A Lesson Plan for the KKC Program Ke’nee’che’wa! A Lesson Plan for the KKC Program by Frank Stewart

LESSON PLAN WORLD HISTORY

THE TALE OF GENJI The Tale of Genji is the first novel ever produced in the world. The novel was written by Lady Murasaki

The Tale of Genji The novel is one of the most widely acclaimed literary works in the world. Even today it is a mandatory reading assignment in many schools in the West. The novel was first published during the Heian (Kyoto) Era in the 8th Century C.E.

Tale of Genji continued The novel centered around the life history of a prominent and romantic son of the reigning emperor and the subsequent fate of the prince’s descendants. The novel provides a close up view of life at the emperor court during that time period with all of the intrigues at court.

Tale of Gengi continued Genji’s life is almost solely devoted to the pursuit of pleasure and beautiful objects. He has numerous affairs with many beautiful women in lovely garden surroundings. Genji and members of his entourage disdain objects they considered cheap, shoddy and unbecoming.

Tale of Genji continued Genji’s mother at court is at the center of the controversy and intrigues. Her rivals hold her in great disdain and contempt and make known their feelings by leaving rotten fruits in the places her servants have to pass while on errands on behalf of their mistress.

Tale of Genji Eventually, Genji’s mother died from a combination of factors, least of which is her encounter with a dried up piece of fruit conveniently left around her.

Tale of Genji Genji’s entourage or circle of hangers-on, are all obsessed with rituals that govern all aspects of court life and genteel society in general. They are more concerned with the style of clothes to wear, the type of poem to compose or to listen to. And the men are in constant pursuit of beautiful women and devote endless hours thinking of ways to win the affection of those women.

Tale of Genji The Role of women- Although women, in some instances, rivaled men as poets, artists and entertainers in their quest for pleasure and aesthetic objects, their virtue was openly questioned and called into account if they were thought to actively pursue men.

Tale of Genji, (women continued) Nevertheless, women did pursue men they found in position of power or for their own physical attractiveness.

Tale of Genji (women continued) A “lady” at the Heian court was expected top be poised, attractive, genteel and as cultured and refined as the men. Many of the women at court were quite accomplished in their own rights. Many of them were poets, musicians, artists and consummate palace in fighters, competiting with the men in palace intrigues.

Tale of Genji continued Who was Lady Murasaki? Her name was Mursakai Shikibu. She is the best known writer to emerge during Japan’s Heian Period. Shikibu was born into the Fujiwara family. Her father was the governor of a local province.

Lady Mursaki continued As a young child she impressed her father with her great intellect. In contrast to the standard practices of the day, he allowed his daughter to become educated, even allowing her to be schooled along with her brother and to learn classic Chinese. While still in her early 20s’, she was married to a distant cousin.

Lady Murasaki continued A daughter was born to the couple in 999 C.E. She lost her husband in 1001 C.E. She was brought to court by the Japanese Imperial Family soon after the death of her husband. Once at court, she soon began to keep a diary of court life. She disdained the frivolous pursuits of both men and women at court, even members of the royal family.

Lady Murasaki continued The publication of he novel, the Tale of Genji became a popular hit when it was first published. The original manuscript was lost. However, the manuscript scroll survived. The book has been translated into many languages and discussed by scholars all over the world as a way of understanding life at the imperial court during the Heian Era.

Lady Murasaki continued Not much is known about the author after the publication of the novel. It has been surmised that she left the court soon after the publication of the novel and died sometimes between the time frame of 1014-1025 C.E. It is believed that she was in her Fifties when she died, a rather young age by today’s Japanese standards but not an unusual age for a Japanese of that time period.

THE END/SAYONARA!

The End/Sayonara!