Probing the Library #1: Tomoka Fujiki

Note: This post contains spoilers for What You Are Looking For Is in the Library!

Chapter one of Michiko Aoyama’s What You Are Looking For Is in the Library presents to us 21-year-old Tomoka Fujiki. She works in a place called Eden in a coral-pink uniform required for womenswear sales assistants. After six months she quickly finds herself dissatisfied with the job. However, she admits to not having any dreams or ambitions, and as a result ends up with no idea what to do.

There are many things we can discuss - but one I’d like to pick up here is the use of colors. I’m sure there is something the author is trying to say through the use of colors in this first chapter. I can’t really quite pin it down yet, but I’m just going to try. And it’s never a bad idea to jot down new ideas!

Coral Pink and White

Perhaps the most important color in Tomoka’s chapter is coral pink. It’s the color of her uniform that supposedly looks good on women of all ages. Tomoka doesn’t seem to feel very positive about it though. She envies the stylish boutique staff who are not required to wear a uniform. And she is worried about “getting old and wrinkled” wearing the coral pink blouse. I feel like Tomoka’s attitude toward her uniform is reflective of her attitude toward her job. She doesn’t like it.

Another color worth mentioning is white. The color white appears several times and Tomoka doesn’t seem to dislike the color. She sees a boutique staff and thinks positively about the white skirt she wears. The men’s uniform in Eden is white, and Ms. Komachi herself wears an off-white apron plus a hairpin with tassels in the shape of white flowers. The cover of the Guri and Gura book Tomoka borrows is white. Interestingly, Tomoka doesn’t wear white. White isn’t a part of her uniform. What she wears in addition to her coral pink blouse is a black skirt and a black waistcoat. And so perhaps white symbolizes Tomoka’s idea of amazing and cool, in contrast to her boring coral-pink-tinted job.

A Change in Perspective

These two colors - coral pink and white - are then mentioned together in a scene featuring Tomoka and (friend? co-worker? But they work in different stores) Kiriyama. Tomoka eats a grilled cod roe rice ball made by Kiriyama and praises how delicious it is. She observes how the rice and grilled cod roe each contribute something to the overall taste. Tomoka then notes, “coral pink wrapped in white”.

This scene seems to signal the beginning of Tomoka’s change in attitude toward her job. She used to feel negatively about coral pink and thinks more favorably of white. But at this moment, she sees that both coral pink (the grilled cod roe) and white (the rice) are equally amazing. The rice ball wouldn’t taste as delicious if either one of them were missing.

Moreover, this rice ball scene is followed by another that further highlights Tomoka’s change in view. Tomoka has to face a customer complaining about a mulberry top she recommended. Apparently the top had shrunk in the washing machine, and now the customer wants her money back. Tomoka’s senior, Ms. Numauchi, takes the lead and wonderfully diffuses the situation. Amazed by Ms. Numauchi, Tomoka realizes:

I feel so dumb now for telling the librarian that my job in the Womenswear section at Eden was ‘nothing great’. I haven’t been doing a great job, that’s all.

Tomoka also notes:

After twelve years she [Ms. Numauchi] looks completely at ease in her coral pink blouse. She’s amazing, I think, from the bottom of my heart.

Tasting Kiriyama’s delicious rice ball and seeing Ms. Numauchi’s great skills led Tomoka to view her job in a better light. She’s now able to look at the familiar coral pink blouse in a positive light (or should I say, amazing light?). Plus, I’m sure Ms. Komachi’s earlier remark about how finding employment is a “fine achievement” must have contributed to Tomoka’s change.

These three events - Ms. Komachi’s remark, Kiriyama’s rice ball, and Ms. Numauchi’s actions - help Tomoka frame her job in a positive way. She finally sees and chooses to believe that a womenswear sales assistant isn’t less cool than other jobs. This is much like how Ms. Numauchi dealt with the complaining customer by first framing the mulberry top in a new light, something Tomoka herself noticed:

‘This knitted top is an extremely popular item and this was the last one. The magenta is quite unusual. You don’t see many garments in this colour.’

‘Magenta?’ The customer’s ears prick up. She’s looking less scary now.

‘Yes, this colour.’

Suddenly, in her mind, the mulberry top is transformed into a high-fashion item. Magenta…uh-huh. That’s certainly one way of putting it.

(Similarly, perhaps some of our problems need to be dealt with by first changing how we frame them.)

To conclude…
And there you have it - what I noticed about the use of certain colors in chapter one and what I think it signifies. It seems to tie in with Tomoka’s learning process. I love that the resolution to this story isn't Tomoka immediately quitting her job. Instead, she learns to fix her perspective first: there is worth in what she’s doing!