Nō dramas emerged in Japan in the ca. 14th century and were performed in shrines and temples in Kyōto and Nara. The plots of nō plays were based on historical events, literature, legends, and contemporary events. At the time when nō plays were being written, many authors drew upon references or allusions from various literary sources such as Genji monogatari, Ise monogatari, and the Kokinshū. Two examples of nō plays that were based on Genji monogatari are Matsukaze and Nonomiya. After reading Matsukaze and Nonomiya, it is interesting that both plays share a similar plot even though they are written by different authors. Matsukaze, or also known as Pining Wind, was written by Zeami Motokiyo (1363 – 1443) around 1412 and according to Tyler, “[t]he background of Pining Wind includes a play which is now lost, Shiokumi (‘Gathering Brine’)” by Kiami (Tyler 183). The nō play Nonomiya, or also known as The Wildwood Shrine, is believed by most people to have been written by Komparu Zenchiku (1405 – 1468), who is the son - in - law and apprentice to Zeami. Both Matsukaze and Nonomiya share a similar story line and literary sources, but differ in how they were applied to contribute to the play’s plot, setting, characters, and relaying the emotion of the characters.
Although Matsukaze is based on Genji monogatari, Matsukaze also includes literary sources from Shiokumi, Ise monogatari, and the Kokinshū, which has a significant role in the play by presenting the play’s plot, setting, characters, and the character’s emotions. In Matsukaze, Matsukaze and Murasame represent characters from both Genji monogatari and Ise monogatari. In Genji monogatari, Matsukaze and Murasame represent the Akashi lady awaiting Genji’s return to Suma and ...
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...e description of the setting and the emotions of the characters. On the other hand, Zenchiku had stuck to most of the details in Nonomiya that were set by Murasaki Shikibu in Genji monogatari, but he gave the reader a new perspective of Rokujō than how she had been portrayed in the original tale. After analyzing and comparing Matstukaze and Nonomiya, it seems appealing to be able to modify an original story in a way to make it just as entertaining to read and watch as the original version.
Works Cited
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The Cross-Cultural Articulations of War Magic and Warrior Religion by D. S. Farrer, main purpose of this article is to provide a re-evaluated perspective of religion and magic, through the perspective of the practitioners and victims. Farrer uses examples that range from the following: “Chinese exorcists, Javanese spirit siblings, Sumatran black magic, Tamil Tiger suicide bombers, Chamorro spiritual re-enchantment, tantric Buddhist war magic, and Yanomami dark shamans” (1). Throughout the article, he uses these examples to address a few central themes. The central themes for war magic, range from “violence and healing, accomplished through ritual and performance, to unleash and/or control the power of gods, demons, ghosts and the dead” (Farrer 1).
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“Culture does not make people. People make culture” said Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, a Nigerian writer and educator, in a presentation on feminism in a TedTalk. The culture in which Sir Gawain and the Green Knight was written was misogynistic and it shows in the writing of the poem. Medieval cultural misogyny manifests itself in multiple ways in SGGK. This paper will examine the negative relationships between Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and gender by discussing: the representation of female characters, gendered violence, and Christianity in the Middle Ages.
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The Heian period(794-1185), the so-called golden age of Japanese culture, produced some of the finest works of Japanese literature.1 The most well known work from this period, the Genji Monogatari, is considered to be the “oldest novel still recognized today as a major masterpiece.”2 It can also be said that the Genji Monogatari is proof of the ingenuity of the Japanese in assimilating Chinese culture and politics. As a monogatari, a style of narrative with poems interspersed within it, the characters and settings frequently allude to Chinese poems and stories. In addition to displaying the poetic prowess that the Japanese had attained by this time period, the Genji Monogatari also demonstrates how politics and gender ideals were adopted from the Chinese.
Napier, Susan. “No More Words: Barefoot Gen, Grave of the Fireflies, and ‘Victim’s History.’” In Napier, Anime, pp. 161-173.
Although I am aware that we are focusing on literary sources and their relationship to their Noh counterparts, one cannot help but notice that the background of Atsumori dates back to actual historical events, and then establishes itself in Heike Monogatari. Anyway, any audience in Japan should already be familiar with the stories of Heike Monogatari, and the Noh play is only a touching extension of one aspect from the battle between the Minamoto Clan and th...
In the same way Japanese poetry often alludes to or derives from the canon of poetry that precedes it, noh plays are often based off of classical Japanese literary sources that form the framework for the play’s themes and moral message. Many of these plays reference poems from revered anthologies, such as the Shinkokinshū, within the play’s dialogue, but it is the monogatari or tales that provide the foundation for certain noh plotlines because of their vast array of character references and plotlines. These tales are the primary sources of information for two plays in particular written by the famous Japanese playwright Zeami: Atsumori and Matsukaze. The warrior-play Atsumori draws from the famous war epic The Tale of Heike to further an anti-war message grounded in the original text, as well as to further explore Buddhist themes of attachment and karmic ties. Matsukaze draws its origins and background from Murasaki Shikibu’s The Tale of Genji and Ariwara no Narihira’s The Tales of Ise for location, tone, and themes of longing in order to juxtapose the Buddhist duality of attachment and detachment from this world.
Tyler, Royall, ed. The Tale of Genji: Abridged. New York: Penguin Group, 2006. 18, 24,
Allende, Isabel. The House of the Spirits. New York, NY: Random House, Inc., 1985. Print.
story and lasting throughout the play with the constant themes of deception and doing evil in the
Noh theatre came about at the same time Buddhism started having an influence on Japanese culture. They each affected the other. Noh theatre took the beliefs and the ideas of Buddhism and intertwined it with ancient Japanese beliefs to create a magnificent form of drama. Buddhism took those ancient Japanese beliefs and rituals to make a unique religion. Zeami took all of it and wrote some of the most influential plays of Japan. In fact, Zeami’s Noh plays are classified as the highest classics of Noh drama and of Japanese literature (Tsuchiya 104). Noh drama had a major influence on Japanese culture. A quarter of the eight hundred plays ever written and performed are still performed today (Magill 2423). This shows how important Noh theatre was in not only the fourteenth century, but in present day.