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54 - Ninjōbon and romances for women

from Part IV - The Edo period (1600–1867)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 January 2016

Haruo Shirane
Affiliation:
Columbia University, New York
Tomi Suzuki
Affiliation:
Columbia University, New York
David Lurie
Affiliation:
Columbia University, New York
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Summary

The first genre in the long history of Japanese literature to be published commercially for a readership consisting primarily of commoner women, ninjobon became immensely popular. Tamenaga Shunsui stands at the center of this genre with such representative works as Shunshoku umegoyomi or Plum Calendar of Spring Colors, Shunshoku tatsumi no sono, and Harutsuge dori. This chapter discusses the story of Plum Calendar of Spring Colors. Women began entering the workforce, albeit in auxiliary roles, around the nineteenth century, implying a higher rate of literacy. Furthermore, as may be gathered from the growing popularity of kabuki, a new tendency prevailed whereby city women, endowed now with a surplus of both time and money, participated more actively in the various modes of public entertainment in cities. Reading Shunsui's ninjobon, everyone gain an understanding of just how different the concept of romance in Edo was in comparison to the authors own modern one.
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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2015

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