The City and Its Uncertain Walls

Throughout the novel, the walled-in town and the mountainous town are the two primary settings and feature similar characteristics. Compare and contrast these two towns and analyze what effect their similarities have on the protagonist.

Haruki Murakami uses a lot of similes in The City and Its Uncertain Walls. Why is the simile an especially important or useful literary device for this novel? How do these similes impact the development of themes throughout the novel? Pay particularly close attention to those used to describe the protagonist’s feelings.

How does the passage of time—or the lack thereof—impact the protagonist’s decision making, both in reality and the walled-in town? How does it impact his sense of who he is?