The main theme of Subterrania is centered on the Japanese subculture of Hikikomori. A hikikomori is a shut-in that chooses to watch series, read comics, or play games all day as a means of escaping reality.
In the short story, the narrator tries to convince Kaye to stop confining herself in her room but seemingly fails in doing so. Today, many teens and young adults have chosen similar lifestyles by staying indoors and distracting themselves with temporary and fruitless pleasures found in games, comics, movies, and the like. The said items aren't the problem, but rather the fact that they are used to escape reality instead of enhancing it. Just as wine by itself is not bad, but using it to get drunk is. Subterrania accurately depicts the struggle of convincing hikikomori to reintegrate back into society; as a hikikomori's reason for choosing solitude varies from person to person. Reasons may include: social anxiety, exhaustion, depression, trauma, etc.
However, the main reason why hikikomoris seclude themselves from society is to protect themselves.
They seek comfort by surrounding themselves with what is familiar and stable. They often have been the unfortunate recipients of society's unfair treatment or humanity's cruelty. As a result, they retreat behind places where they feel safe; away from the hostile world that they live in. Consequently, it is difficult to convince a hikikomori from coming out of their self-imposed seclusion, since they now have trouble putting their trust in someone after being hurt. Another possible reason could be that they have simply lost interest in reality and people. As shown in the story, Kaye used to like going to concerts, despite the uncomfortable number and proximity of people, but now she simply wishes to stay in her room. Another reason could be that the person may just be anti-social, and has pessimistic, nihilistic, or other similar antisocial traits.
In order to be successful in helping a hikikomori to become more sociable, we should address the fears and issues that may have led them to become a hikikomori, and proactively care for their physical and mental health. According to Young (2019), hikikomoris are aware of their pain and often feel guilty for being a burden to others. A possible step to curing a hikikomori's isolating nature would be to affirm and show them that there are people who appreciate and are sincerely concerned about their well-being. The last thing one should do is to ignore them and simply be passive in helping them. Although hikikomoris prefer to be alone, loneliness does not help at all. Instead, the problem gets worse as they are deprived of social interaction. Eventually, they will have tremendous difficulty in socializing with others; which may eventually lead to their mental health, and possibly even physical health, deteriorating very severely; to the point where they are beyond recovery.
The protagonist of Subterrania showed a good example of how one could help a hikikomori, by visiting and checking up on Kaye regularly; although he may seem to be unsuccessful in doing so it was still a good effort.
