The Grasshopper and the Bell-Cricket

“Walking more slowly and listening to that voice, and furthermore reluctant to part with it, I turned right so as not to leave the playground behind.”

The voice of an insect draws the narrator toward the playground, foreshadowing the later emergence of the bell cricket. Rerouting his walk so as to stay within the playground, he wants to return to the authentic state of individuality and innocence that childhood provides.

“At the base of the embankment was a bobbing cluster of beautiful varicolored lanterns, such as one might see at a festival in a remote country village.”

The narrator shows enthusiasm for the scene, describing the lanterns as beautiful and likening them to Japanese festivities, implying that the lanterns are celebratory. Connecting the lanterns to a remote country village adds to their simple, pure beauty.

“But most of the lanterns were beautiful squared ones which the children had made with love and care. The bobbing lanterns, the coming together of children on this lonely slope—surely it was a scene from a fairy tale?”

The lanterns symbolize each child’s inner light and authentic self, as they are made with their “love and care.” Childhood is coupled with a sense of community and beauty, which delights the narrator to a point where he questions whether it’s real, as he views it as magical and too distant for him to believe in. The juxtaposition of the “coming together of children” and the “lonely slope” punctuate the difference between the camaraderie of childhood and the isolation of adulthood.

“The child with the red lantern discarded it as a tasteless object that could be bought at a store.”

The store-bought lanterns are symbols of conformity, capitalism, and the transactional trappings of adulthood. They lack individuality and authenticity, and the children find this repugnant.

“Each day, with cardboard, paper, brush, scissors, penknife and glue, the children made new lanterns out of their hearts and minds. Look at my lantern! Be the most unusually beautiful!”

The children use the few tools available to them to create works of stunning originality and beauty. The imperative exclamation “Be the most unusually beautiful!” emphasizes the degree to which an atmosphere of competition drives the children to new heights of achievement.

“Wide eyed, I loitered near them. Not only did the square lanterns have old-fashioned patterns and flower shapes but the names of the children who had made them were cut out in the squared letters of the syllabary.”

Again, the narrator conveys his enthusiasm for what the children are doing by saying he is “wide eyed”; however, as an adult, he is still removed from their idyllic world and only “loiters near them.” The flower pattern, a symbol of nature, on the lanterns indicates the intrinsic and natural state of childhood and its inclination toward individuality. The names on the lanterns further this sentiment and are juxtaposed against the nameless adult narrator who has already conformed to society.

“As if to say ‘Here!’ he thrust out his fist that held the insect to the girl. She, slipping her left wrist under the string of her lantern, enclosed the boy's fist with both hands. The boy quietly opened his fist. The insect was transferred to between the girl’s thumb and index finger.”

To pass a delicate insect from one hand to another without either crushing it or allowing it to escape requires great skill and care from both parties. Fujio and Kiyoko have each developed this skill through practice in the weeks in which this insect-collecting subculture has existed. Like an exchange of wedding bands, this moment symbolizes the proto-romantic link between them. Everything they’ve each learned in the preceding weeks has prepared them for this moment of connection.

“‘It’s a bell cricket! It’s a bell cricket!’ The children echoed in an envious chorus.”

The children recognize and show excitement for the rare bell cricket. They act both literally and figuratively as a chorus supporting the privileging of individuality over conformity.

“Glancing with bright intelligent eyes at the boy who had given her the cricket, the girl opened the little insect cage hanging at her side and released the cricket in it.”

The narrator describes the girl as intelligent, as she instantly understands Fujio’s hidden intentions and the subtext of this interaction. The transfer of the cricket from his cage to hers symbolizes his offer of love and her acceptance of it.

“Oh, I thought. I felt slightly jealous of the boy, and sheepish. How silly of me not to have understood his actions until now!”

The narrator comprehends the boy’s intention to attract the girl to him by offering the surprise of the bell cricket. The narrator feels jealous to be so far removed from young, true love as an adult who has lost his sense of authenticity.

“[N]ot even in dreams would Fujio ever know that his name had been written in green on Kiyoko’s breast or that Kiyoko’s name had been inscribed in red on his waist.”

Regretfully, the narrator acknowledges his privileged position as an observer—a position that prevents him from taking part in the children’s experience but allows him to understand it in a way that they can’t.

“Even if you have the wit to look by yourself in a bush away from the other children, there are not many bell crickets in the world.”

The narrator’s tone changes from one of excitement and joy while reflecting on the children at play to one of sadness as he considers Fujio’s prospects as an adult. He is implying that even if Fujio deploys all his wisdom in searching for true, authentic love as an adult, he will be unlikely to find it.

“And finally to your clouded, wounded heart, even a true bell cricket will seem like a grasshopper.”

The narrator appears to speak from experience as he predicts the harm the adult world will do to Fujio’s heart. The “wounds” of life will force conformity, robbing Fujio even of his ability to recognize what is true and real.