Talk:Eto Yoshimura/@comment-25365535-20141001095849

It would be very interesting to see if there's any connection between her most recent work, The Hanged Man's MacGuffin, and the actual plot of the story. Much like how Dear Kafka and The Black Goat's Egg both reflect particular trials in Kaneki's life, I wonder if her newest publishing does too.

We know that Ishida uses a lot of tarot references in Tokyo Ghoul, which would explain The Hanged Man (sacrifice, letting go, surrendering, and inner harmony are all aspects related to the card which reflect Kaneki towards the end during his fight with Arima).

However, a MacGuffin "is a term for a motivating element in a story that is used to drive the plot. It serves no further purpose. It won't pop up again later, it won't explain the ending, it won't do anything except possibly distract you while you try to figure out its significance."

I was trying to think of what that could be in terms of the Tokyo Ghoul storyline.

Perhaps, although it's a stretch, the term MacGuffin was popularised by Alfred Hitchcock who is famous for his film The Birds (1963), wherein birds start attacking people. Considering Takatsuki Sen's alias as Owl, there might be a connection there. Perhaps the persona of Owl itself is the MacGuffin. But I might just be grasping at straws here.

What do you guys think?