The Tale of Genji

by Shikibu, Murasaki; Tyler, Royall; Tyler, Royall; Tyler, Royall

• ISBN13: 9780143039495
• ISBN10: 0143039490
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-02-28
• Publisher: Penguin Classics

Summary

Superbly written and genuinely engaging . . . one of those works that can be read and reread throughout one’s life.” —Liza Dalby, Los Angeles Times Book Review Written in the eleventh century, this exquisite portrait of courtly life in medieval Japan is widely celebrated as the world’s first novel—and is certainly one of its finest. Genji, the Shining Prince, son of an emperor, is a passionate character whose tempestuous nature, family circumstances, love affairs, alliances, and shifting political fortunes form the core of this magnificent epic. Royall Tyler’s superb translation is detailed, poetic, and true to the Japanese original while allowing the English reader to appreciate its timeless beauty. In this deftly abridged edition, Tyler focuses on the early chapters, which vividly evoke Genji as a young man and leave him at his first moment of triumph.

Author Biography

Murasaki Shikibu was a lady in the Heian court of eleventh-century Japan.
Royall Tyler, an American, taught Japanese language and literature for many years at Australia National University.

Table of Contents

List of Maps and Diagrams	vii
Introduction	ix
Main Characters	xxi
PROLOGUE: Genji on the Art of Fiction	1	(185)
1. The Paulownia Pavilion (Kiritsubo)
Abridged	4	(14)
2. The Broom Tree (Hahakigi)
Complete	18	(36)
3. The Cicada Shell (Utsusemi)
[Omitted]
4. The Twilight Beauty (Yugao)
Slightly abridged	54	(33)
5. Young Murasaki (Wakamurasaki)
Complete	87	(41)
6. The Safflower (Suetsumuhana)
[Omitted]
7. Beneath the Autumn Leaves (Momiji no Ga)
Complete	128	(24)
8. Under the Cherry Blossoms (Hana no En)
Complete	152	(10)
9. Heart-to-Heart (Aoi)
Abridged	162	(24)
10. The Green Branch (Sakaki)
Complete	186	(39)
11. Falling Flowers (Hanachirusato)
[Omitted]
12. Suma (Suma)
Abridged	225	(28)
13. Akashi (Akashi)
Slightly Abridged	253	(30)
14. The Pilgrimage to Sumiyoshi (Miotsukushi)
Slightly abridged	283	(22)
15. A Waste of Weeds (Yomogiu)
[Omitted]
16. At the Pass (Sekiya)
[Omitted]
17. The Picture Contest (Eawase)
Complete	305	(20)
Further Reading	325