i think you are in the wrong thought process about murakami.. I understand why you felt this way but if you start to look closely at the charcters you will realize the male characters are clueless and vulernable while it is the women in most of his works have a personality that is so outward that they make the male realize....indicating females to have a stronger sense of understanding and clarity in most of his stories though I agree some characters are short but then again no one is perfect...