoided? And how does his response to entering 1Q84 differ from Aomame and Tengo’s? Does that have anything to do with his death?

What do you think is the book's stance on religion? While most of the depictions of religious organizations are negative, there are also a number of characters—including Aomame, eventually—who believe in God, albeit in their own way. How does the book reconcile these two seemingly conflicting thematic strains?