The Heian Period: A Literary Analysis

1253 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: How the Hesiod portrays women

Heian Japan is remembered as a time that allowed aristocratic individuals time for personal reflection in their art work Mainly, in this time, it was through the use of poetry (Crash Course: Heian Japan, 2015). Poetry and other forms of writing have been a safe place for individuals in the high court as it let out a place of aggression that one could not openly show (Bargen, 5). Writings of spirit possession in the Heian period seems out of character for the culture that is described as amiable and rather passive However, spirit possession is now seen as metaphor that embodies the women in the Heian period as a demonstration against polygyny in Heian Japan (Bargen, 8). This is best understood in the work of “The Tale of Genji” by Shikibu Murasaki, …show more content…

While Murasaki’s father is of good standing, her mother was not in the eyes of the court. Because of this, she lacked the credentials to be Genji’s main wife, much like Yugao, even though he wanted her to be Even though Murasaki was Genji’s favorite, and believed that she was the absolute light he wanted in his life, he could not stay faithful to her. For example, Genji’s time with Oborozukiyo surely affected Murasaki negatively even though she did not let it seep out of her onto others Murasaki is internal, and her desire to be a nun is a consequent to that (Bargen, 105). However, she is not silent in her protest to Genji’s actions. Her reaction of passive aggression is new to Genji, as he is more familiar of the women in his life to go against each other instead of going after the main source of darkness, “Murasaki astonishes him further with an unexpected combination of understated sarcasm and clinical description” (Bargen, 115). This confession of Murasaki was written as, “A suggestion of a smile came to her lips 'Such a marvel of rejuvenation' But her voice trembled as she went on: 'An ancient affair is superimposed on a new one, and I am caught beneath” (Tale of Genji, …show more content…

All in all, literature within Heian Japan allows readers to see into a time where women had to be passive when it comes to hardships of relationships The women whom where silence by the polygamous realities within this period inspired Shikibu Murasaki to incorporation spirit possession in her novel, “The Tale of Genji”Where these possessions are a tool of protest against the darkness of the male dominance and manipulation This was explored with characters Yuago, Aoi Murasaki No Ue whom fell to spirit possession as a result of Genji’s

Show More
Related

  • Life of a Sensuous Woman, by Ihara Saikaku

    1099 Words  | 3 Pages

    Saikaku, Ihara. Life of a Sensuous Woman. The Longman Anthology of World Literature. (Vol. D) Ed. Damrosch. New York: Pearson, 2004. 604-621. [Excerpt.]

    Read More

  • Female Gender Identity In The Memoirs Of Lady Hyegyong And The Tale Of Genji

    1890 Words  | 4 Pages

    This literary analysis will define the historical differentiation of female gender identity roles that occurred in the Memoirs of Lady Hyegyong and the Tale of Genji. The modern gender values in the Joseon Period define a more elevated freedom for women in patriarchal Korean society that is defined in Memoirs of Lady Hyegyong. In a more progressive gender role for women, Lady Hyegyong exhibits an aggressive male trait in angrily denouncing the execution of her younger brother, which advocates a less submission depiction of women’s rights in early 19th century Korea. In contrast to this aggressive female gender role, Murasaki Shikibu writes a novel through the perspective of Emperor Hikaru Genji and his illicit love affair with his stepmother, Lady Fujitsubo. Lady Fujitsubo is a strong woman, much like the mother of Genji, but she is a concubine with little real power in the court. Historically, the patriarchal culture of 11th century Heian Period in Japan is different from the Joseon Period in that

    Read More

  • Kokoro and the Parallels of Historical Events

    1187 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout history artists have used art as a means to reflect the on goings of the society surrounding them. Many times, novels serve as primary sources in the future for students to reflect on past history. Students can successfully use novels as a source of understanding past events. Different sentiments and points of views within novels serve as the information one may use to reflect on these events. Natsume Soseki’s novel Kokoro successfully encapsulates much of what has been discussed in class, parallels with the events in Japan at the time the novel takes place, and serves as a social commentary to describe these events in Japan at the time of the Mejeii Restoration and beyond. Therefore, Kokoro successfully serves as a primary source students may use to enable them to understand institutions like conflicting views Whites by the Japanese, the role of women, and the population’s analysis of the Emperor.

    Read More

  • Ideal Man and Woman in The Tale of Genji

    1336 Words  | 3 Pages

    Based on Murasaki Shikibu’s “The Tale of Genji” the ideal man and the ideal woman of the Heian Court can easily be discerned as not truly existing, with the main character, Genji, being the nearly satirical example of what was the ideal man, and descriptions of the many women in the story as prescription of the ideal woman with the young Murasaki playing a similar role to that of Genji in the story.

    Read More

  • The Guardian King Fudo Myo-o: The Immovable One

    1671 Words  | 4 Pages

    Image and Text.” Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 33.2 (2006): 297-317. Jstor. 12 Oct 2011.

    Read More

  • Abelard and Heloise of Historia Calamitatum

    764 Words  | 2 Pages

    The twelfth century was divided into two phases: Early Middle Ages or Dark Ages and the High Middle Ages. It's during the High Middle Ages when things started to take a turn both mentally and physically. Churches developed more stamina and papal bureaucracy was created. The government was revived. Urbanization increased and most of all a sudden increase was brought in cultural revitalization and courtly love was an important aspect of this awakening. Courtly love is defined as humility, courtesy, adultery and religion of love. This is what I believe Abelards's and Heloise's relationship was based on in Abelard's Historia Calamitatum and his letters to Heloise.

    Read More

  • The Tale of the Heike

    877 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Tale of the Heike is a collection of tales that depict the livelihood of warriors during the Heian and Kamakura period. These tales illustrate that warriors during this period spent their existence dedicated to their duty to the Buddhist Law, and that the growing contention arose from each warrior’s devotion and loyalty to the Buddhist Law. The tales communicate that a warrior’s duty was to protect the Buddhist Law, which in turn meant to protect the imperial authority. Written letters between the Onjji to the Kfukuji Temples avow that the “great virtue of the Buddhist Law is that it guards the imperial authority; the imperial authority endures because of the Buddhist Law.” Furthermore, the letters articulate that whether one is “southern capital or northern, we are all disciples of the Buddha.”

    Read More

  • Ideal Man and Woman in The Tale of Genji

    1227 Words  | 3 Pages

    Murasaki Shikibu’s Tale of Genji, set in the Heian Period, gives a good idea of what the model Heian man and Heian woman should look like. Genji himself is like a physical embodiment of male perfection, while a large portion of the Broom Tree chapter outlines the ideal of a woman—that it is men who decide what constitutes a perfect woman, and the fact that even they cannot come to decide which traits are the best, and whether anyone can realistically possess all of those traits shows that the function of women in the eyes of men of that period was largely to cater to their husbands and households. Broken down, there are similarities and differences between the standard for Heian men and women, and the Tale of Genji provides excellent examples of characters who fit into their respective gender roles.

    Read More

  • Gender Ideals in Heian Society

    1083 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Heian period(794-1185), the so-called golden age of Japanese culture, produced some of the finest works of Japanese literature.1 The most well known work from this period, the Genji Monogatari, is considered to be the “oldest novel still recognized today as a major masterpiece.”2 It can also be said that the Genji Monogatari is proof of the ingenuity of the Japanese in assimilating Chinese culture and politics. As a monogatari, a style of narrative with poems interspersed within it, the characters and settings frequently allude to Chinese poems and stories. In addition to displaying the poetic prowess that the Japanese had attained by this time period, the Genji Monogatari also demonstrates how politics and gender ideals were adopted from the Chinese.

    Read More

  • Works and Days by Hesiod

    1171 Words  | 3 Pages

    Sometime around 750-600 B.C.E., the Greek poet Hesiod produced what is generally thought to be the oldest surviving Greek poetic works. During this time, Greece was near the middle of its Archaic period, a period of technological, social, political, and cultural innovations. This was the period in which the first true alphabet system arose, the system which allowed Hesiod and other poets like him to record permanently the oral stories and lyrics so important to Greek culture. This was also the time in which the Greek polis emerged – what is today translated as “city-state” – as a result of increases in population size. Hand in hand with the increase in population and formation of political bodies like the polis comes the colonization of foreign land which marked this period. Colonies arose all around the Aegean Sea and onto the coast of North Africa, spreading the Greek culture well beyond its homeland (Earth 128-131).

    Read More

  • Cultural Dynamics of Heian Japan in the Tale of Murasaki

    1578 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Tale of Murasaki, by Liza Dalby, is about Murasaki, a young woman who lived in the Heian period (794-1185) of Japan. She writes a story called The Tale of Genji, and earns so much recognition for it that she is invited to court to attend the empress. Not only was she known for her writing, but she drew attention by learning Chinese. In the story, a Chinese education is essential for a man hoping to be a high-ranked member of society. Because the Japanese considered Chinese culture as superior, waka, a popular form of Japanese poetry, carries less cultural value in the novel. Therefore, both high-class women and men have to learn about wakas and use them daily. A woman who can compose good wakas and is beautiful would have the best chances of going to court, which is the best way to guarantee a comfortable life. Liza Dalby’s The Tale of Murasaki accurately portrays the abilities of each sex, the importance of Chinese learning, and the role of Japanese poetry in the Heian period of Japan.

    Read More

  • Tales of Heike

    1902 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Tale of Heike." Traditional Japanese Literature: An Anthology, Beginnings to 1600. Ed. Haruo Shirane. New York: Columbia UP, 2007. 736-39. Print.

    Read More

  • The Main Religion of the Heian Period

    2669 Words  | 6 Pages

    Saicho, the founder of Tendai Buddhism, was born in 767 in the province of Omi

    Read More

  • Poetry Compare And Contrast Essay

    1076 Words  | 3 Pages

    Shirane Haruo. et al. Early Modern Japanese Literature: An Anthology 1600-1900. New York: Colombia University Press, 2002. Print.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Works And Days By Hesiod

    1756 Words  | 4 Pages

    Philosophies on Life How do you live your life? Do you follow in how major media portrays a normal life or do you have your own reservations on how one should live life? In ancient Greece, a “normal” traditional life is represented in Hesiod’s works, more notably his poem Works & Days. Protagoras was an early philosopher of the time and had his own opinions that differed from Hesiod’s traditional Greek views on life.

    Read More

More about The Heian Period: A Literary Analysis

Open Document