The Memory Police
A dystopian novel about enforced forgetting on an island.
The Memory Police is a 1994 science fiction dystopian novel by Japanese author Yōko Ogawa. Its tone is dream-like and melancholy, influenced by Franz Kafka, and its island setting echoes George Orwell’s *Nineteen Eighty-Four*. An English translation by Stephen Snyder was released in 2019 by Pantheon Books and Harvill Secker.
The story follows a novelist living on an island controlled by the Memory Police. An unknown force causes the inhabitants to collectively forget objects or concepts—such as hats, perfume, birds, and ribbon—and lose their attachment to them. As people move on from these disappearances, the Memory Police enforce the removal of the vanished items. Those who still remember, like the author’s mother, try to escape or hide in safe houses to avoid capture. The author’s editor, R, reveals he is one of the few who still remembers, and fears being taken. With help from an old family friend, the protagonist hides R in a secret room in her home. While there, R tries to help the author and the old man recall long-disappeared objects, but fails. As calendars vanish, winter persists and spring never comes, and food grows scarce. The Memory Police raid the author’s house during the old man’s birthday but miss the secret room. Later, novels disappear, and the protagonist works as a typist. On R’s insistence, she continues writing her own novel and keeps some books. After an earthquake, broken sculptures from her mother reveal hidden objects—a ferry ticket and a harmonica—that had long disappeared. She investigates her mother’s cabin, which R believes holds more vanished items, and retrieves them with the old man. The old man later dies from a brain hemorrhage. Soon, inhabitants forget body parts, and the Memory Police capture those who retain a sense of the “disappeared” parts. The author, despite great difficulty, finishes her novel—a love story that turns dark. The inhabitants, including the author, slowly accept their fate as they forget their own existence and vanish. Before disappearing, she reassures R that he and others who preserve their memories will eventually come out of hiding.
*Time* named it one of the best books of Summer 2019, writing that “Ogawa’s fable echoes the themes of George Orwell’s *1984*, Ray Bradbury’s *Fahrenheit 451*, and Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s *100 Years of Solitude*, but it has a voice and power all its own.” The *Chica
- original_title
- 密やかな結晶 (Hisoyaka na Kesshō; 'Secret Crystallization' or 'Quiet Crystallization')
- author
- Yōko Ogawa
- original_publication_year
- 1994
- genre
- Science fiction dystopian novel
- original_language
- Japanese
- english_translator
- Stephen Snyder
- english_publication_year
- 2019
Lore & Background
The story follows a novelist on an island under the control of the Memory Police. An unknown force causes the people of the island to collectively 'forget' and lose their attachment to objects or concepts, such as hats, perfume, birds, and ribbon. As the inhabitants move on from the disappearances, the Memory Police enforce the removal of the disappeared objects from the island. The people who continue to remember, such as the author's mother, attempt to escape from the island or hide in safe houses to evade capture by the Police.
R, the author's editor, reveals himself to be one of those who still remembers the disappeared objects, and fears that he will be taken by the Memory Police. With the help of an old family friend, the protagonist arranges and hides R in a secret room in her home. While hiding, R then tries to help them recall some of the long disappeared objects to the author and the old man, though to no avail. As the calendars disappear, the winter continues and spring never comes. Food is becoming scarce on the island.
Subsequently, novels disappear as well, and the protagonist works as a typist. After an earthquake, some of her mother's sculptures break and reveal more objects that had disappeared, including a ferry ticket and a harmonica. The author, along with the old man, manage to retrieve the objects and hide them in her home. One day, the old man dies from a brain hemorrhage. Soon after, the inhabitants are made to forget some of their body parts. The author finishes her novel of a love story that took a dark turn. The inhabitants, including the author, slowly began to accept their fate as they forget their own existence and vanish.
Reader's Guide
The Memory Police has been recognized as a significant work of speculative fiction. It was named a finalist for the 2019 National Book Award for Translated Literature, as well as for the 2020 International Booker Prize, and was also a finalist for the 2020 World Fantasy Award. Critical reception has drawn comparisons to works by George Orwell, Ray Bradbury, Gabriel García Márquez, Samuel Beckett, and Kobo Abe. The novel's themes of enforced forgetting and resistance through memory have been noted for their timeliness, with one reviewer writing that the novel 'hits on something real' about the need to remember and write to ensure the survival of truth. A film adaptation was announced in October 2020, with Lily Gladstone in the lead role and with Reed Morano slated as director and Charlie Kaufman as screenwriter.
Did You Know?
- The novel's original Japanese title translates to 'Secret Crystallization' or 'Quiet Crystallization'.
- An English translation by Stephen Snyder was published in 2019 by Pantheon Books and Harvill Secker.
- The novel was a finalist for the 2019 National Book Award for Translated Literature and the 2020 International Booker Prize.
- A film adaptation was announced in October 2020, with Lily Gladstone attached to star and Charlie Kaufman as screenwriter.
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