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Questions from Penguin Random House

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What do the men in the tale value in a woman?

2. How does a man gain access to a woman, and how does a woman safeguard her dignity?

3. How do the characters in the tale define personal worth? What do they admire?

4. What consequences flow from the birth of Genji’s son by his father’s Empress?

5. What are the reasons for Genji’s exile (chapter 13) and its consequences?

6. How do the characters view the native (Japanese) in comparison with the foreign (Chinese)?

7. Is there humor in the tale? How does it work?

8. What are the erotic elements in the tale? What is their value?

9. Spirits speak several times in the tale. How do the characters react to these events? What do you make of them?

10. In chapter 2 a young courtier discourses generally on art, in chapter 17 the issue is painting, and in chapter 25 Genji discusses fiction. How do the views expressed relate to more recent ones, including yours?

11. How do you imagine the men and women in the tale spending their time when the text does not tell you what they are doing?

12. Why does Genji marry Onna San no Miya (the Third Princess)?

13. What role do dreams play in the tale?

14. What do you make of the tale’s last heroine, Ukifune?

15. What do you think happens beyond the tale’s last page?

I have just reached the half-way point in terms of page numbers � the middle of chapter 34 in the Washburn edition. I thought this would be an opportune time to read back through my notes and address some of the questions.

1. What do the men in the tale value in a woman?
Men like Genji seem to value good looks, first and foremost. Second, would be proper behavior. For example, when Genji first sees Murasaki as a child, he is attracted by her looks and her temperament: she is modest and obedient, not impudent or forward. In chapter 22, Genji states: “…if a woman is to be agreeable to a man, she must not be flighty or focused on herself, but be passive and gentle.� Having skills in calligraphy, poetry, and/or music is a sign that the woman has been raised properly and is at least somewhat intelligent. Finally, there would be the rank or lineage. What makes a woman perfect, it seems, is her willingness to be exactly what the man wants, hence Genji’s desire to raise Muraski into his ideal of womanhood.

2. How does a man gain access to a woman, and how does a woman safeguard her dignity?
Genji just sneaks into private rooms. And later in the book, the Major Captain somehow gets access to Tamakazura without Genji’s permission, so possibly he does the same thing. In chapter 21, Shikibu notes that Genji never lets his son near Murasaki’s quarters because he knows what he was like as a boy. My impression is that bribing servants and handmaidens was helpful in this regard.

Regarding dignity/reputation� Being one man’s mistress is not necessarily a terrible thing, but it’s important for the man to show the woman respect and continue to take care of her. This doesn’t apply to all women, however; the emperor’s consorts don’t have sexual freedom. Rumors and loose talk can ruin one’s reputation, so keeping an affair relatively secret is important. Oborozukiyo is a good example of this. She is made a laughingstock because everyone finds out about her affair with Genji. But because she was not “an official imperial consort,� her sexual conduct was not restricted. Hence, Suzaku reinstates her at court. (see question #5 below)

3. How do the characters in the tale define personal worth? What do they admire?
Characters place value on appearance, of course, but also on talents, like dancing, playing musical instruments, calligraphy, creating incense, writing poems, etc. It is also important to know the proper way to behave in a given situation. These are all the reasons Genji is so admired � he is gorgeous, has multiple talents, and knows how to treat everyone according to their rank.

4. What consequences flow from the birth of Genji’s son by his father’s Empress?
Reizei (Genji’s son by Fujitsubo) becomes emperor. The Left returns to power, and Genji is granted several new titles, eventually even being treated like a retired emperor. But it doesn’t seem like anyone knows that Genji is really Reizei’s father. There may be more consequences later.

5. What are the reasons for Genji’s exile (chapter 13) and its consequences?
When Genji’s father passes and Suzaku becomes emperor, the Right rises in power. Genji is associated with the Left because of his first marriage, so the Minister of the Right and the Kokiden Consort (mother of Suzaku) are already threatened by him.Genji has an affair with Oborozukiyo (Misty Moon), one of the daughters of the Minster of the Right, who has been promised to the new emperor. When Genji is caught sneaking out of her rooms, he decides to leave before he is formerly charged with an offense and forced into exile.

7. Is there humor in the tale? How does it work?
Some of the narrator’s asides are quite funny. In chapter 19, for example, she writes: “Genji laid out numerous precedents in making his case to His Majesty � however, since I am a woman, it would be impudent of me to record in detail their discussions of state affairs, would it not?�

9. Spirits speak several times in the tale. How do the characters react to these events? What do you make of them?
The spirit of the Lady at Rokujo seems to be responsible for the death of the Lady of the Evening Faces as well as Genji’s first wife. So spirits are not necessarily ghosts but living people capable of possessing others and visiting people in their dreams. At one point, for example, Muraski’s spirit visits Genji in a dream.

12. Why does Genji marry Onna San no Miya (the Third Princess)?
The former emperor Suzaku wants to retreat from court life and become a monk. He asks Genji to take care of her. Genji is worried about how this will affect Murasaki but ultimately goes through with it for his brother’s sake (and also because he finds the girl attractive, let’s be honest).