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From this prohibition, women like Murasaki Shikibu helped develop what would become known as classical Japanese prose. But because Murasaki wrote in a style of Japanese that was still developing from the spoken language, many of the physical gestures often associated with the spoken word make the prose seem "flowery," and overly descriptive. Women had a secondary role in society, and this was reflected in the writings of Murasaki as women seem to define themselves in relations to the men in their lives. And because 11th century Japan was not a monogamous society, containing both wives and concubines, the imagery used to describe women and their relationship to men is commonly filled with jealousy and rivalry. Women themselves are often portrayed from the point-of-view of longing for their man, waiting patiently for him to visit, and always willing to please him. They are also seen as vindictive and hateful as when the evil spirit of Rokujo Lady possessed the body of Genji's beloved Lady Murasaki making her ill and resulting in her death. The evil spirit admitted to Genji that it had been in possession of Murasaki's body because, as the spirit stated "I have wanted you to suffer as I suffered." (Murasaki 2001)
It may be true that both Sappho and Murasaki...
They also both wrote about subject matter and in a style that was not traditional, helping to usher in a new style of literature in their respective cultures. Sappho began the tradition of personal reflection in the first person, while Murasaki Shikibu helped develop the written Japanese language. While Sappho's poetry is lyrical and lovely, pure and sensual, and devoted to love, longing, adoration, and reflection, Murasaki's style has been called "flowery" and somewhat elaborate. But when it comes to the status of women, these two women describe women in very different ways. For Sappho, women are seen as the objects of desire, filled with goodness and purity, an integral factor in love; but for Murasaki Shikibu, women are seen in a more sensible manner. Murasaki portrayed women as they were in 11th century Japan, both good and bad, but very restricted and subdued. In other words, while Sappho portrayed women in an idealistic fashion, Murasaki was forced to portray women in terms defined by her male dominated society.
References
Murasaki, Shikibu, and Royall Tyler. (2001). The Tale of Genji. New York: Viking.
Print.
Sappho, and Anne Carson. (2002). If Not Winter, Fragments of Sappho. New York:
Alfred Knopf. Print.
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