Sexual Consent in Heian Japan

Jan 03, 2007 21:24


Okay, I did read chapter 20 last night, but I want to talk about two articles first since my thoughts about the chapter are influenced by them. So we'll see how long this takes and whether I get to chapter 20.

discussion of articles by Bryant and Tyler, cut for length )

links, ref:society, book general

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jonquil January 4 2007, 07:41:25 UTC
I now want to kick Tyler rather a lot. After all, leaving aside Murasaki's opinion, as Tyler would like us to, her maids, who are not being 'lifted to a height of grandeur', clearly think she is still too young for Genji's attentions.

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hikarugenji January 4 2007, 13:42:37 UTC
That's considerably earlier in the tale when she is younger, and their objections are mostly because they think Genji will forget about her, not because they think she's too young for sex (in any case, Genji waits a number of years before finally initiating the sexual contact).

I think Tyler is only trying to set the instances in the context of the tale. I don't think he's trying to defend Heian sexual and courtship practices in an absolute sense, he's merely saying that within the context of the Tale's idealized portrait of Heian culture, Genji's actions do not constitute rape as we would understand it.

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kate_nepveu January 4 2007, 17:33:18 UTC
I've just looked back at chapter 9 and don't see any objections by her maids on account of her age.

My summary may have done Tyler an injustice in your eyes, by minimizing the extent to which the essay speaks from the perspective of the narrative (or narrator). It doesn't come across well in the quoted bits.

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jonquil January 4 2007, 17:40:52 UTC
Hikarugenji is right and I am conflating two episodes.

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kate_nepveu January 4 2007, 17:43:39 UTC
It's easy to do; I spent nearly as much time getting oriented to what-had-gone-before as reading and writing about ch. 20.

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