The Tale of Genji
The work is a unique depiction of the lifestyles of high courtiers during the Heian period. It is written in archaic language and a poetic and complex style that make it unreadable to the average Japanese speaker without specialized study. It was not until the early 20th century that "Genji" was translated into modern Japanese by the poet Akiko Yosano. The first English translation was attempted in 1882 by Suematsu Kencho, but was of poor quality and incomplete. The work recounts the life of Hikaru Genji, or "Shining Genji", who is the son of an ancient  Japanese emperor (known to readers as Emperor Kiritsubo) and a low-ranking concubine called Kiritsubo Consort. For political reasons, the emperor removes Genji from the line of succession, demoting him to a commoner by giving him the surname Minamoto, and he pursues a career as an imperial officer. The tale concentrates on Genji's romantic life and describes the customs of the aristocratic society of the time. It may be the world's first novel, the first psychological novel, and the first novel still to be considered a classic particularly in the context of Japanese literature. Historical context. Murasaki was  writing at the height of the Fujiwara clan's power—Fujiwara no Michinaga was the Regent in all but name, and the most significant political figure of his day. Consequently, Murasaki is believed to have partially informed the character of Genji through her experience of Michinaga. "The Tale of Genji" may have been written chapter by chapter in installments, as Murasaki delivered the tale to aristocratic women (ladies-in-waiting). It has many elements found in a modern novel: a central character and a very large number of major and minor characters, well-developed characterization of all the major players , a sequence of events covering the central character's lifetime and beyond. There is no specified plot, but events happen and characters simply grow older. Despite a "dramatis personæ" of some four hundred characters, it maintains internal consistency; for instance, all characters age in step, and both family and feudal relationships stay intact throughout. One complication for readers and translators of the "Genji" is that almost none of the characters in the original text are given an explicit name. The characters are instead referred to by their function or role (e.g. Minister of the Left), an honorific (e.g. His Excellency ), or their relation to other characters (e.g. Heir Apparent), which changes as the novel progresses. This lack of names stems from Heian-era court manners that would have made it unacceptably familiar and blunt to freely mention a person's given name. Modern readers and translators have used various nicknames to keep track of the many characters. Authorship. There is debate over how much of "Genji" was actually written by Murasaki Shikibu. Debates over the novel's authorship have gone on for centuries, and are unlikely to ever be settled unless some major archival discovery is made. It is generally  accepted that the tale was finished in its present form by 1021, when the author of the wrote a diary entry about her joy at acquiring a complete copy of the tale. She writes that there are over 50 chapters and mentions a character introduced at the end of the work, so if other authors besides Murasaki did work on the tale, the work was finished very near to the time of her writing. Murasaki's own diary includes a reference to the tale, and indeed the application to herself of the name 'Murasaki' in an allusion to the main  female character. That entry confirms that some if not all of the diary was available in 1008 when internal evidence convincingly suggests that the entry was written. Murasaki is said to have written the character of Genji based on the Minister on the Left at the time she was at court. Other translators, such as Tyler, believe the character Murasaki no Ue, whom Genji marries, is based on Murasaki Shikibu herself. Yosano Akiko, the first author to make a modern Japanese translation of "Genji", believed that Murasaki had only written chapters 1 to 33, and that chapters 35 to 54  were written by her daughter, Daini no Sanmi. Other scholars have also doubted the authorship of chapters 42 to 54 (particularly 44, which contains rare examples of continuity mistakes). According to Royall Tyler's introduction to his English translation of the work, recent computer analysis has turned up "statistically significant" discrepancies of style between chapters 45–54 and the rest, and also among the early chapters. Plot. Genji's mother dies when he is three years old, and the Emperor cannot forget her. The Emperor Kiritsubo then hears of a woman (Lady Fujitsubo), formerly a princess of the preceding emperor , who resembles his deceased concubine, and later she becomes one of his wives. Genji loves her first as a stepmother, but later as a woman, and they fall in love with each other. Genji is frustrated by his forbidden love for the Lady Fujitsubo and is on bad terms with his own wife (Aoi no Ue, the Lady Aoi). He engages in a series of love affairs with other women. These are however unfulfilling, as in most cases his advances are rebuffed, or his lover dies suddenly, or he becomes bored. Genji visits Kitayama, a rural hilly area north of  Kyoto, where he finds a beautiful ten-year-old girl. He is fascinated by this little girl (Murasaki), and discovers that she is a niece of the Lady Fujitsubo. Finally he kidnaps her, brings her to his own palace and educates her to be like the Lady Fujitsubo, who is his womanly ideal. During this time Genji also meets Lady Fujitsubo secretly, and she bears his son, Reizei. Everyone except the two lovers believes the father of the child is the Emperor Kiritsubo. Later the boy becomes the Crown Prince and Lady Fujitsubo becomes the Empress, but Genji and Lady  Fujitsubo swear to keep the child's true parentage secret. Genji and his wife, Lady Aoi, reconcile. She gives birth to a son but dies soon after. Genji is sorrowful but finds consolation in Murasaki, whom he marries. Genji's father, the Emperor Kiritsubo, dies. He is succeeded by his son Suzaku, whose mother (Kokiden), together with Kiritsubo's political enemies, take power in the court. Then another of Genji's secret love affairs is exposed: Genji and a concubine of the Emperor Suzaku are discovered while meeting in secret. The Emperor Suzaku confides his personal amusement at Genji's  exploits with the woman (Oborozukiyo), but is duty-bound to punish Genji even though he is his half-brother. He exiles Genji to the town of Suma in rural Harima Province (now part of Kobe in Hyōgo Prefecture). There, a prosperous man known as the Akashi Novice (because he is from Akashi in Settsu Province) entertains Genji, and Genji has an affair with Akashi's daughter. She gives birth to Genji's only daughter, who will later become the Empress. In the capital the Emperor Suzaku is troubled by dreams of his late father, Kiritsubo, and something begins to affect  his eyes. Meanwhile, his mother, Kokiden, grows ill, which weakens her influence over the throne, and leads to the Emperor ordering Genji to be pardoned. Genji returns to Kyoto. His son by Lady Fujitsubo, Reizei, becomes the emperor. The new Emperor Reizei knows Genji is his real father, and raises Genji's rank to the highest possible. However, when Genji turns 40 years old, his life begins to decline. His political status does not change, but his love and emotional life begin to incrementally diminish as middle age takes hold. He marries another wife, the Third Princess (known as Onna  san no miya in the Seidensticker version, or Nyōsan in Waley's). Genji's nephew, Kashiwagi, later forces himself on the Third Princess, and she bears Kaoru (who, in a similar situation to that of Reizei, is legally known as the son of Genji). Genji's new marriage changes his relationship with Murasaki, who had expressed her wish of becoming a nun () though the wish was rejected by Genji. Genji's beloved Murasaki dies. In the following chapter, ("Illusion"), Genji contemplates how fleeting life is. Immediately after the chapter titled , there is a chapter titled ("Vanished into the Clouds"), which  is left blank, but implies the death of Genji. Chapter 45–54 are known as the "Uji Chapters". These chapters follow Kaoru and his best friend, Niou. Niou is an imperial prince, the son of Genji's daughter, the current Empress now that Reizei has abdicated the throne, while Kaoru is known to the world as Genji's son but is in fact fathered by Genji's nephew. The chapters involve Kaoru and Niou's rivalry over several daughters of an imperial prince who lives in Uji, a place some distance away from the capital. The tale ends abruptly, with Kaoru  wondering if Niou is hiding Kaoru's former lover away from him. Kaoru has sometimes been called the first anti-hero in literature. Completion. The tale has an abrupt ending. Opinions vary on whether this was intended by the author. Arthur Waley, who made the first English translation of the whole of "The Tale of Genji", believed that the work as we have it was finished. Ivan Morris, however, author of "The World of the Shining Prince", believed that it was not complete and that later chapters were missing. Edward Seidensticker, who made the second translation of the "Genji", believed  that Murasaki Shikibu had not had a planned story structure with an ending as such but would simply have continued writing as long as she could. Literary context. Because it was written to entertain the Japanese court of the 11th century, the work presents many difficulties to modern readers. First and foremost, Murasaki's language, Heian-period court Japanese, was highly inflected and had very complex grammar. Another problem is that naming people was considered rude in Heian court society, so none of the characters are named within the work; instead, the narrator refers to men often by their rank  or their station in life, and to women often by the color of their clothing, or by the words used at a meeting, or by the rank of a prominent male relative. This results in different appellations for the same character depending on the chapter. Another aspect of the language is the importance of using poetry in conversations. Modifying or rephrasing a classic poem according to the current situation was expected behavior in Heian court life, and often served to communicate thinly veiled allusions. The poems in the "Genji" are often in the classic Japanese form. Many of the poems  were well known to the intended audience, so usually only the first few lines are given and the reader is supposed to complete the thought themselves, leaving the rest – which the reader would be expected to know – unspoken. As with most Heian literature, "Genji" was probably written mostly (or perhaps entirely) in kana (Japanese phonetic script) and not in kanji, because it was written by a woman for a female audience. Writing in kanji was at the time a masculine pursuit; women were generally discreet when using kanji, confining themselves mostly to native Japanese words (). Outside of vocabulary related to  politics and Buddhism, "Genji" contains remarkably few Chinese loan words (). This has the effect of giving the story a very even, smooth flow. However, it also introduces confusion: there are a number of homophones (words with the same pronunciation but different meanings), and for modern readers, context is not always sufficient to determine which meaning was intended. Structure. Outline. The novel is traditionally divided into three parts, the first two dealing with the life of Genji and the last with the early years of two of Genji's prominent descendants, Niou and Kaoru. There are also several short transitional chapters  which are usually grouped separately and whose authorships are sometimes questioned. The 54th and last chapter, "The Floating Bridge of Dreams", is sometimes argued by modern scholars to be a separate part from the Uji part. It seems to continue the story from the previous chapters but has an unusually abstract chapter title. It is the only chapter whose title has no clear reference within the text, although this may be due to the chapter being unfinished. This question is made more difficult by the fact that we do not know exactly when the chapters acquired their titles. List of  chapters. The English translations here are taken from the Arthur Waley, the Edward Seidensticker, the Royall Tyler, and the Dennis Washburn translations. It is not known for certain when the chapters acquired their titles. Early mentions of the Tale refer to chapter numbers, or contain alternate titles for some of the chapters. This may suggest that the titles were added later. The titles are largely derived from poetry that is quoted within the text, or allusions to various characters. The additional chapter between 41 and 42 in some manuscripts is called which means "Vanished into the Clouds"—the chapter is a  title only, and is probably intended to evoke Genji's death. Some scholars have posited the earlier existence of a chapter between 1 and 2 which would have introduced some characters that seem to appear very abruptly in the book as it stands. The Waley translation completely omits the 38th chapter. Later authors have composed additional chapters, most often either between 41 and 42, or after the end. Manuscripts. The original manuscript written by Murasaki Shikibu no longer exists. Numerous copies, totaling around 300 according to Ikeda Kikan, exist with differences between each. It is thought that Shikibu often went  back and edited early manuscripts introducing discrepancies with earlier copies. The various manuscripts are classified into three categories: In the 13th century, two major attempts by Minamoto no Chikayuki and Fujiwara Teika were made to edit and revise the differing manuscripts. The Chikayuki manuscript is known as the ; edits were many beginning in 1236 and completing in 1255. The Teika manuscript is known as the ; its edits are more conservative and thought to better represent the original. These two manuscripts were used as the basis for many future copies. The category represents all other manuscripts not belonging to either or  . This includes older but incomplete manuscripts, mixed manuscripts derived from both and , and commentaries. On March 10, 2008, it was announced that a late Kamakura period (1192–1333) manuscript had been found in Kyoto, containing the sixth chapter, ; the manuscript was 65 pages in length. Most remaining manuscripts are based on copies of the Teika manuscript which introduced revisions in the original; this manuscript, however, belongs to a different lineage and was not influenced by Teika. Professor Yamamoto Tokurō, who examined the manuscript, said, "This is a precious discovery as Kamakura manuscripts are so rare." Professor Katō Yōsuke said, "This is  an important discovery as it asserts that non-Teika manuscripts were being read during the Kamakura period." On October 29, 2008, Konan Women's University announced that a mid-Kamakura period manuscript had been found, containing the 32nd chapter, . The manuscript was recognized as the oldest extant copy of this chapter, dating to between 1240 and 1280. The manuscript, considered to be of the category, is 74 pages in length and differs from manuscripts in at least four places, raising the "possibility that the contents may be closer to the undiscovered Murasaki Shikibu original manuscript". On October 9, 2019, it  was announced that an original copy of Teika's had been found in Tokyo at the home of the current head of the Okochi-Matsudaira clan, who ran the Yoshida Domain. The manuscript is the 5th chapter, , and is the oldest version of the chapter. Blue ink common in Teika's manuscript and handwriting analysis confirmed that the manuscript was written by Teika, making it among the 5 original versions of the known to exist. Illustrated scrolls. Numerous illustrations of scenes from "Genji" have been produced, most notably a 12th-century scroll, the , containing illustrated scenes from "Genji" together with  handwritten text. This scroll is the earliest extant example of a Japanese "picture scroll": collected illustrations and calligraphy of a single work. The original scroll is believed to have comprised 10–20 rolls and covered all 54 chapters. The extant pieces include only 19 illustrations and 65 pages of text, plus nine pages of fragments. This is estimated at 15% of the envisioned original. The Tokugawa Art Museum in Nagoya has three of the scrolls handed down in the Owari branch of the Tokugawa clan and one scroll held by the Hachisuka family is now in the Gotoh Museum in Tokyo . The scrolls are designated National Treasures of Japan. The scrolls are so fragile that they normally are not shown in public. The original scrolls in the Tokugawa Museum were shown from November 21 to November 29 in 2009. Since 2001, they have been displayed in the Tokugawa Museum annually for around one week in November. An oversize English photoreproduction and translation was published in limited edition in 1971 by Kodansha International. Other notable illustrated scrolls of "Genji" are by Tosa Mitsuoki, who lived from 1617 to 1691. His paintings are closely based on Heian style from the existing scrolls from  the 12th century and are fully complete. The tale was also a popular theme in ukiyo-e prints from the Edo period. Modern readership. Japanese. "The Tale of Genji" was written in an archaic court language, and a century after its completion it was unreadable without specialized study. Annotated and illustrated versions existed as early as the 12th century. It was not until the early 20th century that "Genji" was translated into modern Japanese, by the poet Akiko Yosano. Therefore, translations into modern Japanese and other languages solve these problems by modernizing the language, unfortunately losing some of the meaning , and by giving names to the characters, usually the traditional names used by academics. This gives rise to anachronisms; for instance, Genji's first wife is named Aoi because she is known as the lady of the Aoi chapter, in which she dies. Both scholars and writers have tried translating it. The first translation into modern Japanese was made by the poet Yosano Akiko. Other known translations were done by the novelists Jun'ichirō Tanizaki and Fumiko Enchi. Because of the cultural differences, reading an annotated version of the "Genji" is quite common, even among Japanese readers. There are several annotated  versions by novelists, including Seiko Tanabe, Jakucho Setouchi and Osamu Hashimoto. Many works, including a manga series and different television dramas, are derived from "The Tale of Genji". There have been at least five manga adaptations of "Genji". A manga version was created by Waki Yamato, ("The Tale of Genji" in English), and a current version by Sugimura Yoshimitsu is in progress. Another manga, , by Miyako Maki, won the Shogakukan Manga Award in 1989. English translations. The first partial translation of "Genji" into English was by Suematsu Kenchō, published in 1882. Arthur Waley published a six-volume translation of all  but one chapter, with the first volume published in 1925 and the last in 1933. In 1976, Edward Seidensticker published the first complete translation into English, made using a self-consciously "stricter" approach with regards to content if not form. The English translation published in 2001 by Royall Tyler aims at fidelity in content and form to the original text. The most recently written ("Genji and the Luck of the Sea") dates from 2007. Its initial version has been extensively revised, retitled, and updated for this publication. , WorldCat identifies 88 editions of "Genji". The major translations into English are each  slightly different, mirroring the personal choices of the translator and the period in which the translation was made. Each version has its merits, its detractors and its advocates, and each is distinguished by the name of the translator. For example, the version translated by Arthur Waley would typically be referred to as "the Waley "Genji"". Major English translations. In chronological order: Reception and legacy. "The Tale of Genji" is an important work of Japanese literature, and modern authors have cited it as inspiration, such as Jorge Luis Borges who said of it, ""The Tale of Genji", as translated by Arthur  Waley, is written with an almost miraculous naturalness, and what interests us is not the exoticism—the horrible word—but rather the human passions of the novel. Such interest is just: Murasaki's work is what one would quite precisely call a psychological novel ... I dare to recommend this book to those who read me. The English translation that has inspired this brief insufficient note is called "The Tale of Genji"." It is noted for its internal consistency, psychological depiction, and characterization. The novelist Yasunari Kawabata said in his Nobel Prize acceptance speech: ""The Tale of Genji" in particular is  the highest pinnacle of Japanese literature. Even down to our day there has not been a piece of fiction to compare with it." The "Genji" is also often referred to as "the first novel", though there is considerable debate over this; other texts that predate "Genji", such as the 7th-century Sanskrit , are considered to be novels, and there is debate around whether "Genji" can even be considered a "novel". Some consider the psychological insight, complexity and unity of the work to qualify it for "novel" status while simultaneously disqualifying earlier works of prose fiction. Others see these arguments as  subjective and unconvincing. Related claims, perhaps in an attempt to sidestep these debates, are that "Genji" is the "first psychological novel" or "historical novel", "the first novel still considered to be a classic" or other more qualified terms. However, critics have almost consistently described "The Tale of Genji" as the oldest, first, and/or greatest novel in Japanese literature, though enthusiastic proponents may have later neglected the qualifying category of 'in Japanese literature', leading to the debates over the book's place in world literature. Even in Japan, the "Tale of Genji" is not universally embraced; the lesser-known has been  proposed as the "world's first full-length novel", even though its author is unknown. Despite these debates, "The Tale of Genji" enjoys solid respect among the works of literature, and its influence on Japanese literature has been compared to that of Philip Sidney's "Arcadia" on English literature. The novel and other works by Lady Murasaki are staple reading material in the curricula of Japanese schools. The Bank of Japan issued the 2000 yen banknote in her honor, featuring a scene from the novel based on the 12th-century illustrated handscroll. Since a 1 November 1008 entry in "The  Diary of Lady Murasaki" is the oldest date on which a reference to "The Tale of Genji" has appeared, November 1 was designated as the official day to celebrate Japanese classics. According to Act on Classics Day, the "classics" that are honored not only include literature, but encompass a wide range of arts such as music, art, traditional performing arts, entertainment, lifestyle art including tea ceremony and flower arrangement and other cultural products. The names of the chapters became a central element a sort of incense based game called Genjikō, part of the larger practice of Monkō popular among the  nobility. In Genjikō, players must match the scents of a series of five incense samples without being told the names of said samples. Each possible combination was matched to a symbol, called a , that represented a chapter from the story. Bibliography.