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| Novella The Factory |
****
The English-language debut of one of Japan's most exciting new writers, The Factory follows three workers at a sprawling industrial factory. Each worker focuses intently on the specific task they've been assigned: one shreds paper, one proofreads documents, and another studies the moss growing all over the expansive grounds. But their lives slowly become governed by their work―days take on a strange logic and momentum, and little by little, the margins of reality seem to be dissolving: Where does the factory end and the rest of the world begin? What's going on with the strange animals here? And after a while―it could be weeks or years―the three workers struggle to answer the most basic question: What am I doing here?
With hints of Kafka and unexpected moments of creeping humor, The Factory casts a vivid―and sometimes surreal―portrait of the absurdity and meaninglessness of the modern workplace.
***
Author : Hirohito Oyamada
Published date : 29 October 2019
Genre : fiction, contemporary, Japanese Literature
Original Language : Japanese
Judging by the pages, I thought the novella is typically one-sit-ending, yet I was wrong. The Factory, brings a quite heavy theme, weaving the mundane life and philosophical idea about the essence of life.
There are three protagonists told in the story. A young and ordinary woman in the early 20s, a 30’s man that just out of a permanent job, and a researcher just offered a project in a mega-factory.
The woman initially applies job for a permanent position, but judging from her experience, switching one job to another in a short term, she got offered a temp work. She will be in charge of shredding documents at the supporting department that lies in the basement and far corner of the building. Not that the job is not important, people in that department should know that all documents are confidential so potentially, somebody may approach them to leak the documents.
The middle aged-man offered to work as a proofreader in the factory. Same as the woman, he works as a temp. There are few people in his department, and most of them are women. Every day, he read all of the documents and corrects them, yet he is unsure that his contribution matter. Many documents he read, in Japanese, and English but nobody teaches him anything. He only can consult with the dictionary on his desk, and not long, he falls into a routine, and sometimes, he dozes off on his desk. Something that was previously really shameful, but lately, it is acceptable.
The researcher, who previously worked at the university and suddenly offered to work at the factory for the project on green moss. From the beginning, the work offer was strange. He was asked to transform the factory’s roof into green moss, yet he will work alone In the department. There is no deadline or supervisor for his work. Once a year, he held a Moss hunt in the factory, to identify moss vegetation throughout the factory.
The factory itself is so big, even bigger than the city. At least someone in every house or someone that they know works at the factory. If someone works there, it is an achievement.
Though at first, we cannot see the connection between those three protagonists, slowly we learn it. But no matter the connection, the most brilliant thing about this book, is the detailed description of the surrounding, the sound, the air, and the environment are so vivid and slowly, without realizing, the story shifted from the mundane life into the essence of human life.
There are many questions asked that may be relatable to ours. Why are we even here? Why do I need to work? Is life really about working? Every day we face the same routines, without we realized, that 15 years have gone by and we missed out on many things.
We are introduced from the three different perspectives. Younger workers, that may still have many choices on how to build their career yet should be thankful to have a job while many others do not; middle-aged men, have few choices of career but must face dull jobs every day, and a respectable job; researcher, an idealist yet got confused the relation between his field of job and the applicability in the factory.
I understand why the book is such a hit, especially in Japan, one of the countries with the longest working hours. There are many workers out there who question why we even live if life is about working?
Then, why I said this book cannot be categorized as one-sit-ending, is because the author has a unique way to tell the story without bothering with the usual rules of paragraphs. Sometimes, the story jumps to one another without any marking or new paragraph. So the reader must concentrate to read and understand it, avoiding rereading it.
It is a very unique book. Many may dislike it because of the strangeness. Bold writing from the newcomer author, that successfully gathers the world’s attention.
It was a good read and refreshing!
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