Abstract: In his early remarks about Raymond Chandler's detective novels, Haruki Murakami has profoundly revealed the deep connection between Urban Monogatari and national ideology. Some of Murakami's early works also criticize the national ideology. Critics generally think that Murakami has an alienated view on social problems in his early works,but their opinion is not comprehensive. Besides, Murakami praises the “put aside” attitude to the protagonists' “self” in Chandler's detective stories as he always believes that the Japanese modern literature over-emphasized the theme of “self”. However, compared with Chandler, Murakami still has a more active and positive exploration of the issue of “self” in shaping the characters of Urban Monogatari due to his social responsibility as a belletrist. Meanwhile, the narrative techniques, such as the relations setting for the narrator and the protagonists, the “seek and find” story mode, and the authenticity of details applied in Chandler's detective fictions have had a profound influence on Haruki Murakami's creation of Urban Monogatari.

Key words: Haruki Murakami, Urban Monogatari, Raymond Chandler, detective novels, influence research