An illustrated guide to one of the most enduring masterworks of world literature
Written in the eleventh century by the Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu,The Tale of Genjiis a masterpiece of prose and poetry that is widely considered the world's first novel. Melissa McCormick provides a unique companion to Murasaki's tale that combines discussions of all fifty-four of its chapters with paintings and calligraphy from theGenji Album(1510) in the Harvard Art Museums, the oldest dated set ofGenjiillustrations known to exist.
In this book, the album's colorful painting and calligraphy leaves are fully reproduced for the first time, followed by McCormick's insightful essays that analyze theGenjistory and the album's unique combinations of word and image. This stunning compendium also includes English translations and Japanese transcriptions of the album's calligraphy, enabling a holistic experience of the work for readers today. In an introduction to the volume, McCormick tells the fascinating stories of the individuals who created theGenji Albumin the sixteenth century, from the famous court painter who executed the paintings and the aristocrats who brushed the calligraphy to the work's warrior patrons and the poet-scholars who acted as their intermediaries.
Beautifully illustrated, this book serves as an invaluable guide for readers interested inThe Tale of Genji, Japanese literature, and the captivating visual world of Japan's most celebrated work of fiction.
