The custom of having sex with a curtain

In The ceremonySayaka Murata (Inzai, 1979), one of the most interesting writers on the Japanese narrative scene, has decided to reflect on the concept of normality. Humor and fantasy combine in a writer determined to defend difference, people who do not fit into a society full of pre-established, often stupid, norms. Themes such as family, friendship, sex, loneliness, and selfishness hover throughout the stories of the author of best-seller The girl from the 24-hour store (2016), motifs that he analyzes from a perspective tinged with strangeness and grotesquery.

We are faced with twelve ceremonies or rituals of everyday life scrutinized from a dark point of view: food, sex, death, relationships, power, etc. In the words of Jordi Nopca in the prologue to this edition: "Broadly speaking, The ceremony is a book where Sayaka Murata once again questions the meaning and purpose of many relationships, expands the eating habits of her characters [...] and gives a second life to the human being." Because, deep down, normality, as Murata states, is nothing but a type of madness.

In all of Sayaka Murata's stories The ceremonyThe author is observant and has a far-reaching vision, a narrative mechanism that also characterizes Valle-Inclán's work. In Murata's case, we find teenagers who adopt businessmen as pets, clothing made from human tissue, funeral ceremonies that end in cannibalism, or the custom of having sex with a curtain... plots that, at first, may seem surreal or worthy of science fiction, steeped in custom and horror. An absurdity that we should accept as normal, inherent to the absurd human condition.

To disturb: this is the main function of the art. Sayaka Murata aims to make the reader uncomfortable so that they realize the social pressures and expectations exerted on women, especially in romantic, professional, and family settings. She does so from an asexual perspective, which dismisses any gender judgment. Instinct doesn't exist, morality—a mere construct, like language or rituals—doesn't exist, the author repeats. The title story, for example, is set in an undetermined future, when society has already fallen into disarray and eating human flesh has gone from being taboo to a common social ritual. Funerals are called ceremonies of life, and those attending eat the flesh of the deceased: "Your husband is delicious, Mrs. Nakao [...] It's a most beautiful tradition, don't you think? We consume life, we create new life..." says one of the funeral guests. Sex, meanwhile, is no longer a dirty, intimate act but is practiced out in the open.

Murata's ability to combine dark humor with deep, serious themes creates an interesting contrast that holds the reader's attention. The ceremony It can be understood as a metaphor for the social restrictions and conventions that individuals must overcome to find their true identity, however illogical it may be. Hence, Murata creates female characters who are victims of social or emotional isolation and struggle between persistence and conformity.