Blog #10

1.  Today’s Japan is very much like the West. The Japanese wear jeans and T-shirts, listen to Hip Hop, dance at the club to the dance music, sit on the couch, etc.  In modern Japan, geisha in Kyoto Gion district symbolize the old, traditional Japan. What kind of arts and lifestyle of traditional Japan does geisha, “a person of art,” maintain and practice?

Well from the film we gathered that the geisha practiced traditional dancing, playing traditional instruments, and writing in the traditional styles. I assume the same is true for geisha in today's Japan. 

2.   Considering Bigaku, the Japanese sense of aware means “people are aware of the beauty of full blossoms, of course, but are more touched and deeply moved when these blooms are falling or beginning to wilt” (p.37). Can you find a moment in which you can relate to this Japanese aware in your life? Describe your example and experience. Explain the reasons why you think so.

The best i can come up with is how i feel when i go to a SCCA or any other auto racing event. The cars themselves have a tangible beauty but when they are barreling down the track at triple digit speed and making all the sounds and smells associated with that speed you get this overwhelming sense of excitement. It may not seem beautiful to the average person but to someone who is interested in cars and racing it is extremely beautiful. 

3.   Comparing with the other Japanese films we have watched in this class, in Memoirs of Geisha, do you think it lost ma or aware because they speak English? Why? Why not? Explain the reasons why you think so.

I do believe something is lost in the absence of Japanese speech in the movie. During the other movies i was constantly drawn in by the whole experience of listening to the Japanese actors speak Japanese in a Japanese themed movie. During Memoirs of a Geisha i sometimes drifted off and forgot i was watching a Japanese movie because my brain knows English and i can infer much more about the tone without actually watching what is happening, but with Japanese audio i have to pay more attention to the actors to get a feeling for the tone. This comes back to the idea of aware the non intrinsic value, wile it may seem better for an american audience on the outside it looses that depth that it would have if it was in Japanese. 

4.   Considering Kisetsu, are there any events (e.g. Tanabata, Omisoka, etc) where you appreciate Kisetsu in the U.S.?  Find one and explain what it is. If you were Japanese, how would you enjoy the events differently from Americans.

Again ill go back to Auto racing because summer is race season. In Ohio and most of the northern U.S. most auto racing cannot be held during the fall or winter because of the cold for various reasons. So it must be held in the late spring and all throughout summer. So i look forward to summer so i can go see races and help my dad when he competes with his car. Perhaps if i were Japanese i would enjoy the seasonal events more because i would have a deeper understanding and more tradition placed on seasonal events. i'm not sure.

5.   Considering Otogibanashi, in the film, can you discover "sense of emotional beauty, of a feeling of aware, which embodied in feelings such as patience and pity” (p.172). Describe the film and explain why you think so.

Best scene i saw of this is the night Sayuri came back from the crab doctor. She came back home and just sort of stared blankly at Okaasan. Okaasan had this look on her face that looked just like a face trying to convey the emotions of patience and pity. The Okaasan had been in Sayori's shoes once and understood what she was going through. 

6.   Explain Wabi-Sabi with your own words. Compare the sense of aesthetics in your country with the notion of Wabi-Sabi in Japan.

Wabi-Sabi is the idea of finding beauty in simplicity. The book described the Japaneses aesthetics by using architecture. Japanese houses are open and airy with little to no ornamentation. American architecture on the other hand is closed and over bearing. we build great big structures with thick walls and doors to separate ourselves from the outside. our houses are sometimes also decorated with various interior moldings or wallpapers, paints ect.  

7.   In the film, what scenes do you see Wabi-Sabi? Describe the scenes and explain why you think so.

In the movie when Sayuri first debuts she is taken to a tea ceremony. On the outside looking in its just a group of people drinking tea, but if you look closer you can see that their posture, movements and surroundings are perfectly set to get the most out of the experience of the tea ceremony. This simple aesthetic of Wabi-Sabi finding beauty in the most simple things is exemplified by the tea ceremony.   

8. Movie- how did Hatsumomo end up? What is the relationship between Sayuri and Chairman at the end?

    Do you think Sayuri is happy about the her life or not? Why do you think so?

Hatsumomo got thrown out of the house after setting a fire and also being insolent to the head of the house hold and trying to kill 2 people. The relationship between Sayuri and the Chairman is probably that of lovers, its kind of vague as to exactly what their relationship will be but they did kiss so that points to them being lovers. I think Sayuri is probably happy after she gets together  with the chairman because that was her goal throughout the movie. Even if the Chairman had never come back i still think she would be happy about becoming a geisha because both of her parents died and she would have been an orphan. 

9. Movie-Who did Okaasan adapt? What do you think Pumpkin's life?

Okaassan adopted Sayuri after she brought in so much money from the bidding war. This kind of messed up Pumpkin who was already told she was the one who was going to be adopted. Then of course the war came to home and scrambled everyone's lives. Pumpkin did her best to adapt but she still obviously harbored hatred for what Sayuri had done to her career. 

10. What do you think about the movie overall? Share your personal opinions. 

The movie was very awkward for me, its definitely not something i would ever consider watching on my own. But it was well written and directed and was able to hold my attention for the almost 3 hour long run time, so it was meh ok. liked Letters from Iwo Jima more.