The Theme Of Water In Arthur Golden's Memoirs Of A Geisha

Chikamatsu Monzaemon’s play, The Love Suicides at Amijima explores the disgrace of Jihei and Koharu’s misbegotten romance, the underlying conflict of the hidden innuendos aimed at the Japanese social class and the sense of duty formed between two women from unseemmingly different backgrounds. In order to fully understand these themes, on must take into account the societal structure of Osaka, Japan in the 1720s. Within this culture, every individual was instilled the notion of familial obligation and had to adhere to the rules placed upon them by society. Chikamatsu Monzaemon does an ideal job of capturing these concepts within the play.

Toni Morrison’s Beloved (1987) is a magical realism novel, centered around Sethe, a former slave. Before the novel begins, when she is yet a slave at Sweet Home, Sethe attempts to kill her children to prevent them from being forced into slavery. She kills one child, who seems to haunt her house afterwards as a ghost. After Sethe escapes Sweet Home and arrives at 124, a woman named Beloved becomes present in the novel and burdens Sethe by desiring everything that Sethe has. Sethe, believing that Beloved is the reincarnation of her dead child who had returned for revenge, succumbs to Beloved’s wishes. Beloved demands so much that Sethe becomes weak and overwhelmed. In the end, the community wants to exorcise Beloved from 124, Beloved suddenly

Musui 's Story is a samurai 's autobiography that portrays the Tokugawa society as it was lived during Katsu Kokichi 's life (1802 - 1850). Katsu Kokichi (or Musui) was a man born into a family with hereditary privilege of audience with the shogun, yet he lived a life unworthy of a samurai 's way, running protection racket, cheating, stealing, and lying. Before we discuss how Musui 's lifestyle was against the codes that regulated the behavior of the samurai, it is essential that the role of the samurai in Japanese society be understood.

In Toni Morrison’s Beloved, there are an array of symbols varying in forms and origins like numbers, colors, and aspects of nature. Of the countless meaningful symbols used in Beloved, the most prevalent and perhaps most important are water, metal, and trees. In using such symbols, Morrison is better able to convey underlying meaning and vibrant imagery. The symbolism used in Beloved adds a certain depth and vibrancy to the story that aids in engaging the reader’s imagination and prompts the reader to think more deeply about the meaning behind the seemingly small details that make up a story.

In her novel Beloved, Toni Morrison writes about the life of former slaves of Sweet Home. Sethe, one of the main characters, was once a slave to a man and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Garner. After Garner’s sudden death, schoolteacher comes to Sweet Home and takes control of the slaves. His treatment of all the slaves forced them to run away. Fearing that her children would be sold, Sethe sent her two boys and her baby girl ahead to her mother-in-law. On the way to freedom, a white girl named Amy Denver helped Sethe deliver her daughter, who she later names Denver. About a month after Sethe escapes slavery, schoolteacher found her and tried to bring her back. In fear that her children would be brought back into slavery, Sethe killed

Lian Hearn’s 2002 “Across the nightingale floor” is set in feudal japan 1800 and displays the warrior culture and traditional artworks, it shows the context of rank and class within japan at that time with the importance of birth ranks and resistance for change in system within the culture. The context of the book shows the values of japan’s feudal era and the social hierarchy. A hierarchy of which people of higher social status were called lords and ladies and those of lower status being sent into servitude.

Sayuri is taken to become a geisha while her mother is dying. She is separated from her sister and has to struggle against Mother and Auntie as well as her the woman teaching her the ways of the geisha. She also has to come to terms with the fact that she cannot be with the man she loves.

The film Gattaca investigates the potential outcomes of future genetic manipulation, and the route in which these ‘advances’ would influence society. This story takes place in the future, but has a fifties type feel with its wardrobes, sets, and props including the vehicles. This story is about the science of eugenics; and how it divides its futuristic society into two different classes, valid and invalids. This knowledge has allowed science to create the perfect human being without any flaws, especially any genetic diseases, in order to maintain a more productive society.

The author who brought to us The Tale of Genji, a novel now regarded as the first written novel in history, left behind an arguably more treasurable artifact: a diary that opens a window into history. The Diary of Lady Murasaki by Lady Murasaki Shikibu gives the reader a glimpse of the imperial court during eleventh century Japan and presents the past in an illuminated vision. Being an attendant in the imperial court, Lady Murasaki is frequently involved with the activities of elite Japanese women. Her day-to-day interaction with the nobles and elites enhance her account with the curious perspective of an elite female. As a woman, Lady Murasaki's descriptions are oriented around clothing

In the essentially dual religious system in Japan, ideologies and traditions play a heavy role in the everyday life of the Japanese people. Shintoism and Buddhism intertwine and complement themselves in Japanese culture, despite Buddhism coming in from mainland Asia. A particularly powerful idea from Buddhism is mono no aware, the realization and acknowledgment of the impermanence and its place in the world. This idea that nothing stays the same forever manifests itself heavily in Japanese literature, whether in personal writings or fictional works. Despite spanning hundreds of years, each work was shaped by and include manifestations of mono no aware. I intend to underline and pinpoint instances that mono no aware is influencing these works, and discuss similarities and differences between them. In this paper, I have three works that I will explore, each one corresponding to a different time period before the pre-industrial revolution; The Diary of Lady Murasaki comes from the classical period, Essays in Idleness from the medieval, and the immensely popular play Chushingura from the pre-modern era.

By doing so, Mizoguchi implicitly criticizes certain Japanese societal characteristics as the cause to Oharu’s downfall in society and ultimately presents an argument for the position of

Unlike the enthusiastic Western women, women grew up in oriental culture often have more restrained and gentle attitude, and this is one of the most symbolic cultural landscapes in Japan. In the movie, Sayuri chases for love and all she wants to do is to get closer to the Chairman. In fact, before the end of the story, she only sees chairman a few times in all, but she has strong faith to be with him. It could even be said that her whole life started from the few minutes of their encounters on the bridge. This is the typical oriental love, implicit but deeply passionate.

It is no secret that for centuries, the Japanese woman has been, to most observers, a model of elegance and graceful beauty. A picture of a kimono-clad, modest, and often silent woman has been plastered everywhere, allowing for the upmost passive subjection. If we look deeper into this image of woman, can we tell if this picture is complete? How do these women painted in representative images far in the modern world? The ideal woman in Japan is expected to be both a good wife, and a wise mother. Though these seem like reasonable expectations, there is a much deeper meaning to them that has shown signs of being outdated. During the 1800’s and 1900’s, women were subjected to society’s vision of them, and could not break free for fear of the

In his The Life of An Amorous Woman, Ihara Saikaku traces the demise of a woman whose thoughts and actions were controlled by insatiable lust and sexual desire. She begins as a wife and then progresses to a court lady-in-waiting, a concubine to a feudal lord, courtesan, priest’s mistress, brothel prostitute, and, finally a streetwalker. Though courtesans did not play a major role in ancient Japan, by the seventeenth century, the courtesan class was sanctioned by the government to the extent that official decrees created a separate district to enclose them and put up physical boundaries that mirrored the division between them and traditional prostitutes. According to Chesemore in her essay, Women of the Floating World, “as in all areas of Japanese life, attention was paid to the distinctions in the rank of the various inhabitants of this world, and clearly the courtesan reigned supreme” (Chesemore, 1990). Saikaku writes that, because of her beauty and talent, she had her choice of men, and “in the streets she walks with her head held high and does not step aside for anyone.” Far from the traditional Confucian gender roles, the amorous woman can afford to be haughty, as she was showered with gifts and other luxuries.

Power, prestige, personality, and a pleasing face: Chairman Ken Iwamura of the Iwamura Electric Company has it all. Undoubtedly, such a man would attract the great admiration of many. However, the Kyoto geisha, Sayuri Nitta, stands as an exception. She does not admire the Chairman. Instead, she is obsessed with him, so utterly entranced by his charm as to devote her entire life to having him become her danna. This intense love is the primary reason she transforms from a scared, reluctant young girl, Chiyo Sakamoto, into a manipulative and seductive full-fledged geisha. Analyzing Arthur Golden’s Memoirs of a Geisha through a psychoanalytical lens reveals that Sayuri Nitta’s fixation upon Chairman Iwamura emerges ultimately due to her