100% (1)
Pages:
4 pages/≈1100 words
Sources:
1
Style:
MLA
Subject:
History
Type:
Essay
Language:
English (U.S.)
Document:
MS Word
Date:
Total cost:
$ 14.4
Topic:

The love that surpasses death

Essay Instructions:
Choose one of the following two questions and write 4 pages. You have a lot of freedom in both choices, but you must frame the argument in your own original way¡ªmake a thesis statement and support it with textual evidence and careful, persuasive reasoning. 1. Love and Death In the texts we¡¯ve studied thus far, the themes of love and death are often closely intertwined. Using two texts of your choice, compare: 1) how love and death are interconnected and 2) why love and death are interconnected. You are free to interpret love as you like¡ªromantic love, love of one¡¯s family, etc.¡ªbut be consistent in your comparison: both texts must talk about love in more or less the same terms. Be sure to take into account the historical context of the works and other issues broached in the readings and lectures such as aesthetics, politics, religious beliefs and so on. 2. Redemption and Religious Salvation Another prevalent theme in premodern Japanese literature is redemption and religious salvation. Using two texts of your choice, identify the specific religious beliefs/practices involved and the manner in which redemption or salvation comes about. You might also want to think about how issues of morality and ethics, and concerns with this life and the afterlife, are treated. What can we conclude from these examples about the rewards or punishments which come about from personal conduct or actions in a past life? here are the texts you can use. you can choose any 2 of them for the essay. 1.W. Theodore de Bary, Donald Keene, eds. Sources of Japanese Tradition, vol. 1 ( chapter 1, 6 and 7) 2.Donald Keene, ed., Anthology of Japanese Literature 3.Royall Tyler, trans. The Tale of Genji (Chapter 1-9 and 12-13) You must come up with an ORIGINAL TITLE for your paper that helps define your critical position.
Essay Sample Content Preview:
Name:
University:
Course:
Tutor:
Date:
The love that surpasses death
Love can be defined as profound and tender affection to another person. There are several types of love; security which everyone needs to survive, romantic love such as is seen between spouses and unconditional loves that sincere love that lasts forever. Friendship love is that which is open and totally comfortable. Affection love is that which can be just of fondness and snot sexual. Puppy love is a fluctuation and occurs when one is very young, is strong but fades as one age. Death is the seizing of existence by stopping of all body processes or the cease of something; it is also the end of love and life.
The tale of Genji is a good illustration of love and death being interconnected as it is observed that Genji’s mother lady Kiritsubo was born in a low status family and when her parents died the Emperor took her in and supported her after which she became her favorites. This provoked jealousy among the other mistresses, despite the love that she got from the emperor; she died three years after Genji’s birth. There is a twist in his loyalty as he is then made a commoner and given the surname of Minamoto this is so that he can be given a high ranking job in the government after which he is then married off to Aoi who is four years older than him. Love has its limits and Genji falls in love with his father’s mistress and lover Lady Fujistsubo who highly resembles his mother. They bear a son who everyone knows as the emperors son and who later takes over the throne.
Theirs is a forbidden love leads him to be in bad terms with his wife. Genji in his bid to search for love is seen to be a character that lies with a vast chain of women which turns to be disastrous for others in the same chain (Keene, 50). He tries to seduce a woman that he sees and his lover died in an intimate act. For example his First wife Aoi dies after being demon possessed by another of Genji’s lovers Lady of Rokujo in as much as the tale has us to believe that she loved Genji, in my opinion it would be more of an obsession that even though she knew of Genji’s philanderers behavior and many mistresses, she still goes on ahead and kills his first wife. What would have been better is to live not bring in harmony with the other women as the Japanese men had a custom of many women. It seems that at every instance that he finds true love, death seems to be hanging in the air. After his wife’s death, he gets consolation from a ten year old girl called Murasaki who looks like lady Fujitsubo whom he marries when she turns fourteen years of age. With all his philanderers behavior, he at least has a good product of a daughter with lady of Akadhi and son (Reizei) who take up positions of power.
Genji is given a high rank on power. Genji’s young wife Murasaki dies a while after she wanted to...
Updated on
Get the Whole Paper!
Not exactly what you need?
Do you need a custom essay? Order right now:
Sign In
Not register? Register Now!