| Eccentric Spaces, Hidden Histories: Narrative, Ritual, and Royal Authority from the Chronicles of Japan to the Tale of the Heike Contributor(s): Bialock, David T. (Author) |
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ISBN: 0804751587 ISBN-13: 9780804751582 Publisher: Stanford University Press OUR PRICE: $85.50 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: February 2007 Annotation: After The Tale of Genji (c. 1000), the greatest work of classical Japanese literature is the historical narrative The Tale of the Heike (13th-14th centuries). In addition to opening up fresh perspectives on the Heike narratives, this study also draws attention to a range of problems centered on the interrelationship between narrative, ritual space, and Japan's changing views of China as they bear on depictions of the emperor's authority, warriors, and marginal population going all the way back to the Nara period. By situating the Heike in this long temporal framework, the author sheds light on a hidden history of royal authority that was entangled in Daoist and yin-yang ideas in the Nara period, practices centered on defilement in the Heian period, and Buddhist doctrines pertaining to original enlightenment in the medieval period, all of which resurface and combine in Heike's narrative world. In introducing for the first time the full range of Heike narrative to students and scholars of Japanese literature, the author argues that we must also reexamine our understanding of the literature, ritual, and culture of the Heian and Nara periods. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Literary Criticism | Asian - Japanese |
| Dewey: 895.609 |
| LCCN: 2006005088 |
| Series: Asian Religions and Cultures Asian Religions and Cultures |
| Physical Information: 1.3" H x 6.57" W x 9.3" (1.74 lbs) 488 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - Japanese |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: This book examines the interrelationship between narrative, ritual, and royal authority, including discussions of Daoism, yin-yang, and Buddhist doctrine, as depicted in a variety of texts from The Chronicles of Japan (7th century) to The Tale of the Heike (14th century). |