JPN/EAS 380
Masterpieces of Japanese Literature

 

Makura no sôshi

The Pillow Book of Sei Shônagon

Sei Shonagon Makura no Sôshi

 

Text: The Pillow Book, trans. Meredith McKinney (online)

Wednesday, Aug. 31st

Readings:

Sections 1-36, 46-60, 69-80 (pp. 3-43, 49-57, 60-75)
Questions to Consider:

From the content of the sections you read, what do you imagine was Sei Shônagon's purpose in writing the Pillow Book?

Does this book remind you of anything you have read in Western literature? In what genre do you suppose it belongs?

If this book were your sole window on Heian period Japan, how would you characterize that period? What is life like for the people in the book and what things are important to them?

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