Japanese and Western Evanescence in Love Literature
Japanese and Western Evanescence in Love Literature
Literature across different time periods and locations often show identifiable similarities. The shifts in society and ideas of the time directly influence how history and literature are written down. The result are works of literature that have overlapping themes, but different interpretations. One such theme, evanescence, arises both in Japanese and Western love literature. The idea of “finiteness” shown through love manifests itself as loneliness and decline in the “Ink Dark Moon” of the Heian period's poetry, and focuses more on the courtship and sex side of love in the idea of Carpe Diem, which permeated much of Western works. Japan's change to religious systems and decline to central control systems in the Heian period had relatively large impacts to the style of the poetry of the time. Great works arose that carried the influences such as the ones in the collection of the “Ink Dark Moon.” Compiled by the women poets Ono no Komachi and Izumi Shikibu of the Court, the “Ink Dark Moon” are poems that echoed the condition of the time, which translated mainly into ideas of loneliness and fragility. Literary imagery of dew and spiderwebs, as well as bubbles, appearing in poems represents the brittleness of material things. This likely originates from the teachings of Buddhism, where the material world is not looked upon as necessarily desirable, as nothing will last forever. Buddhist aesthetics also appear in the “Ink Dark Moon” as water waving in the wind (pg 25), which represents constant change, and a slight sadness. Evanescence is portrayed here as the uncertainty in the pursuit of love, and the speaker's wavering resolve. Buddhism further materializes itself in the common themes of separation and loneliness. (pg 38) The withdraw from society and withdrawal from family life encouraged by Buddhism adds loneliness as a major aspect of evanescence. Another outlook of love is the ungrounded, unceasing,
Literature across different time periods and locations often show identifiable similarities. The shifts in society and ideas of the time directly influence how history and literature are written down. The result are works of literature that have overlapping themes, but different interpretations. One such theme, evanescence, arises both in Japanese and Western love literature. The idea of “finiteness” shown through love manifests itself as loneliness and decline in the “Ink Dark Moon” of the Heian period's poetry, and focuses more on the courtship and sex side of love in the idea of Carpe Diem, which permeated much of Western works. Japan's change to religious systems and decline to central control systems in the Heian period had relatively large impacts to the style of the poetry of the time. Great works arose that carried the influences such as the ones in the collection of the “Ink Dark Moon.” Compiled by the women poets Ono no Komachi and Izumi Shikibu of the Court, the “Ink Dark Moon” are poems that echoed the condition of the time, which translated mainly into ideas of loneliness and fragility. Literary imagery of dew and spiderwebs, as well as bubbles, appearing in poems represents the brittleness of material things. This likely originates from the teachings of Buddhism, where the material world is not looked upon as necessarily desirable, as nothing will last forever. Buddhist aesthetics also appear in the “Ink Dark Moon” as water waving in the wind (pg 25), which represents constant change, and a slight sadness. Evanescence is portrayed here as the uncertainty in the pursuit of love, and the speaker's wavering resolve. Buddhism further materializes itself in the common themes of separation and loneliness. (pg 38) The withdraw from society and withdrawal from family life encouraged by Buddhism adds loneliness as a major aspect of evanescence. Another outlook of love is the ungrounded, unceasing,