The Tale of the Heike. Volume I, Books 1-6

by Anonymous, Hiroshi Kitagawa (Translator), Bruce T. Tsuchida (Translator)

No other work of Japanese classic literature has excited the imagination of the Japanese as has the Heike Monogatari (The Tale of the Heike). This epic story by an unknown author depicts in twelve books and an epilogue the rise and the fall of the Heike clan and its defeat at the hands of the powerful Genji clan. It is set in the twilight years of the Heian period in the last half of the twelfth century, a time of far reaching change in Japan when the Fujiwara hegenomy was waning and court factions struggled to claims and protect them by allying themselves with provincial military clans. The clans, however, with superior strength, overthrew the nobles and eventually seized political power Two of the strongest clans were the Heike and the Genji. The Heike rose to power rapidly only to suffer defeat at the hands of the Genji. The major part of the narrative concerns the three or four years immediately preceding the death of Kiyomori, the head of the Heike clan, and the years following, up to the fall of the Heike at the Battle of Dan-no-ura.

391 pages, Paperback

Published June 1, 1977

About the author

Books can be attributed to "Anonymous" for several reasons:

* They are officially published under that name
* They are traditional stories not attributed to a specific author
* They are religious texts not generally attributed to a specific author

Books whose authorship is merely uncertain should be attributed to Unknown.

See also: Anonymous

Reviews

[Isen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to enjoy the Tale of the Heike given its prominence in Japanese culture, but as seems to be often the case with Eastern classics, I just couldn't.

The Tale of the Heike is told in an episodic format. There isn't much in terms of recurring characters or a driven plot, events just sort of slowly unfold and every other chapter is an aside to tell you a story about how some guy composed a poem or some Confucian dilemma about being torn between serving your master, and your master being an asshole. For a format like this to work either the individual episodes need to be interesting or the language particularly lyrical. Based on the translator's preface, the latter is the case, but it really doesn't carry over into English.

The events the first book describes concern the evil deeds of the Heike clan, Kiyomori in particular, and the eventual revolt by the Genji against them. That said, there is very little about either topic actually in the book. The worst that we see of Kiyomori in this book is his attitude towards women, but I suspect it's really par for the course for the time given that other characters are given a carte blanche for similar behaviour. I imagine the real sin of Kiyomori we're supposed to be shocked by is the fact that he disrespects the cloistered emperor Go-Shirakawa. By such acts such as crushing the emperor's enemies and keeping him on the throne despite Go-Shirakawa's malicious incompetence. As for the revolt, it sort of just happens. One moment the Heike hold all the power in the land, the next half the country goes over to the rebels without a fight. Whatever political intrigue went on there, we can only guess at.

[Philip McCarty · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of a huge story. The scale of the tale is both grand and highly personal. I found that the introduction did a good job setting up the story and that the book itself is very engrossing. Alot of its appeal rests in the historical nature of the story and the surprisingly emotional and dramatic scenes that play out. Since this is only half the story there is still lots more to experience. Something worth keeping in mind while reading it is that this epic was originally shared orally by blind musicians who would recite it. I think that at times the book can be a tad dry and all the names being thrown around can get a tad confusing. Thankfully the chapters often are their own mini story amidst the greater chaos of the conflict between the Genji and Heike. I could see this book being something a person spends a lifetime researching and analyzing. It really offers up a lot to think on.

[Librarian Jessie (BibliophileRoses) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remember, when all else fails say screw it and become a nun.