Discuss the significance of Murakami's use of a simile to describe the moment when Dr. Tokai falls in love.

The narrative takes on a dark tone when the narrator is about to tell the reader about the one time Dr. Tokai had actually fallen in love. The narrator states, "But one day, quite unexpectedly, he fell deeply in love. Like a clever fox suddenly finds itself caught in a trap" (87). This simile is used to cast a gloomy and even violent mood over the occasion of Dr. Tokai's first feelings of true attachment to a particular woman.