This research paper speaks of the poem “The Tattooer” that talks about Japanese culture where men are superior and women are seen beneath the men of society. The poem "The Tattooer" shines the light on many of Tanizaki's standard society themes. And in this the tattooer desires the pleasure of his art; the tattooer takes much pride in the tattoos that he creates on the flesh of humans and also endures pleasure from putting pain on the empty canvases with his needle. In “The Tattooer” by Tanizaki Jun’ichiro the tattooer desires the pain inflicted on his canvas but then the perfect body is seen and he realizes that he must now tattoo for the beauty of the tattoo and is soon controlled by women. First I’ll start with the story of Junichiro …show more content…
Tanizaki’s poem, “The Tattooer” starts with the author stating the significance of ancient art of tattooing. He tells a story of a young, skillful tattooer named Seikichi, who was famous for his charm of art and has a secret pleasure for inflicting pain on men while they are under his needle. “At every thrust of his needle Seikichi gave a heavy sigh and felt as if he had stabbed his own heart” (Tanizaki, 83). He illustrates the enhance of beauty that the tattoos inflict on people of this culture. The story in the poem is about a tattoo artist named Seikichi who didn’t fit into social status of this period has now become a renowned tattoo artist. For years, Seikichi has gained pleasure from tattooing but he dreamed of the perfect canvas to paint his ultimate masterpiece on. Then one day while passing a restaurant, he caught a glimpse of a beautiful woman’s foot and fell madly in love with her. After seeing this beautiful piece of the canvas he dreamed of the tattoo he would create on this fresh flesh of a women. And a few days later, the beautiful woman appeared at his door carrying a package from one of Seikichi’s friends. Seeing her in the doorway he admired her body as the perfect canvas for the greatest masterpiece. After expressing his dream she unfortunately did not share his dreams and was scared by his overly confident gestures. As much as he tried to convince her, she still refused his offer to be his greatest masterpiece. In order to get what he wanted, Seikichi had to drug the young woman and enslaved her body. After having her perfect body Seikichi started his masterpiece on the sleeping woman. After dreaming of this tattoo for so long he did not stop until he finished his work of art. After Seikichi finished, the woman started to move about moving the spider that Seikichi tattooed on the woman’s back moved as she did. Seeing her body move awoke his artwork and gave him great pleasure. Awakening from her deep sleep she asked to see the tattoo but Seikichi refused because she first had to take a hot bath to bring the colors out in the tattoo. The hot bath inflicted horrific pain on her body as the skin stung. Because of this pain she told Seikichi to wait in the other room because she didn’t want anyone to see her in so much pain. “Shading and vermilioning – these are said to be especially painful – were the techniques he most enjoyed” (Tanizaki, 80). Came out of the restroom with a shine in her eyes. Seikichi was amazed at what he saw, she was beautiful. Seikichi pours his soul into the girl’s tattoo to make her body beautiful. Before she leaves she remarks that he is her first victim; thus exemplifying the illicit sexual dominance women have over men. After reading this story, there were some things I did not understand about the japanese culture that I had to research.
The first thing is that the tattoo artist expresses a social art that dates back centuries. In this period tattooing men was an act of making them more beautiful for the public and society. Even though a tattoo on someone’s body in today’s world is considered a art, the story speaks of the social art from japanese culture. Junichiro Tanizaki wrote this poem around 1910 during a period in Japan when tattoo art was banned because it was considered “barbarism” and the Japanese people wanted to show the world that they had other forms of culture and beauty besides tattoo art. This little bit of history shows that Tanizaki wanted to show the world behind japanese society and that the tattoo art was being submerged in some fashion. Understanding this we know that the enslavement of woman is part of a political statement against the art of tattooing in Japan. We can also state that Seikichi’s actions and temperament could symbolize the reaction of the Japanese government to suppress the art. Another issue of the japanese culture is the class system of artists. Falling out of the class system of artists this can show why he was always so controlling of his male clients during the tattooing. His feeling towards his clients and the women show the horrifying truth behind the social system in Japan. The pain he inflicted on the canvases was a mirror of his emotions …show more content…
towards the Japanese society. These emotions forced him to put his pain on others of the misfortunes of society. The last thing that caught my eye in the poem was the relationship between Seikichi and the woman. In this poem that narrator gives no backstory or gives any emotions from the woman. The woman does tell Seikichi through their interaction that she does not want to be his perfect canvas and refuses to listen to his dream. But the woman emotions at the end of the poem shows her independence and her voice is made up from her actions after the tattoo. This shows the superior men has over woman in when to show emotions and able to speak opinions. This paragraph is about the gender roles in japanese society.
At one time men were expected to be loyal to their lord and women were supposed to be loyal to their husband and family. During this women were allowed to own property and even inherit family property. They were expected to control the household budget and household decisions to allow men to serve their lord. When World War II hit it marked a shift in thinking about gender roles. The Japanese society went into the past of loyalty and courage to promote war effort during this crucial time. This is when women’s duty became to only have children. Women were looked at as keepers of the nation’s household even though many women worked in factories. During this war many “unused” women were drafted to sexually service military men. Soldiers referred to these women as “hygienic public bathrooms” or even as “semen toilets.” Japan was influenced by China to take on the confucian ideals in society. Confucian society focuses on the family and the roles of the genders in the household. Men are the heads of the household; women are dependent on the men. Women were expected to marry the men their family set for them, produce kids, and oversee the house. Women became not able to own property and became “slaves” to men in every way possible. It is believed that women’s happiness in life is only to be found in marriage. In this society women were to be married between 22 through 27 and if this was not met you were considered
an outcast by society. This last paragraph is about the dominance of men in this time of society. The Japanese society is strongly ruled by men and they are the superior. The men are the ones who own the property while women are sold into marriage. Tanizaki’s story shows the symbolism of the fine tattoo in the unnamed woman's body. With the women being unnamed this proves the point of the dominance of men have over the woman's in society. In this society men are the dominant ones but this story shows the influence women can have on men sexuality. Even though this story has so sexual imagery while Seikichi tattoos this girl he pours his soul and life work into this masterpiece of a tattoo. With this kind of control the women has complete power and control over his mind and body. While pouring his soul into this tattoo Seikichi believes that this masterpiece will make her body even more perfect and beautiful. Before she leaves she remarks that he is her first victim; thus exemplifying the illicit sexual dominance women have over men.“All my old fears have been swept away – and you are my first victim!” Overall this story shows the japanese society where men are the rulers. Seikichi is an artist that is a piece in the social class structure in japanese society. He also reveals the hardships of the society and reveals the government’s view on tattooing in this period. The unnamed women in this story also is a symbolic piece in the structure. She shows the enslavement of women to men in this poem and by the end of the story she shows the greater independence of women in society. This poem shows the power of feminine and masculine roles in japanese culture by showing the symbolism throughout the poem. With the power Seikichi has over the empty canvas he shows the dominance of men and that his desires are more important than respecting a woman's wishes of her own body. With the women being unnamed this shows that women are just there for the men and that they mean nothing else. The japanese society in this poem is truly the beginning of gender roles and the progress we must do to make genders equal.
In the story “The Tattoo”, Chris McKinney’s book is about a set in contemporary Hawai’i. The story is revealing a side of paradise about the main character, Kenji “Ken” Hideyoshi. It’s mostly about a young man with a troubled past. There is 2 other main character’s besides Ken. There is Koa Pauhi Puana and Matthew “Cal” Brodsky. These three characters have very interesting life stories. There are reasons why these three characters are important in the story.
In 2002 Yuki Tanaka published a book titled, “Japan’s Comfort Women. On the military use of women during the Japanese war. The subtitle, “Sexual slavery and prostitution during World War 2 and the US occupation,” gives a short description on what the book will be about. In the introduction to the book Tanaka starts with how sex is a beautiful thing that is shared by two people. That is suppose help bring life into the world, but as soon as someone involves sex in wartimes it becomes ugly and “exploited” (pg. 1). It shows the dominance of a conquered country. Sex becomes a twisted organized system that was used as a way to control the VD rates of Japanese soldiers. Even though this was seen as a way for women to support their country. The fact that there was comfort houses and comfort women during the war was secretive, “My father and my uncles were particularly silent about the issue of comfort women” (pg.2). The morale these men followed seemed to be correct to them. Just like his father and his uncles Tanaka believed that Japanese soldiers, “adhered to high moral standards during...
The poem “First Poem for You” by Kim Addonizio is a sonnet written by a woman contemplating on the permanence of her lover’s tattoos. The sonnet focuses on the speaker’s perspective of her lover’s tattoos as she appears to regard them with fascination and aversion. Upon closer analysis, it could be said that the speaker’s contemplation of her lover’s tattoos is a reflection of her perspective of their relationship. By comparing the permanence of her lover’s tattoos to the fleeting nature of relationships, the speaker addresses the uncertainty of their relationship and her desire for the relationship to become permanent.
Japanese society has many beliefs and rituals and women are always secluded from many aspects of ritual life. Women are also forbidden to enter in sacred places although these prohibitions are vanishing. The modern society has defined all social roles in terms of hierarchy such as domination of men over women it is common virtually in all setting that women be subordinated to male as household heads (Countries and their Culture 2014:14). Despite the legal changes on the principle of family structure regarding education and labor equity, there ...
Tattoo” can be interpreted in a multitude of ways. One way to interpret the poem is the tattoo is used as imagery to explain how old men are constantly trying to live the way they did when they were young. This is very ostensible in the poem, but this is not the main issue the speaker is addressing in the poem. The issue the speaker explains is how time changes a person. Another way to perceive this poem is that tattoos tell a personal story about the person. Many people excoriate others because they decided to get a tattoo. Some tattoos are important and represent something meaningful, while there are some that are drunken mistakes. The tattoo can be seen as an emblem of manhood. Machismo and the tattoo are diminished with age. In “Tattoo”,
Helen of Troy, known as the most beautiful woman of ancient Greek culture, is the catalyst for the Trojan War. As such, she is the subject of both Edgar Allen Poe’s “To Helen” and H.D.’s “Helen”; however, their perceptions of Helen are opposites. Many poets and authors have written about Helen in regards to her beauty and her treacherous actions. There is a tremendous contrast between the views of Helen in both poems by Poe and Doolittle. The reader may ascertain the contrast in the speakers’ views of Helen through their incorporation of diction, imagery, and tone that help convey the meaning of the work.
Beginning in residential school, Painted Tongue is called heathen by a religious school teacher, and after a while, he starts to question if maybe he is a heathen (Boyden 72-73). Boyden is illustrating the relationship between colonizer and colonized, with a repression of one’s spiritually by the preaching of another’s religion. This is another example of the effects of slow violence on Painted Tongue, where small differences such as contrasting religious or spiritual faiths, become the oppression of the minority
Gender equality has been an issue in the world for the past century. The contrast between men and women in China begins at home and translates into workplace expectations. In China, the expectation in the home is that men are superior to women and that she should be obliged to serve her husband. According to the Passport to China, “Confucianism is still a major factor in Chinese culture. A direct quote from the Passport to China represents this well. “The Confucian husband rules over his wife as a lord rules his people.” This essentially means that the husband is superior to the woman entirely in households that still maintain the Confucian attitudes of the past.
Sylvia Plath was known as an American Poet, Novelist and Shorty story writer. However, Plath lived a melancholic life. After Plath graduated from Smith College, Plath moved to Cambridge, England on a full scholarship. While Plath was Studying in England, she married Ted Hughes, an English poet. Shortly after, Plath returned to Massachusetts and began her first collection of poems, “Colossus”, which was published first in England and later the United States. Due to depression built up inside, Plath committed suicide leaving her family behind. Sylvia Plath was a gifted and troubled poet, known for the confessional style of her work, which is how “Mirror” came to be. Although this poem may seem like the reader is reading from first person point of view, there is a much deeper meaning behind Plath’s message throughout the poem. Plath uses several elements of terror and darkness to show change to the minds of the readers.
It isn 't uncommon to see people walking around with tattoos permanently stained on their body. It is also uncommon to know that they usually have a meaning. From Chinese symbols to images devoted to the flying spaghetti monster, people love to keep these tattoos to remind them of a message or a special someone. According to the World Book Advanced Dictionary, a tattoo is "to mark (the skin) with designs or patterns by pricking a line of holes and putting in colors. ' ' And the meaning of an individual 's tattoo can vary depending on where you are. In this essay, I will discuss contrasting elements in prison and in tribal tattoos. This will be done by doing a cross sectional study of their history, meaning and methods. Are prison and tribal tattoos similar or different?
Many people have been getting tattoos lately. People of all ages have been getting them and from all different backgrounds. On a nice day in just about any public place one can spot a tattoo about every five minutes, from the business man who had a portrait of his daughter put on him to a young girl with a butterfly on her ankle and even people with extensive tattoo coverage. What is even more interesting is the rise in the number of people who are heavily tattooed and that they come from all different backgrounds. Not too long ago tattooing did not experience the popularity in mainstream culture that it does now. The question that must be asked in order to understand this fascination that popular culture has had with tattoos is why people get tattoos.
In Japanese culture, it was a common ideal to view women as incompetent of being the head of a household (Yoshimi 200). Asian Women were subjected to discriminatory attitudes towards them by men, which left them with almost no opportunity to avoid a life in low social classes. In 19th century Japanese society, an unmarried woman was no doubly associated with low-end occupations that had significantly low wages (Yoshimi 70). The disadvantages associated with being a woman of a low social stature created an unfortunate history of prostitution among Japa...
William Blake’s 1793 poem “The Tyger” has many interpretations, but its main purpose is to question God as a creator. Its poetic techniques generate a vivid picture that encourages the reader to see the Tyger as a horrifying and terrible being. The speaker addresses the question of whether or not the same God who made the lamb, a gentle creature, could have also formed the Tyger and all its darkness. This issue is addressed through many poetic devices including rhyme, repetition, allusion, and symbolism, all of which show up throughout the poem and are combined to create a strong image of the Tyger and a less than thorough interpretation of its maker.
William Blake, one of the infamous English romantic poets, is most known for his romantic views on conventional scenes and objects, which were presented in his works The Songs of Innocence and The Songs of Experience. The first collection was published in 1789, and addresses subjects such as suffering and death from the innocent and optimistic perspective of a child. The later collection addresses these same issues, but is told from the perspective of an experienced bard. The poems contained in The Songs of Innocence often have a counter part in the second collection that reflects a darker or more corrupted take on the same subject. For example, the purity presented in the creation of “The Lamb” is dramatically contrasted with its shameful counterpart “The Tyger”. In this essay, I will argue that William Blake’s poem “The Tyger” alludes to his belief in a darker side of creation and the implications of the Industrial Revolution, my argument is based on Blake’s use of rhetorical questions, word choice, and the poem’s context; specifically in the fourth and fifth stanzas. In the beginning of the poem the tiger appears as a striking and wondrous creature, however, as the poem progresses, the tiger takes on a symbolic meaning, and comes to be a physical manifestation of the spiritual and moral problem the poem explores: creation, divine and manmade.
Shan-Loong, M. L. (2000, March 14). Tradition & Change –. Gender Roles in Japan. Retrieved