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Heichū Monogatari
''Tales of Heichū'' (''Heichū monogatari'') belongs to the genre of ''uta monogatari'' poem tales that emerged in Japanese literature from the mid 10th to the early 11th centuries. As early as the ''Collection of Ten-Thousand Leaves'' ('' Manyōshū''), a poetry collection completed around 759, there appeared poems introduced by brief prose narrations. The imperial court began to come alive with poetry from around this time. People exchanged poetry with one another on topics as diverse as love and politics and religion. Towards the end of the 9th century it was common for individual poets to keep compilations of their own verse, sometimes explaining in prose the circumstances behind a poem's composition. The highest honor was to have ones poem selected for inclusion in the ''Collection of Ancient and Modern Poetry'' ( Kokinshū), the first imperial poetry collection, which was completed around 905. By the middle of the 10th century the idea of a poem paired with a prose narrat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Uta Monogatari
is a literary subgenre of the ''monogatari''. It is characterized by an emphasis on ''waka (poetry), waka'' poetry, with prose sections interspersed. While most other ''monogatari'' of the Heian period and later contain ''waka'', the ''uta monogatari'' feature poetry as the core of successive narrative episodes, with the prose sections sometimes limited to a brief note about the composition of the poetry.Keene, Donald. ''A History of Japanese Literature: Volume 1''. New York: Columbia University Press, 1999. p. 451. . History One of the most influential and early examples of ''uta monogatari'' is the ''Tales of Ise''. An anonymous work sometimes attributed to Ariwara no Narihira, it is a series of 125 largely unconnected prose narratives about "a man", many of said narratives beginning with the short sentence ''Mukashi otoko arikeri'' ("Long ago, there was a man"). These narratives are largely centered on poetry composed by the "man", usually identified as a fictionalized version o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Literature
Japanese literature throughout most of its history has been influenced by cultural contact with neighboring Asian literatures, most notably China and its literature. Early texts were often written in pure Classical Chinese or , a Chinese-Japanese creole language. Indian literature also had an influence through the spread of Buddhism in Japan. During the Heian period, Japan's original culture () developed and literature also established its own style, with the significant usage and development of to write Japanese literature. Following the Perry Expedition which led to the end of the policy and the forced reopening of foreign trade, Western literature has also made influences to the development of modern Japanese writers, while Japanese literature has in turn become more recognized internationally, leading to two Japanese Nobel laureates in literature, namely Yasunari Kawabata and Kenzaburō Ōe. History Nara-period literature (before 794) Before the introduction of kanji f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ise Monogatari
is a Japanese ''uta monogatari'', or collection of ''waka (poetry), waka'' poems and associated narratives, dating from the Heian period. The current version collects 125 sections, with each combining poems and prose, giving a total of 209 poems in most versions. Concerning the exact date of composition and authorship there is only unresolved speculation. The identity of the nameless, idealised central character is unclear, though it is suggested to be Ariwara no Narihira (825–880). Thirty of the poems from ''The Tales of Ise'' appear in the ''Kokin Wakashū'' (905), with similar headnotes, all attributed to Narihira. The combination of these poems, and the similarity of some events in the tales to Narihira's life, have led to the additional suggestion that Narihira actually composed the work; however, the inclusion of material and events dating after 880 suggests otherwise. Title The late-eleventh centuryKeene 1999 : 518–519. work known as ''Sagoromo Monogatari, The Tale of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yamato Monogatari
is a collection of 173 short stories which give details about life in the imperial court in the 9th and 10th centuries. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Yamato monogatari''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 1047. It is an ''uta monogatari'' (a work combining narrative fiction with ''waka'' poetry) from the 10th-century Japan. The exact date of the completion of the text is unknown, but the majority of the text was completed in the year 951 by an unknown author. Content The ''Ise Monogatari'' had a strong influence on the composition of ''Yamato Monogatari'', one that can be seen in the fact that some of the same tales appear in both works. The appearance of many historical figures and the absence of a single main character are characteristics of this text. Origin The poems in ''Yamato Monogatari'' were written in a time when Japanese literature and art was flourishing, after having stopped communications with China. Deciding that the declining Tang dynasty was no longer worth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kamakura Period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle between the Taira and Minamoto clans. The period is known for the emergence of the samurai, the warrior caste, and for the establishment of feudalism in Japan. During the early Kamakura period, the shogunate continued warfare against the Northern Fujiwara which was only defeated in 1189. Then, the authority to the Kamakura rulers waned in the 1190s and power was transferred to the powerful Hōjō clan in the early 13th century with the head of the clan as regent (Shikken) under the shogun which became a powerless figurehead. The later Kamakura period saw the invasions of the Mongols in 1274 and again in 1281. To reduce the amount of chaos, the Hōjō rulers decided to decentralize power by allowing two imperial lines – Northern and Southern ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Konjaku Monogatari
Konjac (or konjak, ) is a common name of the East and Southeast Asian plant ''Amorphophallus konjac'' (syn. ''A. rivieri''), which has an edible corm (bulbo-tuber). It is also known as konjaku, konnyaku potato, devil's tongue, voodoo lily, snake palm, or elephant yam (though this name is also used for '' A. paeoniifolius''). It is native to Yunnan in China and cultivated in warm subtropical to tropical East and Southeast Asia, from China and Japan south to Indonesia and Vietnam (USDA hardiness zone 6–11). It is a perennial plant, growing from a large corm up to 25 cm (10 in) in diameter. The single leaf is up to 1.3 m (4 ft) across, bipinnate, and divided into numerous leaflets. The flowers are produced on a spathe enclosed by a dark purple spadix up to 55 cm (22 in) long. The food made from the corm of this plant is widely known in English by its Japanese name, ''konnyaku'' (yam cake), being cooked and consumed primarily in Japan and Korea. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tales Of Ise
is a Japanese '' uta monogatari'', or collection of ''waka'' poems and associated narratives, dating from the Heian period. The current version collects 125 sections, with each combining poems and prose, giving a total of 209 poems in most versions. Concerning the exact date of composition and authorship there is only unresolved speculation. The identity of the nameless, idealised central character is unclear, though it is suggested to be Ariwara no Narihira (825–880). Thirty of the poems from ''The Tales of Ise'' appear in the ''Kokin Wakashū'' (905), with similar headnotes, all attributed to Narihira. The combination of these poems, and the similarity of some events in the tales to Narihira's life, have led to the additional suggestion that Narihira actually composed the work; however, the inclusion of material and events dating after 880 suggests otherwise. Title The late-eleventh centuryKeene 1999 : 518–519. work known as '' The Tale of Sagoromo'' refers to ''Ise'' by t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tales Of Yamato
is a collection of 173 short stories which give details about life in the imperial court in the 9th and 10th centuries. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Yamato monogatari''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 1047. It is an ''uta monogatari'' (a work combining narrative fiction with ''waka'' poetry) from the 10th-century Japan. The exact date of the completion of the text is unknown, but the majority of the text was completed in the year 951 by an unknown author. Content The ''Ise Monogatari'' had a strong influence on the composition of ''Yamato Monogatari'', one that can be seen in the fact that some of the same tales appear in both works. The appearance of many historical figures and the absence of a single main character are characteristics of this text. Origin The poems in ''Yamato Monogatari'' were written in a time when Japanese literature and art was flourishing, after having stopped communications with China. Deciding that the declining Tang dynasty was no longer worth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
