Abstract This paper assesses critical responses to "The Hokku" of Basho. During the Tokugawa period Basho was, literally, deified and slavishly praised. The modern era began with a re-evaluation and harsh backlash against this status. More recently, Japanese commentaries have developed a critical but positive assessment of Basho's work.
Abstract This essay discusses Buddhism by looking at Basho's travel diary entries, or stations which contain a haiku poem . The writer reflects on the flashes of enlightenment, called kensho, which are intense forms of those everyday occurrences that surprise us because they seem to reveal a truth.
From the paper:
?Haiku is a momentary, condensed poetic form and its special quality is that it is perfectly adapted to give the reader that little instant of kensho insight. Each of Basho's travel diary entries, or stations, contain a haiku poem, an enigmatic ?kensho.? Each haiku becomes a little burst of awakening.?
Abstract This literary essay compares the works of both Wordsworth and Basho regard to nature. It determines the similarities and differences of both writers, in their views of this subject and suggests that," The presence of nature in the writings of both Wordsworth and Bosho increase the effectiveness of each piece. It also opens the work up for broader interpretations and applications."
From the Paper "The reflection of nature evokes a variety of emotions and ideas. The phenomena of our natural surroundings and Mother Earth's uncontrollable seasonal changes affect everyone's life both directly and indirectly. How we choose to interpret, label, recognize, or utilize these affects vary from individual to individual. Literature is not immune to this, and many authors take advantage of the majesty and sovereignty of the forces and laws of nature. Two such authors are William Wordsworth (Lines Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey), and Matuo Basho (The Narrow Road of the Interior)."
Abstract With the realization of the complexity of our task, we will discuss the dynamic of individuality versus group identity in Tokugawa Japan as represented in the literary works of two of its greatest writers, the poet MatsuoBasho, and the novelist, Ihara Saikaku. It will be argued that this dynamic manifested itself in their work as a balance between individual artistic expression and participation in a common tradition. As will be seen, Basho's work emphasizes the group identity over individuality by his construction of a school of poetry with shared principles passed through his disciples. Saikaku, in contrast, emphasizes the individuality of his expression as he explored the diversity of classes that mingled in the "floating world". This strategic balance between the two competing forces, it will be seen, is a fundamental aspect of the aesthetics of the Tokugawa period.
Abstract This essay explores the question of the "personal" in relation to the poetic form of haiku, as expressed by the greatest poet of Tokugawa Japan, MatsuoBasho (1644-94), and two of the era's female poets: Sono-Jo (1649-1723) and Chigetsu-Ni (1632-1706).
Abstract The Tokugawa period of Japanese history was a time of rigid class stratification. This paper explains how Walthall's book deals with the transformation from the age of the samurai to the modern; from the Shogunate to Empirical rule; and the beginning transition from an agrarian to technological society. This book is about change, specifically, social and political change, but also about changes that occurred within the life of an individual, a woman, and a political activist.
From the Paper "Matsuo Taseko was born into the peasant class. Her family were farmers living and working in the Ina Valley in what is now the Nagano Province. The samurai system was based on a feudal and agrarian society where the workers paid "homage" or taxes to the local ruling samurai. Taseko was the daughter of the local headman, which brought responsibility as well as greater contact with others, including political leaders. It also made her part of the "rural elite", a part of the local political structure. Her family were involved in an extensive system of rural entrepenurism, or self-employment, that bridged the agricultural and merchant classes. They were involved in making and selling sake and were known to be the local moneylenders. She learned to read and write, an honor generally denied the peasant. She wrote poetry that reflected both her education and her political inclinations. She was trained in classical poetic form, allowing her a place among the intellectuals of the time."
From the Paper " This study will examine the experiences and discoveries of Matsuo Basho on his travels in The Narrow Road to the Deep North and Other Travel Sketches to determine how those experiences enriched his poetry. Basho was, at the time he first set out on his several travels, in the midst of an intensely spiritual time of self-examination. He was not merely traveling for pleasure or distraction from life's worries. To the contrary, he was seeking the ultimate truths of life.
Accordingly, the discoveries Basho made on his travels were serious and profound lessons about himself and nature. Basho is not writing a travelogue, but rather a portrait of his spiritual reality as it exists at the moment of writing each particular poem.
What Basho discovers again and again on his travels is that.."
Abstract This will include a comparison of two basic works, including MatsuoBasho's poetry and Chikamatsu Monzaemon dramatic writing. Both artists reveal very similar themes, including humanity's connection to nature and the overall tragedy of the human condition. The works were expressed in a simple language that reached all people, including commoners.
A discussion of the timelessness of the father/son struggle as seen through Neoclassic literature, with a look at similarities and differences between the struggles today.
1,215 words (approx. 4.9 pages), 3 sources, 2001, $ 41.95
Abstract The work chooses several neoclassic works to demonstrate the timeless phenomenon of the struggle between father and son. The problematic relationship between father and son is therefore timeless and although there are differences between the various struggles, similarities also exist.
From the Paper "Throughout time there has existed a constant struggle between fathers and sons, almost as a right of passage into manhood. Many literary works have addressed this very issue either directly or as a means to assist in the development of a story or to establish things such as tone and setting. I have chosen to discuss three such relationships from selected works derived from the Neoclassicism era. I will compare and contrast these relationships and show the effect each had on the selected work. The three dyads are Orgon and Damis from Jean-Baptist Moliere's Tartuffe, Theseus and Hippolytus, from Jean Racine's Phaedre, and finally Bao-yu and Jia Zheng from Cao Xueqin's Story of the Stone."
