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By Kang Hyun-kyung
Victims of bullying keep sending signals that they are in dire need of help.
In most cases, however, their signals are unheard by people surrounding them and even those who are close to the victims don't recognize it.
The unheard outcry sometimes leads to tragic, irreversible results, such as the loss of a loved one.
In the award-winning fantasy fiction "Solitary Castle in the Mirror," author Mizuki Tsujimura delves into what's deep inside the victims' minds and consoles those wounded souls with her comforting words ― it's not your fault, so don't blame yourself anymore.
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| "Solitary Castle in the Mirror' by Mizuki Tsujimura |
The author advises them to let the bullies go.
If they can, Tsujimura says the victims should leave the situation. Dropping out of school could be an option, she says.
In modern society, according to the author, bullies are everywhere. Bullying could take place anywhere: it could be at your school, your home or your workplace.
Tsujimura raises a key question to help her readers fathom the nightmare-like circumstances victims go through everyday ― what if your school or workplace turns out to be hell and keeps pushing you around to endure an undeserved harsh life, which is so brutal that you even consider the option of ending your life?
The author tells bullying victims to stand up and take action to protect themselves, rather than wasting time waiting for someone to help them out.
"It's okay to blame those who harass or abuse you. You don't need to feel guilty about this," she advises.
Despite the grave message it delivers, "Solitary Castle in the Mirror" is a warm fantasy fiction.
It gives the hopeful message of salvation for a traumatized young soul by elaborating how the teenage girl Kokoro Anzai returns to normal school life after overcoming bullying.
The book invites readers to the delicate inside of Kokoro's mind after the junior high school student drops out. She is bullied by a group of her classmates, whom she calls "the Miori Party." The girls humiliate Kokoro in public and alienate her by spreading baseless rumors about her.
Introvert Kokoro, however, doesn't confront the bad guys, and instead she blames herself for a lack of courage. She feels helpless.
The bullying prompts her to being soul-searching to figure out what went wrong with her. But she still has no idea why she became the target of the Miori Party, only to find it's simply too tough to continue going to school as long as the bullying continues.
Facing a desperate situation, Kokoro turns to wishful thinking which she herself knows will never happen in reality.
"Sometimes I dream at night about a new classmate. She is perfect. She is outgoing, warm and athletic. She's academically excellent, too. Everybody wants to be her friend. But she chooses me and approaches me and says hello to me.
The Miori Party is jealous of me because of her. She publicly declares me as her only friend. Kokoro thinks how great it would be if such a thing were to happen in reality. But she knows that would never happen to her."
Frustrated, Kokoro quits school. Her parents worry about her and try in vain to search for a school their daughter can attend.
At home, the lonely Kokoro finds her own world ― a castle behind the full-size mirror in her bedroom. She enters into the mirror after it suddenly shines with rainbow colors.
There, Kokoro finds a group of boys and girls. Like her, all of them quit school for various reasons. The castle is open for a year and during that time one of them can find a key for the Room of Wish. Whoever has the key can make their dream come true as soon as they open the door.
Kokoro utters to herself, "Let Miori disappear." She eventually finds the key but she uses the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make another wish come true. She saves another girl she met in the castle who violated the rules and disappeared.
