561. The Golden Age of Japan: Secrets of the Imperial Court (Part 2)
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What is The Pillow Book and who was Sei Shōnagon?
It is the beginning of a really, really remarkable and original masterpiece called The Pillow Book, which was written in the early years of the 11th century in what is now Kyoto. And Tom, we talked last time about the great Japanese classic, The Tale of Genji. This was written round about the same time in what was then called Heian-kyo. And as with the tale of Genji, its author was a woman.
Yes. The woman was called, say, Shonagon. And Murasaki Shikibu, the author of the tale of Genji... knew Seishonagon and didn't like her. So she wrote in her diary, Seishonagon was dreadfully conceited. She thought herself so clever and littered her writings with Chinese characters. But if you examine them closely, they left a great deal to be desired. So like a kind of negative review of our podcast. Left by the hosts of an inferior Goldhanger podcast. No doubt. Although, of course, I mean, you know, Murasaki and Seishonagon are both transcendent geniuses. Right. So actually the analogy doesn't work at all. It breaks down there.
Yeah.
So... I think what you get there is a clear tone of envy. I mean, you know, we're concerts of tones of envy. We are. I guess it's not surprising, actually, because the two women are in lots of ways quite alike. So say Shonagon, say is a family name, but Shonagon, like Shikabu, so Murasaki's kind of second name, is the name of a post in the Imperial Civil Service. So like Murasaki, Shikabu, say Shonagon is the daughter of a functionary, of a civil servant. And Murasaki knew about Seishonagon because they had both served as kind of ladies-in-waiting to an empress in the imperial court. And also, like Murasaki, Seishonagon knew Chinese. We talked about this in the previous episode, that for a woman to know Chinese is seen as very unladylike, very unbecoming.
And Murasaki... tried to keep her knowledge of Chinese secret. She was embarrassed by it. Her fellow ladies in waiting teased her about it. But Seishonigan did not veil it. She absolutely paraded her knowledge of Chinese. She's absolutely unafraid to make a show of her brilliance. And she does it with such style and charisma that it clearly makes her a kind of a massive star at court. So unlike Murasaki, she boasts of how ready she is to kind of stand up and be the center of attention. So she writes in the Pillow book, I am not renowned for my modesty or prudence.
How did Sei Shōnagon's writing style differ from Murasaki Shikibu's?
So again, the comparison between Shea Shonigan, who's not renowned for her modesty, and the presenters of The Rest is History, that rather breaks down there, doesn't it, Tom? We're very shy and retiring like Murasaki. Exactly. Exactly. Now, we talked last time when we were explaining about the tale of Genji and this world of kind of 9th, 10th, 11th century Japan.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is The Pillow Book and who was Sei Shōnagon?
2:05–4:44
2
How did Sei Shōnagon's writing style differ from Murasaki Shikibu's?
4:44–9:19
3
What kinds of content and themes are found in The Pillow Book?
9:19–20:53
4
How important was poetry and calligraphy at the Heian court?
20:53–32:44
5
What were the rules and rituals of courtship in Imperial Japan?
32:44–45:54
6
What standards of beauty and fashion defined attractiveness in Heian Japan?
45:54–54:16
7
Who was Izumi Shikibu and what was her role in the Heian literary world?
54:16–55:44
8
Why is the Heian period considered a golden age of female literary achievement?
55:44–1:06:32
Speakers
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