82 pages • 2 hours read
Murasaki ShikibuThe Tale Of Genji
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1008A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
During Reading
Reading Questions & Paired Texts
Reading Check and Short Answer Questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.
PROLOGUE-CHAPTER 1
Reading Check
1. Whose daughter is Tamakazura?
2. What does Tamakazura accuse Genji of being?
3. Whom does the Kokiden Consort wish to see become the Emperor’s heir?
4. Why is the Emperor interested in Lady Fujitsubo?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Why does Genji tease Tamakazura about her copying?
2. What merit does Genji see in fictional writings?
3. What conflict surrounds Genji’s mother at court?
4. What is the Emperor’s motivation for demoting Genji to commoner status?
Paired Resource
“Critical Art: Plato and Aristotle’s Debate Over Poetry”
- This review from Rhetoric Society Quarterly explores the division between Plato and Aristotle on the matter of poetry and its worth.
- This resource relates to the theme of The Truths Within Fiction and Poetry.
- What is the basis of the disagreement between Aristotle and Plato about poetry? Do they mean the same thing by “poetry” as we mean when we use the word today? Which of the two philosophers would Genji agree with most? Why?
CHAPTERS 2-3
Reading Check
1. How old is Genji at the beginning of Chapter 2?
2. Who is To no Chujo?
3. What is the fate of the woman who Chief Left Equerry refuses to reform himself for?
4. Whom is Genji convinced must be the ideal woman for him?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. What reasons do Genji’s friends give for preferring women of a particular status among the aristocracy?
2. Why does To no Chujo glance at Genji during the metaphorical discussion of a romance being like a boat?
3. What causes Genji to reflect on the lower status of the Governor’s household?
4. What reasons does Utsusemi give for attempting to reject Genji’s sexual advances?
Paired Resource
“Lady Murasaki’s Erotic Entertainment: The Early Chapters of The Tale Of Genji”
- This journal article by translator Royall Tyler offers an analysis of the eroticism in Murasaki’s text and gives insight into Tyler’s translation choices. (Due to spoilers, this is intended as a teacher-facing resource.)
- This resource relates to the theme of Love, Lust, and Sexual Power Dynamics.
“Things That Are Near Though Distant: Extramarital Affairs in Heian-Period Japan”
- This journal article from New Voices in Japanese Studies explores the relationship between aesthetics and extramarital sex in Heian-Period Japan. (Due to spoilers, this is intended as a teacher-facing resource.)
- This resource relates to the theme of Love, Lust, and Sexual Power Dynamics.
“Names, Naming, and Nature in the Tale of Genji”
- This journal article from SUNY’s Literary Onomastics Studies explains how characters in Genji get their names. (Due to spoilers, this is intended as a teacher-facing resource.)
- A discussion of material from this article is an excellent opportunity to introduce or review terms such as metonymy, synecdoche, epithet, sobriquet, allusion, imagery, metaphor, and symbol.
CHAPTERS 4-6
Reading Check
1. Whom is Genji visiting when he first learns about Yugao?
2. Whom does Genji suspect is Tamakazura’s father?
3. Whom is Genji traveling to see in the opening of Chapter 5 when he is 18 years old?
4. Whom does Genji kidnap near the end of Chapter 5?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Why does the narrator refer to the young woman Genji corresponds with as “Yugao” in Chapter 4?
2. How does Koremitsu’s reaction to Genji’s interest in Yugao characterize Genji?
3. What attracts Genji to Murasaki?
4. Why do Fujitsubo and Genji agree that they must keep Reizei’s parentage a secret?
Paired Resource
“Poetry: The Language of Love in Tale of Genji”
- This article describes the forms of poetry in Genji and analyzes their role in communication between the sexes. (Due to spoilers, this is intended as a teacher-facing resource.)
- This resource relates to the themes of Love, Lust, and Sexual Power Dynamics and The Truths Within Fiction and Poetry.
“Ikiryō”
- This entry from an online database of Japanese folklore describes the beliefs that explain what happens when Lady Rokujo’s spirit attacks Yugao.
- This resource relates to the theme of Love, Lust, and Sexual Power Dynamics.
- Where in the story does an ikiryō appear? What does this convey about Lady Rokujo’s feelings toward Genji? Is the reader meant to blame Genji and/or feel sympathy for Lady Rokujo?
CHAPTERS 7-9
Reading Check
1. What event in Fujitsubo’s life makes her unreachable to Genji?
2. What hides the Emperor and Fujitsubo from view during the cherry blossom festival?
3. Who is the Emperor in Chapter 9 when Genji is in his early twenties?
4. Whom do people believe is responsible for Aoi’s death?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. How do key spectators respond to Genji’s performance during the rehearsal for the festivities honoring the former emperor?
2. Why does Genji get irritated at Murasaki when he returns to Nijo after the jubilee?
3. How does Genji end up seducing someone with a connection to the Kokiden Consort?
4. What conversation causes Genji to be afraid of the consequences should his father learn about his affairs?
Paired Resource
“Wabi-Sabi, Mono no Aware, and Ma: Tracing Traditional Japanese Aesthetics Through Japanese History”
- This article from Studies on Asia traces the historical development of Japanese aesthetics and explains how the Japanese love of beauty relates to the Heian-Period appreciation for nature.
- This resource relates to the theme of Physical Beauty and Substance of Character.
- What are some of the ways Japanese culture conceives beauty? Which of these forms do you see reflected in Genji? How does the role that beauty plays in Japanese culture and the spiritual roots of Japanese aesthetics help you understand the stress placed on Genji’s appearance and the narrator’s willingness to excuse much of Genji’s behavior?
“Cherry Blossom Viewing over the Centuries: Cherry Blossoms in Japanese Culture”
- This 5-minute video from the Library of Congress explains the history and cultural significance of cherry blossom viewing in Japan.
- This resource relates to the theme of Physical Beauty and Substance of Character.
- How does background information about cherry blossom viewing in Japanese culture increase your understanding of The Tale of Genji? Which aspects of Heian-Period culture are more generally illustrated in this video?
CHAPTERS 10-17
Reading Check
1. What event results in a significant loss of political power for Genji and his allies?
2. When Genji returns to Kyoto, what now-pregnant mistress does he leave behind?
3. Who becomes emperor after Suzaku abdicates?
4. What kind of contest is held between Genji’s Red team and Cho no Chujo’s Blue team in order to please the young Emperor?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. How does Genji’s attitude toward Akikonomu demonstrate growth in his character?
2. What causes Genji to leave Kyoto?
3. How does the weather at Suma reflect Genji’s mood?
4. What conflicting motivations regarding staying in Kyoto is Genji struggling with at the end of Chapter 17?
Recommended Next Reads
The Pillow Book by Sei Shonagon
- This autobiographical journal chronicles a Heian-Period noblewoman’s experiences living in Kyoto and navigating the intrigues of romance at the Heian imperial court.
- Shared themes include Physical Beauty and Substance of Character, Love, Lust, and Sexual Power Dynamics, and The Truths Within Fiction and Poetry.
- Shared topics include Heian-Period Japan, the Japanese imperial court, political strategy, power, nature, and gender roles.
- The Pillow Book on SuperSummary
The Tale of Murasaki by Liza Dalby
- This carefully-researched historical novel recounts a fictionalized version of the author Murasaki’s life.
- Shared themes include Physical Beauty and Substance of Character, Love, Lust, and Sexual Power Dynamics, and The Truths Within Fiction and Poetry.
- Shared topics include Heian-Period Japan, the Japanese imperial court, political strategy, power, nature, and gender roles.
Reading Questions Answer Key
PROLOGUE-CHAPTER 1
Reading Check
1. Yugao’s (Prologue)
2. A liar (Prologue)
3. Her own son, Suzaku (Chapter 1)
4. She resembles Lady Kiritsubo. (Chapter 1)
Short Answer
1. Tamakazura is copying a fictional story. Genji teases her for believing that there is any truth in stories like this because he thinks they are very unrealistic. (Prologue)
2. He admits that fictional stories do have some merit because they pass on the deeper truth of values and human desires from generation to generation. (Prologue)
3. Although she is of low status in the court, the Emperor is devoted to her, which arouses the jealousy and scorn of those of higher status. (Chapter 1)
4. The Emperor is trying to protect Genji, whom he deeply loves, from the persecution of higher-ranking royals such as the Kokiden Consort. As a commoner, Genji is not a threat to them. The Emperor hopes this will dissuade them from bothering Genji. (Chapter 1)
CHAPTERS 2-3
Reading Check
1. 17 (Chapter 2)
2. Genji’s brother-in-law and friend (Chapter 2)
3. She dies. (Chapter 2)
4. Fujitsubo (Chapter 2)
Short Answer
1. The men prefer women of middle ranking because they cannot link themselves to women of lower status and they find women of very high status disappointingly demanding and sensitive. (Chapter 2)
2. The metaphor describes a failing relationship as being like a boat drifting away. To no Chujo looks at Genji because, as Genji’s wife’s brother, he is aware that their marriage is failing. (Chapter 2)
3. Genji overhears the servants gossiping about him and misquoting poetry. (Chapter 2)
4. Because they have little in common and there is a significant difference in their statuses, Utsusemi sees Genji’s advances as a kind of contempt for her character and happiness, as there can be no permanent relationship between them. (Chapter 2)
CHAPTERS 4-6
Reading Check
1. His childhood nurse (Chapter 4)
2. To no Chujo, his brother-in-law (Chapter 4)
3. A high priest (Chapter 5)
4. Murasaki (Chapter 5)
Short Answer
1. The narrator gives the young woman this nickname because the word “yugao” refers to a flowering vine that Genji and the young woman write about in the letters they exchange. (Chapter 4)
2. When Genji inquires about Yugao, Koremitsu thinks, “Here he goes again!” (Chapter 4). Genji is already married and having an affair with the Rokujo Haven, and Koremitsu’s reaction characterizes Genji as excessively motivated by sex and romance. (Chapter 4)
3. Murasaki is Fujitsubo’s niece and strongly resembles her. (Chapter 5)
4. The Emperor believes Reizei to be his own son, and he names the baby the next heir to the throne after Suzaku. Neither Genji nor Fujitsubo want to risk the Emperor’s anger or endanger the child’s future should the Emperor learn that Genji is really Reizei’s father. (Chapter 5)
CHAPTERS 7-9
Reading Check
1. Her elevation to Empress (Chapter 7)
2. Screens (Chapter 8)
3. Suzaku (Chapter 9)
4. The Rokujo Lady’s spirit (Chapter 9)
Short Answer
1. The Emperor, senior nobles, and princes are moved to tears by Genji’s beautiful performance. By contrast, the Kokiden Consort is enraged by his talent and attractiveness, and Fujitsubo’s joy in the performance is diminished by her sorrow over Genji’s philandering. (Chapter 7)
2. Because Murasaki is still a child, she has childish mannerisms and interests. Genji finds this irritating because he is in a hurry for her to mature. (Chapter 7)
3. After the cherry blossom celebration, a drunk Genji, frustrated at not being able to get to Fujitsubo, wanders through an unlocked door in the Kokiden Consort’s part of the palace and into an unknown woman’s rooms. He seduces this woman without realizing that she is engaged to the Kokiden Consort’s son. (Chapter 8)
4. Genji’s father sits him down to talk with him about how to treat women. His father counsels him to do nothing to offend or humiliate a woman, and he particularly warns Genji not to offend Lady Rokujo. Since Genji has already had an affair with and hurt this woman, he has already secretly done something that would upset the former emperor. (Chapter 9)
CHAPTERS 10-17
Reading Check
1. The former emperor’s death (Chapter 10)
2. The Akashi Lady (Chapter 13)
3. Genji’s son, Reizei (Chapter 14)
4. An art contest (Chapter 17)
Short Answer
1. When Genji and the Rokujo Haven end their affair, Genji immediately begins thinking of her young daughter, which is typical behavior for him. He shows he has changed when he thinks the situation through and, realizing that pursuing the girl will cause a scandal, opts to leave her alone. (Chapter 10)
2. After the Kokiden Consort draws the court’s attention to Genji’s numerous affairs, particularly the one with Oborozukiyo, Genji is disgraced and decides to leave the capital for a while. (Chapter 12)
3. While Genji is at Suma, it storms relentlessly, and lightning even strikes a part of Genji’s home. This is appropriate, because Genji’s mood is very dark due to the nightmares he is having, his exile, and the sadness his exile has caused Murasaki. (Chapter 13)
4. Knowing that people who attain power and popularity while young often fall equally quickly, Genji wonders if the time has come to leave the court behind, while he is still successful. He is torn because he also feels a responsibility to stay and guide his children’s fortunes in the court. (Chapter 17)
