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#genji46
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Daisey
The Tale of Genji | Murasaki Shikibu
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I‘m making slow but continuous progress on this book. Another snow day means I hope to get through more than a chapter, but I‘ve given up on actually catching up to finish on schedule. That little bookmark at the bottom of the page is where I “should” be by the end of the day today.

I just finished #Genji46 and overall enjoyed this chapter. Do the sisters inherit their father‘s income after his death or what are they living on?

#Genji #1001books

saresmoore Oh, that‘s a good question! I was under the impression that Kaoru was providing for a lot of their trivial needs after their father‘s death. 6y
laurenduke300 Why is everyone reading this book right now? Is there some event I don‘t know about? 6y
Daisey @saresmoore That‘s really what I‘m wondering. Do they inherit something or is Karou supporting them? However, if that‘s the case, I can‘t see how they could hold him off at all from a marriage. Another of the cultural things that apparently I just don‘t have enough background about. 6y
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Daisey @laurenduke300 There is currently a readalong organized by @Lindy. 6y
Daisey @saresmoore A few pages later in #Genji47 the older sister does say “. . . by now I rely on him in all things.” 6y
batsy I'm not entirely sure; it does seem like they inherit the property but have no income? Which is why there always is that fear of how to manage without a father or husband; there has to be a man around to administer the estate and provide them with what's needed on a day to day basis and keep the household running. I guess once a single aristocratic woman is absorbed into the imperial economy as a kept woman, that's one less worry for her :/ 6y
Lindy @saresmoore @daisey It‘s my understanding that women of the Heian era had the right to inherit property and would maintain power and prestige after their father‘s or husband‘s death, but managing their affairs wasn‘t easy unless they continued to have supportive men around them. 6y
Lindy @batsy I‘m not sure about income, but you are right: women definitely inherited property. I think that the difficulty for a rich woman on her own has to do with the fact that she must remain in such seclusion. 6y
Daisey @batsy @Lindy That helps somewhat, but it also seems they really are dependent on Karou‘s good graces. 6y
saresmoore @Lindy @batsy Remaining in seclusion under constant threat of rape... I find it interesting how much more cavalier many of the companions/ladies-in-waiting/servants seem to be when it comes to affairs of the heart. It certainly seems that a powerful man‘s affections are a much more valuable currency than property or money. A woman of noble birth only has value according to her marriage. It‘s both depressing and fascinating. 6y
Lindy @saresmoore @batsy Yes, a woman‘s marriage is an important aspect of her worth/power, but women of high birth cannot marry into a class below them without losing much status, and therefore these women appear to be better off remaining single, provided there‘s male support for the upkeep of their property. 6y
batsy Nicely summed up, @Lindy and re: income, I keep forgetting that this would have been a feudal economy, and income as such doesn't work the same way in as it would have in Jane Austen's time, much less ours. 6y
Lindy @batsy @saresmoore @Daisey Regarding currency, in a footnote in Waley #Genji53 -A woman‘s robe may seem a strange offering to make to priests; but currency was very little used at this time, its place being taken by articles of common use, such as clothes, musical instruments, etc. 6y
56 likes13 comments
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CindyMyLifeIsLit
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“The older sister was now twenty-five, the younger twenty-three,” (959). Wow! Hachinomiya‘s daughters are old maids considering the ages we‘ve seen others marry and become sexually active at in this book. #genji #genji46

Lindy True! And I recently learned that because of the way age was calculated at that time, with everyone turning one year older at New Years, a 15-year-old bride could actually be only 14 by our way of counting. 6y
Daisey I‘m reading this same chapter right now. It seems so odd to me that their father was apparently completely oblivious to the need to provide for their future until now. 6y
39 likes2 comments
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Lindy
The Tale of Genji | Murasaki Shikibu
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Advice from the Eighth Prince to his daughters:
“Most people lead unhappy, lonely lives. This world is always so contrary—do not take it too seriously.”
#Genji46 #Genji

@Daisey @llwheeler @bianca @saresmoore @bookandcat @mhillis @SoniaC @batsy @KathyR @TheWordJar @Faibka @RachelO @CindyMyLifeIsLit @xicanti

saresmoore “Also, young men these days are the worst.” 6y
Lindy @saresmoore It‘s comments like “young men these days are the worst” that make this story seem relevant today. 6y
saresmoore Yes, sadly, so much of it seems timeless, and not just the musings on the ephemeral nature of the world. My sleeves are soaked. 😭 6y
batsy @saresmoore Your sleeves comment 😂😂😭 6y
39 likes4 comments
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Lindy
The Tale of Genji | Murasaki Shikibu
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“On the way across they played ‘Magic of Wine,‘ after which they all respectfully disembarked …”
…all respect to the magic of 🍷… and meanwhile the grieving sisters …😭
“Their sleeves were never, never dry.”
#Genji46 #Genji #constrainedlivesofwomen

@Daisey @llwheeler @bianca @saresmoore @bookandcat @mhillis @SoniaC @batsy @KathyR @TheWordJar @Faibka @RachelO @CindyMyLifeIsLit @xicanti

saresmoore That is just how I pictured them punting across the river. 😀 This chapter was kind of a snooze fest for me, but I‘m getting a head start on tomorrow‘s chapter cuz it‘s a long one! 6y
Lindy @saresmoore Good idea about getting a head start. #Genji47 is 42 pages in the Tyler edition. 6y
batsy The part of me that loves Gothic tropes a little too much always tries to visualise the crumbling villas and whatnot that these rural-dwelling nobility live in. Also, I'm probably getting my chapters confused, but that bit about a messenger having to traverse "bandit country" to deliver messages from Niou to the princesses was really fun—I wish there was more on that than just a line ? 6y
Lindy @batsy Some adventures with bandits or pirates would be a nice change from parents fretting over good marriage matches for their daughters. 👍 6y
34 likes4 comments