The Elephant Vanishes
Introduction + Context
Plot Summary
Detailed Summary & Analysis
Themes
All Themes Alienation, Connection, and Unity Order, Perception, and Imbalance Modernity Humans vs. Animals
Quotes
Characters
All Characters The Narrator The Elephant The Keeper/Noboru Watanabe The Woman at the Party The Mayor The Townspeople
Symbols
All Symbols The Shackle
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The Elephant Vanishes

by

Haruki Murakami

The Elephant Vanishes Symbols

The Shackle

Before the elephant vanishes, it is kept in a repurposed school gym that serves as the town’s makeshift elephant house. Whereas zoo animals are typically kept behind a barrier and given a relatively large area…

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The Shackle Symbol Icon
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