The traditional Japanese no play, Funa Benkei or “Benkei Aboard Ship”, was written by the playwright Kanze Nobumitsu sometime during his life from 1435 till 1516. The storyline of the play follows the historical figure Minamoto no Yoshitsune just after the conclusion of the Genpei Wars of 1180-1185. The establishment of the Kamakura Shogunate, 1185-1333, was the result of a five year series of battles between the rival Minamoto and Taira families over control of the Japanese monarchy. The Minamoto victors were led by two generals, Minamoto no Yoritomo, and Minamoto no Yoshitsune. Finding it nearly impossible to fight the Taira in both Eastern and Western Japan at once, at that time as divided by the Kansai plain, the elder Yoritomo solicited the help of his younger brother Yoshitsune to face the Taira in the West as he fought in the East. Yoshitsune’s campaign against the Taira was wildly successful, but following his victory he did not receive the hero’s welcome to which he was entitled. In Funa Benkei, a “villainous rival” to Yoshitsune is responsible for slander which results in Yoritomo, now Shogun, to pursue his younger brother as a threat to his rule. Without an alternative, Yoshitsune is forced to flee for his life. (Tyler 82) (Ebrey–Walthall–Palais 184-193)
It is another man however, the warrior monk Benkei, whose name appears in the title of this play. Musashibou Benkei as a historical figure is mentioned in Azuma Kagami, “Mirror of Eastern Japan”, but is done so only briefly. Benkei is better known as the legendary and loyal retainer of Minamoto no Yoshitsune in the Heike and Gikeiki Monogatari. But in Funa Benkei, this powerful warrior monk is arguably on par in importance with his master Yoshitsune if not...
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...er through the Kamakura and Muromachi periods.
Works Cited
Ebery, Patricia – Walthall, Anne – Palais, James. East Asia, a Cultural, Social, and Political History. Second Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company. Boston. 2009.
Tyler, Royall. Japanese No Dramas. Penguin Books. New York, New York. 1992.
Benkei, Encyclopedia of Japan. Kodansha. Available through Japan Knowledge.
Kanze Nobumitsu, Encyclopedia of Japan. Kodansha. Available through Japan Knowledge.
Zeami, Encyclopedia of Japan. Kondasha. Available through Japan Knowledge
Tsubaki, Andrew T. Educational Theater Journal Vol.29 No.3 Oct. 1977, The Performing Arts of Sixteenth-Century Japan: A Prelude to Kabuki. The John Hopkins University Press.
Lim, Beng Choo. Monumenta Japonica Vol.55 No.4 Winter 2000. The Nobumitsu Portrait Inscription. Sophia University.
Throughout history artists have used art as a means to reflect the on goings of the society surrounding them. Many times, novels serve as primary sources in the future for students to reflect on past history. Students can successfully use novels as a source of understanding past events. Different sentiments and points of views within novels serve as the information one may use to reflect on these events. Natsume Soseki’s novel Kokoro successfully encapsulates much of what has been discussed in class, parallels with the events in Japan at the time the novel takes place, and serves as a social commentary to describe these events in Japan at the time of the Mejeii Restoration and beyond. Therefore, Kokoro successfully serves as a primary source students may use to enable them to understand institutions like conflicting views Whites by the Japanese, the role of women, and the population’s analysis of the Emperor.
Gatten, Aileen. "Review: Criticism and the Genji." The Journal of the Association of Teachers of Japanese 22.1 (1988): 84. JSTOR. Web. 26 Feb. 2011.
Masatsusu, Mitsuyuki. 1982. The Modern Samurai Society: Duty and Dependence in Contemporary Japan. New York: AMACOM.
21 Pitts, Forrest R., Japan. p. 113. -. 22. Davidson, Judith. Japan- Where East Meets West, p. 107.
The Martial Arts and Ways of Japan: Volume 2, Classical Budo by Donn F. Daeger
In this Treatise have discussed China's classical age and how they influenced all of east Asian culture for over two thousand years. And How Buddhism spread throughout east Asia and evolved into several different schools each embracing the host nations principle and beliefs. I have discussed Confucian teachings and texts have influenced Chinese and Eastern Asian culture and government for centuries. How China overcame invaders from all sides and managed to emerge as a world economic power. And finally how Japan developed its own culture and founded a new social class the Samurai. East Asian History is compelling, deep and complicated. A history that will sound differently each time as their history continues to grow and influence other non Asian cultures.
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...
The Age of Western Imperialism. Modern East Asia From 1600. Second Edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2009. 295-367.
Stewart Gordon is an expert historian who specializes in Asian history. He is a Senior Research Scholar at the Center for South Asian Studies at the University of Michigan and has authored three different books on Asia. Gordon’s When Asia Was The World uses the narratives of several different men to explore The Golden Age of medieval Asia. The fact that this book is based on the travels and experiences of the everyday lives of real people gives the reader a feeling of actually experiencing the history. Gordon’s work reveals to the reader that while the Europeans were trapped in the dark ages, Asia was prosperous, bursting with culture, and widely connected by trade. This book serves to teach readers about the varieties of cultures, social practices, and religions that sprang from and spread out from ancient Asia itself and shows just how far Asia was ahead of the rest of the world
Funa Benkei, or Benkei Aboard Ship, was written by Kanze Nobumitsu, and was based upon Gikeiki (‘Record of Yoshitsune’), which tells the story of a young Yoshitsune who, through his training, won the loyalty of the fearsome warrior-monk, Musashibou Benkei—the titicular character of this play. Funa Benkei is considerably modern compared to the other plays included in Japanese Noh Dramas, and is a fifth-category play (kiri-noh), which is current in all five schools of noh (Tyler, pg.83).
Japan is known for its unique gardening style, their diverse plants, their food, and their beautifully woven tapestries. Yet, most do not know about the history of their drama. Japanese Noh theatre is one of the most precise and prestigious art forms. It has been this way since the fourteenth century when Zeami first created Noh theatre. Zeami’s most famous plays, such as Kinuta, are still performed today. Japanese drama has not changed much since the fourteenth century because it has made a lasting effect on the culture. Noh theatre had a major influence on fourteenth century Japan and has affected modern day drama.
In his book Japanese Culture author Paul Varley describes the poems of the Man’yōshū as follows, “Some of the Man’yōshū poems are spuriously attributed to emperors and other lofty individuals of the fourth and fifth centuries, an age shrouded in myth, and a great many more are anonymous” (43). Many poem anthologies have come and gone over the rich history of Japan but there are some key features of the Man’yōshū that keeps it apart from the many other anthologies. One of the key features is that it can be said that the poems found therein were not just written by the nobility but the hand of many classes of society contributed to the works of poetry within the anthology. From the peasants to the frontiers guards men to even the paupers of Japans societies contributed to this great anthology. Though some modern scholars believe that it may have not been the case and that those of the lower classes in society did not or could not afford the cost of an education to produce some of these great works of art.
The Japanese medieval age consists of the Kamakura and Muromachi periods (from approximately 1185 to 1600). During this time, the political power was switching from the imperial family to a militaristic government. In addition, civil wars (from 1156 to 1568) were increasing throughout Japan. This change of centrality in society’s focus from court to warriors shifted the perception and style of Japanese literature.
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.
From covering Japan’s perilous imperial rule to analyzing Korea’s ambivalent adoption of democratic governance, Modern East Asia explored a broad range of subjects important for one who aspires to understand Asia holistically. Much time was even spent examining China’s horrid history at the hands of foreign meddling, giving insight into a nation feared as the future #1 economic power of the world. Although we covered a broad range of topics, each was given particular attention, never skipping major events or characters which shaped Asia’s history over the last several hundred years. Essentially, this class provided an open atmosphere for students to learn the intricate history of major Asian countries in addition to sharing ideas on the effectiveness of their pre-modern governance.