Next up: The Tale of Genji
Since we’re in the middle of what could be our last winter storm tonight, I’m in the mood to stay up and start another big book. By happy coincidence, my next “literary mountain” arrived in the mail this week — The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu.
At 1120 pages (plus maps, diagrams, family trees and a glossary), it’s another thumper.
Why Genji? I first heard about it from East Asian Lit classmates when I was taking a graduate class on Story of the Stone, a massive Chinese novel. They raved about Genji and often compared the poetry to that of Story of the Stone. Then I read an essay by Michael Dirda about how Genji carried him, a seasoned Washington Post book reviewer, away to another world, another dimension. It sounded extraordinary but daunting.
Written in Japan in the 11th century, The Tale of Genji is reputed to be the oldest novel in world literature. Does anyone know if there’s debate on that point? I suppose it depends on your definition of the word novel.
Anyway, I’ve heard it’s incredibly insightful about human relationships, whether the author is describing intense longing for intimacy or a casual social encounters — so I’m curious to see how quickly the story takes hold.
The translation I’m reading is by Royall Tyler, first published in 2001. I’ve heard of two other translations, by Waley and Seidensticker, but I chose this one because the reviewers on Amazon suggested that although it may not be the best read in English, it provides the reference material (maps, diagrams, and so forth) and a fairly accurate translation that I think I’ll need to get through it.
Wish me luck. And if you’ve got any tips or encouragement about Genji, please feel free to share them.
on February 27th, 2008 at 10:05 am
Very cool. I’m looking forward to this.
on March 8th, 2008 at 7:39 am
I’m kinda watching out for Don Quixote. I’ve given that a try a couple times, without success. Perhaps if I were reading at the same time you are, then I’ll be more motivated. Good luck with Tale.
on March 8th, 2008 at 3:39 pm
Thanks. I’ll let you know when I get to Don Quixote. I’ve had a friend from high school say the same thing about the Proust.
In fact, that’s why I started this blog, because I thought I’d like to start a book club, but then I thought it’d be better to create the blog and then let people participate “a la carte.”