Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World

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Junta I recently read a collection of his essays, 'Novelist as Profession', published in Japan in 2015 (it might be a while before it's translated into Engl…moreI recently read a collection of his essays, 'Novelist as Profession', published in Japan in 2015 (it might be a while before it's translated into English) - the 9th chapter is on characters.

Although the answers submitted to this question are all valid, there is another simple reason mentioned in that chapter (my translation):
"I was okay with nicknames like 'The Rat' or 'J', but I just couldn't set proper names for the characters. Why not? I'm not sure myself, and can only say that I was embarrassed about naming people. I'm not sure how to put it, but it seemed somewhat artificial for someone like me to be freely designating names onto people (even if they were fictional characters I created).
The first time I was able to properly name characters was in 'Norwegian Wood' (1987). So, in the first eight years before that, I was using nameless characters and writing in the first person view. Thinking about it, it seems I was limiting myself with a tedious rule, but I didn't give it a second thought then."

tl;dr this novel was published in 1985, before Norwegian Wood when he started naming characters.(less)
Rion
This answer contains spoilers… (view spoiler)
Jeanne The mad scientist explains that part of his brain surgery is to strengthen the emotional wall around the core of the brain. So like a hard boiled egg,…moreThe mad scientist explains that part of his brain surgery is to strengthen the emotional wall around the core of the brain. So like a hard boiled egg, his inner brain has been strengthened and solidified so that it can't change.(less)
Ashley
This answer contains spoilers… (view spoiler)
Sajh No worries, both stories will unfold by the end, the role both protagonists play in their stories, how are this worlds connected, everything is explai…moreNo worries, both stories will unfold by the end, the role both protagonists play in their stories, how are this worlds connected, everything is explained at the end. So keep going!(less)

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