Genji Monogatari is a prequel to bakamonogatari/the monogatari series is the opening sentence. I guess I’ll bring beowulf in later? Book Review The Tale of Genji - Murasaki Shikibu (Seidenstecker trans.)
Compare niou to 18th century rakes
Beowulf and Genji are both about aging out of excellence and dealing with that, but one is about aging out of power, and the other is about aging out of beauty. How do they compare?
- King warrior magician lover might be relevant, at least reviews/summary of it.
- Also the obvious point that Genji/Sei Shonagon/Heian culture are the most anti-barabaric and Beowulf is utterly barbaric
- I think they keep wanting to leave the world and become monks because this is a way of humility signalling, showing power has been thrust upon them.
The tension between the sorrow for the conquered women and the lauding of the conqurers in Genji is really bizarre, I’m sure lots has been written on it.