Yosano Akiko and The Tale of Genji Volume 28

Yosano Akiko (1878–1942) was a significant literary figure in prewar Japan, known for her early poetry and contributions to women's debates. However, her career was primarily devoted to work on the Japanese classics, particularly The Tale of Genji. This study traces Akiko's involvement with Genji, which inspired her literary projects and gave the text its modern prominence. Akiko's work on Genji exemplified the modern novel genre and made it a translated classic.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 252 pages
Publication date: 30 November 2022
Publisher: The University of Michigan Press

Yosano Akiko (1878–1942) is widely recognized as one of the most significant literary figures of prewar Japan, known primarily for her passionate early poetry and her contributions to 20th-century debates about women. However, her career encompassed much more than just her early work. Akiko's dedication to the Japanese classics, particularly the great Heian period text The Tale of Genji, is often overlooked. She considered Genji to be the foundation of her literary career and devoted a significant amount of time to projects related to the tale. This study explores Akiko's involvement with The Tale of Genji in detail for the first time. The Tale of Genji played a crucial role in shaping Akiko's self-perception as a writer and inspired many of her most significant literary projects. She modernized the tale as a novel, pioneered important avenues of modern academic research on Genji, and significantly contributed to the text's prominence as a translated classic. Through her work, Genji became a quintessential example of the modern novel genre. This study aims to demonstrate that simplistic labels such as "poetess of passion" or "new woman" no longer capture the full complexity of Akiko's life and bibliography.

Weight: 420g
Dimension: 152 x 229 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780472039180
Edition number: Revised Edition