Medieval world reflected in Japanese literature: Examples of Changes and Innovations in Literature (Poetry and Prose)

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Even without knowledge of the history in Medieval Japan, one can easily learn that Kamakura era was right in the transition period of the government and that of worldviews among people. The warrior class was gradually and surely coming to power, only by looking into the literature works of the era. Perhaps Emperor Gotoba was one of the aristocrats who were threatened with declination of their status and culture, which could have been his motives to command of the anthology: Shinkokinshū. This power rotation was vividly described in Heike monogatari. Later in the era, well-known works, such as Hōjōki and Tsurezuregusa, were written by monks, who were weary of their social lives, in less formalistic manners. A comparison of the two setsuwa shū: Konjaku monogatari shū and Uji shūi monogatari, also tells different views of world, religion, and human lives, among Kamakura people from various backgrounds between 12th century and 13th century. In this paper, I will discuss historical events the Kamakura people went through, physically and spiritually, that are reflected in their literature works.

One of the cultural features expressed in literature during Kamakura era is that poems were still part of life for nobles and monks in early Kamakura era, confirmed by the fact that Shinkokinshū, having commissioned by retired Emperor Gotoba in 1201, was compiled by nobles and monks, and that several poetic devises, such as honkadori, taigendome, and X-no-Y-no-X, were invented in order to appreciate language, poetic sounds, and older poems. Especially honkadori symbolizes Kamakura poets’ admiration for those of previous times in terms of their poetic skills, aesthetic sense, and knowledge of language and its power; actually this devise ...

... middle of paper ...

...re works surely are witnesses of history and those written during Kamakura era unexceptionally tell the 150-year events visible and invisible, including the changes of public focus from aristocrats to warriors, and to commoners, transition from superstitions society, depending too much on supernatural, to relatively realistic civilization, whether being pessimistic, indifferent, or easy-going, and literary revolution: writing as intelligence vs. writing for personal use.

Works Cited

Aoki, Seiishiro. (2001). Heike Monogatari. Tokyo: Kadokawa Gakugei Shuppan.

Jikan. Shinkokinshū no heya (Shinkokinshu’s room). http://home.cilas.net/~jikan314/shinkokinwakashu/kanbetu/01/0038.html Retrieved on June 17, 2010

Online. Saigyō no Shōgai to sono uta (Saigyō’s life and his poems). http://www.d4.dion.ne.jp/~happyjr/ibaraki/es_sazanamiya.html Retrieved on June 18, 2010

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