Importance of Bright Light

Light, appearing as intense or overwhelming light, symbolizes intuition or spiritual surety. Natsuko struggles with a lack of certainty throughout the novel, with regards to her writing and other aspects of her life, but especially in terms of wanting a clear answer about whether or not she should have a child. This certainty that she craves, when she sees it elsewhere, is expressed through light, such as when she describes the feeling she experiences when she hears a woman in an interview speak about her decision to conceive a child through sperm donation: “The voice of someone who has finally found happiness. I’m not sure exactly what to call it, but whatever it was, it was so radiant, so blinding that I had to shut my eyes” (157).