Lady Murasaki's The Tale of Genji - Lecture on Chapters XXVI-XLI (Patreon)

'We know not if we'll survive till the spring, so for today let's decorate our caps with twigs of plum budding amidst the snow.'

Today we reach a significant milestone in our journey through Lady Murasaki's sublime saga. By this point in the story, we have likely brought profound insights on the transience of life to bear upon our own lives.

We're discussing the question of authorship, pathetic fallacy, the ephemerality of life, real life vs stories, primary vs secondary characters, the pain at the heart of true love, and much more.

It is worth noting that if you haven't read up to chapter forty-one, this discussion will contain heavy spoilers. You may still wish to listen as prep even if you haven't reached this part of the story yet, but it's worth bearing this in mind going into it.

Timestamps:

0:00 melancholy atmosphere of the Heian court

2:00 plumbing the depths of Genji’s psyche

4:00 what if Genji had been written by a man?

5:00 the possessiveness of the Shining Prince

7:00 Genji’s relationship with Tamakazura

9:00 Tō no Chūjō & the lady from Ōmi

11:00 what was life expectancy in Heian Japan?

13:00 musing on the tragic shortness of life

15:00 why I love sprawling novels like Genji

16:00 observing the rise of the next generation

17:00 my thoughts on models of historical cycles

19:00 how the seasons prepare us for death

21:00 winds that part the grasses of the field

23:00 pathetic fallacy in The Tale of Genji

24:00 Yūgiri’s first glimpse of Murasaki

27:00 how finding love adds years to one’s life

30:00 living in a world without moral absolutes

32:00 real life/realism vs stories/folktales

34:00 Tamakazura’s shifting relationships

36:00 more pre-Brontë sisters motifs

37:00 no such thing as secondary characters

39:00 Lady Murasaki’s authorial intrusions

41:00 the engaged first audience of Genji

43:00 on the lost art of handwriting analysis

45:00 self-awareness as redeeming trait

47:00 how Genji parents his son Yūgiri

49:00 Yūgiri’s relationship with Kumoi

50:00 Genji worries about his family’s future

52:00 the pain at the heart of true love

53:00 appreciating one of my favourite chapters

55:00 Genji’s relationship with Nyōsan

56:00 my personal favourite scene in the book

58:00 Genji’s deep love for Murasaki

1:00:00 becoming a grandfather & fear of childbirth

1:02:00 Kashiwagi’s obsession with Nyōsan

1:04:00 Genji struggles with Murasaki’s illness

1:05:00 Lady Rokujō’s possession of Murasaki

1:06:00 ‘you remain you, feigning ignorance…’

1:08:00 Murasaki takes her nun’s vows

1:10:00 the characters of Niou and Kaoru

1:13:00 Yūgiri’s & Kumoi’s relationship deteriorates

1:15:00 appreciating the saga effect of Genji

1:17:00 the decline and death of Murasaki

1:19:00 Genji’s grief in the wake of Murasaki’s death

1:21:00 ‘every autumn evening brings sad thoughts’

1:22:00 how the story lends weight to the poetry

1:23:00 Genji now prepares for his death

1:25:00 the description of Genji’s final days

1:27:00 painful moments of self-reflection

1:29:00 the blank chapter of Kumogakure

1:30:00 theories about the end of Genji’s narrative

1:32:00 Lady Murasaki and the authorship problem

1:33:00 on our next discussion for Tale of Genji

1:34:00 info on our preparing for our next big read

1:34:00 what are you making of the novel?

Resources to Explore:

• Buddhist Chants: As descriptions of Buddhist chants abound in The Tale of Genji, you might find it interesting to listen to some. Here is one of the most beautiful chants I have ever heard, released by monastic community founded by Thich Nhat Hanh and released in memory of his passing. Here is an incredibly talented musician bringing the 'Heart Sutra' of Mahayana Buddhism to life. And here is a powerful extended meditation of a chant from the Lotus Sutra referred to as the 'miracle mantra', with vocals from Tina Turner (there is also a clip of the great singer discussing her faith and chants with Larry King here).

• Short Story Appreciation: Belgian-born French novelist Marguerite Yourcenar has an exquisite collection of short stories, which includes a story called 'The Last Love of Princess Genji'. As the work is directly inspired by Lady Murasaki's masterpiece, readers who have fallen in love with the world of Genji may find it rewarding to check out.

• Theatre Appreciation: It's always rewarding to use our reading of the great books as leverage into wider cultural appreciation. In that vein, you might like to check out some Noh theatre productions of performances inspired by Lady Murasaki's story. Here you can see a Noh play that shows Lady Rokujō's possession of Lady Aoi. And this video shows the same story, but with a brilliant prefacing explanation of some of the principles and aesthetic of Noh drama.

• Manga: Yamato Waki speaks about her artistic process for adapting The Tale of Genji into manga form, along with her other works, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in this video. For readers who have been enjoying the manga, what do you make of the medium? Will you continue to explore other stories in manga form?

• Thought Exercise: As you move towards the end of the saga, you might find it interesting to pay attention to stylistic differences and think about the question of authorship. Do you think that the rest of the story was written by Lady Murasaki? Or do you feel the influence of another hand in the work?

• Our Journey Thus Far: Congratulations on reaching this climactic peak in Lady Murasaki's masterpiece. You should be immensely proud of what you have accomplished with your reading. If you would like a refresher of our previous discussions for Genji, you can check them out here, here, and here.

• Approaching Big Read: As mentioned at the end of the lecture, our final Genji discussion will be the weekend after next. And this coming weekend we will have our 'how to read' video to help us mentally prepare for David Foster Wallace's Infinite Jest. We will have an exciting discussion about our approach, pacing, themes, and the author. There is nothing required to prepare for this video as it's introductory, but you may wish to get hold of your copy of the work.

Reading Assignment:

Our next discussion will take us through to the end of the narrative, which runs up to and including chapter 54, which is entitled 'A Floating Bridge in a Dream.' As you move to the close of this saga, continue noting your impressions and let us know how you have found the experience.

Questions for You:

1) What did you make of Genji and Murasaki’s end? And how do you feel about going on without our central protagonist?

2) The Tale of Genji has the reputation of a difficult read. Now that you have made it this far, what do you think?

3) Do you feel like you know Lady Murasaki at this point? And does it matter if she didn’t write the later parts of the work?

I would love to know what you made of the momentous events in the latest parts of The Tale of Genji. Please do share with us your favourite passages and let us know any insights you have about the themes, style, and characterisation.

Happy reading, everybody!