Traditional Japanese Literature: An Anthology, Beginnings to 1600, Abridged Edition

by Haruo Shirane

Haruo Shirane's critically acclaimed Traditional Japanese An Anthology, Beginnings to 1600, contains key examples of both high and low styles of poetry, drama, prose fiction, and essays. For this abridged edition, Shirane retains substantial excerpts from such masterworks as The Tale of Genji, The Tales of the Heike, The Pillow Book, the Man'yoshu, and the Kokinshu. He preserves his comprehensive survey of secular and religious anecdotes (setsuwa) as well as classical poems with extensive commentary. He features no drama; selections from influential war epics; and notable essays on poetry, fiction, history, and religion. Texts are interwoven to bring into focus common themes, styles, and allusions while inviting comparison and debate. The result is a rich encounter with ancient and medieval Japanese culture and history. Each text and genre is enhanced by extensive introductions that provide sociopolitical and cultural context. The anthology is organized by period, genre, and topic—an instructor-friendly structure—and a comprehensive bibliography guides readers toward further study.Praise for Traditional Japanese An Anthology, Beginnings to 1600"Haruo Shirane has done a splendid job at this herculean task."—Joshua Mostow, University of British Columbia"A comprehensive and innovative anthology.... All of the introductions are excellent."—Journal of Asian Studies"One of those impressive, erudite, must-have titles for anyone interested in Asian literature."—Bloomsbury Review"An anthology that comprises superb translations of an exceptionally wide range of texts.... Highly recommended."—Choice"A wealth of material."—Monumenta Nipponica

Genres: Japan, Poetry, Japanese Literature, Literature, History, Mythology, Asia

889 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2006

Reviews

[Rex · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are perhaps not many 1200-page anthologies I could read cover to cover and enjoy almost invariably. This is one of them. The selections are rich, the translations readable, and the annotations helpful.

[Jqde · Rating 5 out of 5]

meep

[Marc Watt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Took my time reading this, and I suppose it's the sort of book you never really finish, but I was looking for a comprehensive book on early japanese lit. This hits the mark. Terrific collection. Some of the joke/story/moral fable pieces pieces were my favorite. "the dog pillow book" by Inu Makura and "Today's tales of yesterday" these parodies I suppose they could be called are really cool. And bizarre. The Tokugawa period was a time of peace and prosperity in Japan after a long brutal bloody clan war. With the island finally united under one leader and enjoying peace literature exploded. Everyone carried around journals. Highly developed roads were packed with travelers, exploring the country writing everything down. A highly literate society.

Of 1 story sticks out. The woman who cut off her nose. Brief. Husband is dying. He asks his wife to cut off her nose to prove she will never take another lover. She honors his wish. Remarkably he recovers. Soon after, he takes his wife and confess her face is so hideous he wants out. She is aghast and petitions he court. The judges decide he should lose his nose and that live happily ever after.

The hand puppet theatre stuff I skipped. But the romance fiction stories, and illustrated comics were engaging.

Love the book. Made me wish for a time machine to explore the Tokugawa period

[Othy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not a specialist in Japanese literature, but I really enjoyed this volume and found it to be (again, from limited experience) very well edited. The introduction and notes are good for someone who has little experience with the literature. I found it very accessible and with a breadth of genres that helped me understand the aesthetic movements and history of Japanese literature.

[Katia Rv · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic Japanese Literature anthology you find in every uni's reading lists for a reason. Gives you a good overview of all the literary trends from those centuries without overwhelming the reader with historical context.

[June · Rating 4 out of 5]

read anthology for class ! Favorite sections were “the pillow book” and noh play “shrine in the fields.”

[machinaheart · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting compilation that seems to offer a very round anthology of the era up until the 16th century. I have only read the thoughts on literary compilations and history so far, but I look forward to the poems and prose as well. (The rating so far is for Shirane Haruo's thoughts on literary canon formation, his analysis of genres etc.)

[Judith]

Alex is reading this anthology.

[10-11 Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very interesting because there were a lot of unique poems that have been translated and I think these poems are very meaningful.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Professor Shirane's anthology is exquisite and essential for anyone seriously interested in classical Japanese literature.

[Lulu]

Don’t read the abridged 2012 version


"Momotaro, The Son of a Peach", "The Jellyfish and the Monkey", "The Mirror of Matsuyama”, "The Stones of Five Colors and the Empress Jokwa.