World Literature

THE TALE OF GENJI

THE TALE OF GENJI

When we meet Genji

in chapter 2 (from last
weeks reading), he is
at the Sanj palace of
his wifes family. There
he engages in a
conversation with T
no Chj, as the
image on this slide
depicts.

THE TALE OF GENJI

This conversation, along with the

events during Chapter 4.Evening Faces
form the focal point of this weeks
discussion, the matter of Genjis
character.

THE TALE OF GENJI

Already from the brief excerpt concerning chapter

1 and the beginning of chapter 2, the audience
learns that Genji is a remarkable boy.

He has attracted the attention of his father, the emperor,

who would have liked to have made him emperor.
Despite his reduction to commoner status, he is married
off to the daughter of an important minister, suggesting
his own lofty status.
He has been nicknamed, The shining Genji

Even persons to whom Genji was nothing were drawn to him (2208).

THE TALE OF GENJI

In short, he is a remarkable young man,

a celebrity of sorts, especially since he
is intelligent, well-educated, sensitive,
handsome, charming.
Indeed, he rather appears as an ideal
subject for a modern day paparazzi.

And by extension, the closest analogues we have of Genji are

modern day Rock stars and athletes, many of whom share Genjis
predilection for women

THE TALE OF GENJI

And because he is the central character

of the novel (at least during our brief
scan), we must begin to ask questions
about his character and his
construction.

THE TALE OF GENJI

Indeed, one immediate reaction to the character of

Genji is that he lacks good character. After all,
hes married and yet he is constantly seeking out
women for affairs, so much so that some might
label him a womanizer.
But while he may be seen early on as a
womanizer, we should begin by examining that
notion in detail by asking:

Is he, indeed, a womanizer?

THE TALE OF GENJI

The evidence might suggest so, but a cursory look at

chapter 2, during his conversation with T no Chj
and other young males of Genjis age, we see an
aspect of Japanese culture at this time

Men and women married, but were not made

exclusively monogamous as a result of marriage.
Thus, all sexes engaged in extra-marital affairs.
Each of the young men joining Genji that day has been
involved with several women beside their wives (note
that marriage too was not a singular bond)

So, a reader might ask: Is Genji more of a womanizer

than his contemporaries? And, is womanizing in
this context either immoral or unnatural. Remember:
we cannot judge characters by our times and by our
values if we are to actually understand them (and
their constructions).

THE TALE OF GENJI

The answer may well be no (note the

qualification), as is suggested by the
stories told during chapter 2.
If not, then what exactly are we to
make of his being the focus of the
novel?
Is he being constructed as a hero, for
instance?

THE TALE OF GENJI

Remember that the notion of a hero has been

central to many of our readings this semester.

For example, our first text of the semester, The Epic of

Gilgamesh, was an epic of heroic development that
focused on the change in Gilgamesh (from arrogant, selfcentered ruler to a devoted friend and finally to a picture
of a good king and steward of his lands).
The Iliad, while not focusing as extensively on change,
certainly spends significant effort in portraying the hero,
too. One might even say that its author not only portrays
the supremely gifted hero, Achilles, he also gives us a
picture of the hero of family, prudence, and moderation (in
the character of Hector).
Other works like Medea, The Ramayana, The Aeneid, The
Thousand and One Nights, and Beowulf also focused much
(if not all) of their attention on the construction of the
protagonist.

THE TALE OF GENJI

One problem with such comparisons are the differences in

these texts. While most of our other works, Medea aside,
focus on war at some level, The Tale of Genji, does not. It is,
simply put, concerned with court life (and not the actual
politics of the court).
Despite this, it is easy to see that we are seeing the
romanticizing of a character, along the lines of the
romanticizing of Beowulf, Hector, or even Gilgamesh
Genji here may well be, at least early on, the idealized,
amorous young hero.

THE TALE OF GENJI

The question remains:

Is Genji a hero?

THE TALE OF GENJI

Sometimes, the correct approach is to

answer the opposite?

Is Genji an anti-hero?

For this, youll want to begin with a definition of

an antihero: According to Kennedy and Gioia
(Literature): an antihero is a protagonist who
lacks one or more of the conventional qualities
attributed to a hero. Instead of being dignified,
brave, idealistic, or purposeful, the antihero
may be cowardly, self-interested, alienated, or
weak.

THE TALE OF GENJI

So, what do you all think?

Is Genji lacking in dignity, lacking in

bravery, lacking in idealism, or lacking in
purpose?
Is Genji cowardly, self-interested, alienated
or weak?
As you consider your answers, make sure
that you try to put yourself in Genjis time
and place.

THE TALE OF GENJI

Indeed, you might consider the following

quotation as you form your response:

We earthlings of the middle class, however

emancipated we may imagine ourselves, are a
long way from knowing the kind of freedom that
the favorite son of an emperor and the daughter
of a ranking aristocrat knew we lack the
experience and vocabulary to judge these people
with discrimination Those who remember F.
Scott Fitzgeralds introduction to The Rich Boy
grasp the point immediatelythat the gulf of
class can be a more forbidding barrier to
understanding that those of time and culture. T.J.
Harper, From the Original, from the Start.

THE TALE OF GENJI

Im not actually going to answer the

question (Ill let you formulate your
own answeryou can use it if you wish
as you complete the discussion board
assignment for this week).
But supposing hes not an antihero for
just a brief moment, lets then go back
to the original question: is he a hero?

THE TALE OF GENJI

Before we answer,
lets continue the
storyline.
In chapter 4, we move
on to Genjis visit of
his former nurse, a
visit which suggests
his own constancy.
We note that while
there he displays
kindness and
reverence to his old
nurse.

THE TALE OF GENJI

During this visit, he begins another romance.

One might even say that the beginning of the romance

precedes his visit.

This romance, too, is worthy of attention, for it

begins with one of Genjis qualitieshe observes
all around him carefully.

He is also remarkably discreet.

And he is careful not to allow his celebrity to affect the
relationship.

THE TALE OF GENJI

But though he is
careful and respectful
throughout the
relationship, it ends
unfortunately with the
death of his love, the
fishermans daughter,
echoing the death of
his own mother.
In her death, another
facet of his character
is revealedhis ability
to mourn, which
suggests his
sensitivity.

THE TALE OF GENJI

Moreover, we are left with the following problem. From

almost the beginning of his affair with the Fishermans
daughter, Genji has suspected that she might be the woman
in T no Chjs story. At the moment he wondered whether
he ought to tell T no Chj . And now that shes dead, hes
left to wonder what the proper course of action would be.
Thus when her identity is confirmed, he speaks aloud:

I should tell my friend T no Chj, I suppose (2220).

Later, Murasaki tells us:

[Genjis] heart raced each time he saw T no Chj. He

longed to tell his friend that the wild carnation was alive and
well (2222).

THE TALE OF GENJI

By the end of Chapter 4, Genji has not resolved his

question of what to do regarding his knowledge.
And as the story goes forward, Genji will continue
delving into affairs (though not at the same pace),
though two will be the more significant: the first with
a young woman Murasaki (not the author) whom he
meets when she is 10 and whom he grooms as his
wife and the second with the consort of his fathera
woman very similar to his own mother in
appearance. This affair will earn him exile from the
court.

THE TALE OF GENJI

So, weve now discussed Genji in

some detail.

Hes certainly the focus of the

novel (even though he dies before
the novel ends).
Throughout the novel, we do see
change in his character, revealing
him as both a dynamic character
and also a round character.
But, whether he is a hero or not
depends on a number of other
issues.

THE TALE OF GENJI

Among these issues:

While he lives his life in the public eye, are his

moral choices give weight because his community
depends upon him?
Do his choices and experiences, virtues and vices
raise him to a meaningful level?
Are his misfortunes brought about not by vice or
depravity, but by errors or frailty?
Can we assess his character in positive terms?

As always, the answers are subjective, so I

cannot answer them for you. Any answers
uttered, however, can only be accepted with
adequate evidence from the text. So, dont
answer with pure emotionuse logic to
construct your views.