When the Devil Is You: Jungian Psychology in If Cats Disappeared from the World

The beautiful book cover and the difficulty of imagining a world without felines.

What does contemporary Japanese fiction have to do with Analytical Psychology? In If Cats Disappeared from the World by Genki Kawamura, the connections are surprising.

The story begins with a peculiar premise: a young, lonely postman, newly diagnosed with terminal cancer, lives only with his black cat, Cabbage. As he grapples with the news, the Devil appears and offers him a Faustian bargain: for each thing the protagonist agrees to erase from existence, he gains an additional day of life.

The subtle humor in the narrative is one of its charms. Upon learning of his condition, he reflects that his first thought was being just one stamp away from earning a free massage on my loyalty card. This touch humanizes the character, creating an immediate connection with the reader.

The Devil’s appearance here carries Jungian traits: rather than the demonic stereotype—dressed in black, let alone with a pointy tail and trident—he appears identical to the protagonist, yet paradoxically extroverted and stylish, dressed in a flashy Hawaiian shirt.

With each thing he allows to disappear, unresolved aspects of the protagonist's relationships—with his ex-girlfriend, his mother, his father—come to the surface.

In a crucial moment, the Devil tells him that he is made up of all his regrets—of the paths he didn’t take when he stood at a crossroads, wondering what might have happened or who he would have become if he’d chosen differently. That’s what the Devil is: it’s what you wanted to become but couldn’t. It’s the closest thing to who you are, and the farthest, paradoxical as it may seem.

The narrative masterfully addresses the confrontation with the shadow from a Jungian Psychology. The Devil observes, that’s just how humans are, full of remorse for things they didn’t do.

The climax comes with the painful decision to erase cats from the world to gain one more day of life. The young postman is forced to reflect on what truly matters to him, offering readers a chance to rethink their own lives through this delicate and thought-provoking Japanese story.