Japanese literature

FACTS ABOUT JAPAN
Japan known now as a developed
country, which is famous because
of its inventions, companies and
arts. Here we are going to reveal
some Japanese cultures, and some
of their heritage that have a great
effect on their culture.

JAPANESE STYLES
Japan as a country has a past with
its styles in its own tradition, in
clothing, building and foods.
-Clothing:
Japanese people used their
traditional clothing in the past, now
they wear it just in special occasions.

Yukata “for men”,
Kimono “for women”,
Zori “sandals” .

JAPANESE STYLES
Buildings & Gardens:
In Japan there are many different
buildings and gardens, that are a big part
of its culture. They do not actually come
from Japan, their ideas come from China.

JAPANESE LITERATURE

Japanese
Literature is one
of the major
literatures of the
world comparable
to English
literature in age
and variety.

JAPANESE LITERATURE

Japanese Literature is one of the major
bodies of Oriental Literature. It is less
voluminous than Chinese Literature
but comparable to Arabic, Persian and
Indian Literature. It covers the period
from the fifth century A.D to the
present.

JAPANESE LITERATURE

Poems and odes to the Gods were
composed in the early Japanese
Language before the art of writing was
known in Japan. Only fragments of this
Literature have survived, but these are
thought to have been extensive. During
the first centuries of writing in Japan,
the spoken language and written
language were identical.

JAPANESE LITERATURE
The Tale of Genji
Written by Japanese writer Murasaki
Shikibu in the 11th century, is
generally regarded as the earliest
novel in any culture and as the
greatest masterpiece of Japanese
literature. In this scene from the novel,
Prince Genji is visiting with his
favorite wife, Murasaki, while
watching his housemaids, whom he has
sent outside to build a snowman. The
novel is remarkable for its detailed
depiction of the refined culture of
Heian-period Japan.

Classical and Heian Period (700-1185)

Man’yoshu (Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves)
(ca. 700-750)

The Man’yoshu, the oldest collection of Japanese poetry,
was compiled in the 8th century and consists of more than
4,000 poems, some of which date from as early as the 5th
century. While consisting mainly of 31 syllable poems
(tanka, also called waka), it also contains many examples
of long poems (choka). The subject matter of the poems
varies from travel descriptions to elegies and poems of love
and loss. There are also poems reflecting Chinese and
Buddhist influences. The Man’yoshu poems are direct and
accessible to any audience unfamiliar with Japanese
culture and the conventions of Japanese poetry.

Late 19th and Early 20th Centuries

Child’s Play (1895-96) by Higuchi Ichiyo
(1872-1896)
Set in the pleasure quarters of the late Meiji era, this
short story focuses on neighborhood adolescents who
experience the beginning of adulthood. A gang of boys
and one girl, once close-knit playmates, drift apart as
they face the inevitabilities of growing up. Two
characters in the story, Nobu, a boy following the path
to priesthood, and Midori, a girl who will eventually
become a prostitute in the licensed brothel quarters,
hold mutual affection for one another but sadly realize
that their paths will never cross as they are about to
shoulder life’s responsibilities.

Medieval and Tokugawa Periods (1185-1868)

The Tale of the Heike (ca. 1250)

The Tale of the Heike is a warrior epic of the
historic battles between the Genji (Minamoto clan)
and the Heike (Taira clan) between 1169 and
1185. The Tale follows the rise of the Heike, their
arrogance and abuse of power, and their
destruction at the hands of the Genji. Students who
are interested in the transition to and the rise of
the warrior class in Japanese history will find this
a content-rich work.

JAPANESE LITERATURE
 In written form from at least the 8th
century AD to the present.
 One of the oldest and richest national
literatures. Since the late 1800s, Japanese
writings have become increasingly
familiar abroad.
 Genres such as haiku verse, nō drama,
and the Japanese novel have had a
substantial impact on literature in many
parts of the world.

Japanese Ancient Literature (pre-8th Century)

With the introduction of kanji (漢字, lit.
"Chinese characters") from the Asian
mainland, writing became possible, as there
was no native writing system.
Consequently, the only literary language was
classical Chinese to begin with; later, the
characters were adapted to write
Japanese, creating what is known as the
man'yōgana, the earliest form of kana, or
syllabic writing.

Japanese Ancient Literature (pre-8th Century)

• Nara Period include Kojiki (712: a partly
mythological, partly accurate history of Japan)
•Nihonshoki (720: a chronicle with a slightly
more solid foundation in historical records than
the Kojiki), and Man'yōshū (759: a poetry
anthology).
• The language used in the works of this period
differs significantly from later periods in both its
grammar and phonology. Even in this early era,
significant dialectal differences within Japanese
are apparent.

Writers Behind Japanese Literature

Natsume Soseki
• Japanese author Tanizaki Jun’ichirō
• first gained public attention with his
• Many of the works of Japanese
Wagahai wa neko de aru (1906; I Am a
Cat, 1961) author focus on male-female
relationships.
•a generally light-hearted series of
observations that a cat makes about • He is best known for Tade kuu
humans. Soseki later published more mushi (1929; Some Prefer Nettles,
serious psychological novels. 1955), about a failing marriage.

Japanese Writings
1. KANJI The Kanji includes about 2000
"characters" derived from Chinese
starting more than 1500 years ago, with
more than 5,000 possible pronounciations
[a single character may have from one to
more than six or seven] and covering at
least 5000 possible "meanings" or
"semantic fields" which form the heart of
the writing system. Most of these would be
recognized by most educated Japanese
readers. Several thousand
more Kanji were also adopted for use by
the Japanese (and have "standardized"
Japanese pronounciations)

2. KANA Some time after adopting Chinese characters, the
Japanese developed two syllabaries (KANA), partially derived
from Kanji. Syllabaries are writing systems in which whole syllables,
rather than discrete sounds (phonemes), are represented by signs
which cannot be broken down into their constituent sound elements.
2a. Hiragana In this syllabary verb endings and other
grammatical elements--not present in the Chinese character system--
and other features of the Japanese language are reflected in
writing.Hiragana appears to be more cursive ("rounder")
than katakana.
2b. Katakana This syllabary, which covers exactly the same
syllable sound-system, is used primarily for writing out the sounds of
borrowed words (especially of non-Asian origins) and for
emphasis. Katakana is written in a more angular, linear form than
is hiragana.
2c. Furigana These are smaller than usual syllable signs
(usually hiragana) that are written alongside or above
a Kanji primarily to indicate its correct pronounciation (remember
that any Kanjimay have several pronounciations or readings which
may or may not alter its meaning).

JAPANESE CEREMONIES

The Tea Ceremony
The Wedding
Ceremony

JAPANESE CEREMONIES

Death Ceremony
The Birth Ceremony

Festivals and Celebrations
 Many festivals and
celebrations had its
own customs:
Many involved contests
that tested athletic,
poetic, or artistic skill.
For example, in the
Festival of the Snake,
cups of wine were floated
in a stream. Guests took
a cup and drank from it.
Then they had to think up
and recite a poem.

Japanese literature

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Japanese literature