Battle Royale, written by Koushun Takami, is a fictional novel describing a program in which teenagers are forced to kill one another until only one remains. The book is written in a third person perspective and follows the three main characters Shuya Nanahara, Shoga Kawada, and Noriko Nakagawa, while also describing what transpires between the other students. Battle Royale takes place in an alternate universe in which Asia is a totalitarian society now known as the Republic of Greater East Asia; students are taken to an island, being told that they're simply going on a study trip. Once the reach the island, they're told that they will each recieve a bag with a random weapon in it as well as other necessities (maps and such) and that the program will go on until one survivor is left. The students are forced to wear collars that prevent them from being in certain areas as well as leaving the island all together. Once they're released from the building one by one, the game begins.
I believe that Koushun Takami wrote the book for various reasons, some connecting to past events in history. I can't be sure but I think that the soul reason was because he was paying homage to the horrendous things that teenagers and children had to go through while living under a dictator. A lot of times in the book I could make connections between what was happening and events that had actually occurred. One moment in particular was when Shuya and Shogo are talking about how the government works and how they want to 'tear it apart'. More key moments were the descriptions of the Republic of Greater East Asia itself, one in particular was about how rock music isn't allowed. It resembles how, in Nazi Germany, 'Jewish' music wasn't allowed. Swing music in particular, most clubs where swing music was played were shut down. Another thing that Takami might have been suggesting is how people can do some pretty horrid things under the right circumstances. Some of the students turned against their friends just to stay alive. Other students, much like Shuya and Noriko, tried to stay in touch with their friends so that they didn't turn into 'monsters' themselves. I have to think of it through my own perspective though; for instance a question that always popped into my head was 'what would I do in that situation?' I think that question comes up for a lot of other people too, when they're reading something that pertains to survival they always wonder how long they would last. I'm not really sure what I would have done in this book though; I mean I have such close relations with all of my friends, I don't know if I would full-out just kill them on the spot. The characters in the book reacted in some very different ways though, it's a very interesting thought. Was Takami really trying to portray this though? I don't know, he might have written the book for many more reasons. These were just the points that I picked out personally.
One of the characters that really stood out to me was the character of Shogo Kawada. In Battle Royale, Shogo is a normal student that's known as a bully at the school before the program. Shuya, the main character, describes him as a tough person but admits that Shogo never really did anything but act intimidating. Shogo might not have been too much of a main protagonist but he had a huge impact on me. The determination he has and the strategies he makes are flawless and he always has a calm demeanor around him, even in the worst of times. Whenever some new obstacle came up for Shuya and the group, Shogo seemed to know exactly how to react; in addition, he was smart enough to buy various things at the store, knowing that he would need them later. Part of his strength comes from his past; Shogo was unfortunate enough to be placed in the program twice, this time being his second. I can't even fathom the amount of hatred towards his government he must be feeling. Having to live through such a torturous program one time is bad enough but being picked for it again is pure insanity. I'm baffled at how rational he is throughout the book, more solely nearing the end. Another thing that surprised me about Shogo was that, despite winning the first game, he decided to do something different the second time. He could have chosen a straight path where he would have won the same way he did last time, but instead he chose to help Shuya and Noriko. In fact on more than one occasion, while reading, I thought that he might betray them in the end. See, that's what makes Shogo so mysterious, you can never tell what he's going to do next. I also felt a lot of sympathy towards Shogo as well; despite being in the program for a second time, he shows compassion towards Noriko and Shuya as well as making them laugh and keeping their spirits high. He's the kind of person you would talk to if something tragic had happened. He takes this horrible program and analyzes it to the point that it breaks, he's definitely an inspiration to me.
So, overall, Battle Royale was an amazing book. The plot is fairly simplistic and the characters each have distinct personalities, the ending is pretty nice as well. It does get complex at points but I think that that adds to the book, it's the kind of book that you can read more than once to understand certain things about it. While I was reading Battle Royale I felt a whole flood of emotions through every chapter. When someone died I felt sad, when someone killed someone else in cold blood I felt angry, the book does an amazing job at really triggering the emotions that you didn't know that you could feel for a fictional character.
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