Confessions

These two chapters function as both exposition and framework for the rest of the novel. Moriguchi gives her story as a retirement speech; the act of speaking creates a sense of intimacy—the students know her well, and she addresses them and notes their reactions as she recounts the details of her daughter’s murder. While other narrators will reference her throughout the story, she reappears as narrator in Chapter 6. The introductory framing upends the typical murder mystery story arc, as Moriguchi knows who the murderers are and how the murder happened from the start. The novel also bucks murder-mystery genre expectations by dealing with the fallout of a murder, rather than solving the murder.

The chapter titles are significant: Chapter 1, entitled “The Saint,” conjures a sense of holiness or the supernatural; it references the tragic figure of Sakuranomi—whom Moriguchi calls “Saint Sakuranomi”—beloved by all but dying too early. The title of Chapter 2, “The Martyr,” reflects Mizuki’s suffering at the bullies’ hands and foreshadows her tragic fate later in the novel. At this point in the text, the eponym could arguably refer to Shūya as well, who, unlike Naoki, accepts ostracization for his presumed HIV acquisition as well as social punishment for his crime.

The differing narrative formats and piecemeal exposition establish The Pitfalls of Perception, as the way individual characters perceive events—often with incomplete information—impacts their behaviors and reactions. For instance, at the beginning of her speech, when Moriguchi confesses that “Milk Time” isn’t a free bonus but in fact a required experiment, the students begin “making faces” as their attitude toward the milk changes. She also notes the class’s reaction to her disclosure that her sexual partner has HIV: While the class had expressed sympathy toward a character who lives with HIV in a novel they read for class, they suddenly perceive Moriguchi with fear after she discloses Sakuranomi’s diagnosis. Notably, Moriguchi expresses anti-LGBTQ+ prejudice herself when explaining the gendered rule regarding teachers helping students outside of school. In her explanation of the origin of the rule—an innocent teacher was tricked into being photographed with a student in a compromising location—she both misgenders and outs the teacher, who is transgender, to her class. Both anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-HIV perceptions skew how characters behave within the novel. Naoki not knowing about this rule and thus perceiving Moriguchi as having abandoned him further exemplifies the limits of perception: Without resentment to fuel his actions, he may have made a difference choice regarding killing Manami. Throughout the narrative, characters’ perceptions of events and motivations will thus shift as additional information comes to light. This structure contributes to an atmosphere of suspense and highlights the unreliability of narrators who lack complete information.

This section denotes the beginning of The Cycle of Revenge and Blame. Moriguchi’s vengeance is straightforward: She blames Shūya and Naoki for her daughter’s death; her revenge is publicly announcing their crime, their identities, and that she has placed blood containing HIV in their milk. The class’s revenge is explosive: They use milk as a tool for bullying Shūya, but their violence is spurred by both anger and fear—anger at Shūya’s crime and fear of the HIV they believe he has. Their blame is pinpointed, but their revenge is a tidal wave, sucking in the entire class and attacking anyone (like Mizuki) who doesn’t participate. Shūya’s revenge is similarly straightforward: He uses the class’s fear against them, threatening them with blood and saliva if they don’t stop; Mizuki’s revenge is to withhold the truth—that Shūya does not have HIV—to get the bullying to stop.

Werther appears to serve as an example of Failing to Consider Consequences. While Moriguchi is aware of the consequences of her vengeance, Werther is completely oblivious. He appears purposely ignorant, declaring that he won’t read Moriguchi’s notes from the previous year, which sets him up for failure for the rest of the chapter. His idolization of Sakuranomi is an uncomfortable reminder to the students of the milk containing blood. his patronizing attempts to befriend his students recall Moriguchi’s assessment of bad teachers, and his “attempts” to stop the bullying only exacerbate it and emphasize his favoritism. In addition, his home visits to Naoki are essentially pointless because he has no plan to actually help Naoki; in fact, his speech during his last visit only triggers one of Naoki’s meltdowns. Thus, Werther’s seemingly thoughtless decisions create problems for everyone around him, setting him in contrast with Moriguchi’s careful planning. However, a significant plot twist in Chapter 6 will reveal that Moriguchi has, in fact, manipulated Werther’s actions all along; through Moriguchi, the author thus manipulates readers’ perceptions of Werther.

The Nature of Motherhood is introduced through Moriguchi and, to a lesser degree, Mrs. Shitamura. Moriguchi was a dedicated mother. While Manami was the most important person in her life, Moriguchi refused to spoil her, contrasting with Mrs. Shitamura’s parenting. These chapters hint at Mrs. Shitamura’s dislike of Moriguchi, foreshadowing their juxtaposition as foils later in the narrative. The symbolism of Snuggly Bunny, which represents maternal love, is also introduced here, mainly through Moriguchi’s gifts to her daughter and its appearance on the murder weapon used to lure Manami to her death.

Milk is another prominent symbol in this section. The students initially enjoyed the milk, which represents the innocence of youth—or at least society’s perception of it: They are all under the age of 14 and have not yet fully entered puberty, still viewed as children legally and socially. However, that innocence is soon tainted when Moriguchi reveals the nature of the “Milk Time” experiment (thus negating the childlike joy of a free treat) and then describes the murder of her child as they drink it. By the time she reveals her tampering with the killers’ milk, the class’s appetite for milk has been thoroughly removed, to the point that only Werther, oblivious, drinks it the following year. The class instead weaponizes milk, using it as a tool to bully Shūya. Milk thus evolves from a symbol of innocence and purity, spoiled by its new associations with revenge, murder, and contamination.