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The Tale of Genji
by Murasaki Shikibu



More information on the radar plot criteria

This radar plot is meant to give a graphical representation of the book in question. For a better idea of what each spoke means, see the table below. Also, keep in mind that higher numbers are not necessarily better. Depending on your taste, a 0 may be just as appealing as a 10 (or a 5, etc) in a particular category. (Click to close)


Category 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
Maturity 18+ 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8
Violence Excessive Violence Violent acts (no blood-gore) No Violence
Action Constant Action Even mix of action-drama No Action
Epic Lord of the Rings Epic Large scope, less detailed Limited scope
World Completely unique Half real/half unique Set in our world
Realism Focus outside the realm of accepted science Focus evenly split between explainable-unexplainable Nothing unexplainable - not the focus
Modernity Present Day (or beyond) 1980-1999 1960-1979 1930-1959 1870-1929 1800-1869 1700-1799 1400-1699 200-1399 (1000)-199 Ancient
Humor Laugh out loud throughout Funny (but not primary focus) Intentionally not funny

The Emperor (the Kiritsubo Emperor) begins to favor a particular intimate (Kiritsubo) more than all others, in spite of her lack of rank or nobility. She gives birth to Genji. At the age of 3, Genji’s mother passes away. Suzaku (son of the Kokiden Consort), the Emperor’s eldest son, is named Heir Apparent even though Genji is his favorite. Genji is made a commoner (given the name Minamoto) and removed from imperial lineage. Fujitsubo becomes the consort of the Emperor at 16. I will not mention it again, but Genji is constantly referred to as being extremely handsome and beautiful, and is referred to as Shining Genji, at times.


At 12 Genji marries Aoi, sister of Tō no Chūjō. At 17, Genji and his friends discuss their ideal woman, especially the desire to find a jewel hidden away somewhere. Genji also reflects, internally, on how to him Fujitsubo is the ideal woman. Next, Genji comes across Utsusemi, but she refuses to give in to his demands repeatedly. In the summer, Genji comes across Yūgao, the young woman who Tō no Chūjō said was his “jewel”. She and Tō no Chūjō have a baby daughter, but he no longer visits her. Genji sleeps with her, and takes her away to his home. A spirit kills her in the night. Utsusemi leaves the city with her husband.


Genji (18) hears Suetsumuhana play her kin and he gets his first look at Murasaki (who looks strikingly like Fujitsubo). Genji sleeps with Fujitsubo, getting her pregnant. He later meets Suetsumuhana in person, only to discover she is extremely unattractive (she has a giant, red nose) and is old-fashioned. After Murasaki’s grandmother dies, Genji kidnaps her and takes her to his home where he begins to care for her (she’s still very young).


Fujitsubo gives birth to Reizei, Genji’s son (though the Emperor thinks it is his son). Later that year Fujitsubo becomes Empress. The next year Genji (20) sleeps with Oborozukiyo for the first time, and then again a month or so later. In Genji’s 21st year, his father steps down, Suzaku becomes Emperor and Rezei is appointed Heir Apparent. Suzaku’s mother and Genji’s enemy, the Kokiden consort, is now very powerful politically.


When Genji is 22, his wife Aoi becomes pregnant. She gives birth to a boy, Yūgiri, but then dies afterwards. Even though Genji was never particularly fond of Aoi, he mourns her intensely when she is gone (at her Father’s house). After returning home after mourning Aoi, Genji consummates his marriage with Murasaki. She seems slightly perturbed.


Meanwhile, the Rokujō Haven has taken her daughter to be the priestess of Ise. When Genji is 23, his father dies. Oborozukiyo becomes Mistress of Staff for Suzaku in Genji’s 24th year, and Fujitsubo becomes a nun. This upsets Genji. When Genji is 25, Aoi’s father resigns as Minster of the Left. Oborozukiyo is at home, due to feeling ill, and Genji visits her frequently. This is particularly bad because her status as Mistress of the Staff effectively makes her a consort or intimate for Suzaku. They get caught, however, and due to pressure from the Kokiden consort, Genji exiles himself to Suma in order to avoid a worse fate.


While in exile, Genji encounters a vicious storm and a dream encouraging him to leave Suma. He does so, heading to Akashi, where he meets the Akashi Priest (the Novice) and his wife and daughter (Akashi). He sleeps with Akashi, and gets her pregnant. Back at the City, Suzaku get ill and begins to feel guilty over Genji’s exile (he had promised their father he would provide for Genji) and so he calls Genji back out of exile. He is given the title of Acting Grand Counselor. He is now 28.


The next year, after Reizei comes of age, Suzaku abdicates making Reizei the new Emperor. Suzaku’s son (with the Shōkyōden Consort) becomes Heir Apparent. Akashi then gives birth to a girl. When the Rokujō Haven returns from Ise with Akikonomu (her daughter), she is very ill so she asks Genji to provide for her daughter. Genji agrees, and then the Rokujō Haven dies. When Genji is 31, he outmaneuvers Tō no Chūjō to make Akikonomu a consort for Reizei. Later in the year, the Akashi Lady leaves the country with her daughter (who Genji has received a prophecy will become and Empress) and moves near the city. Genji goes to visit her and convinces her to allow Murasaki to raise their daughter as her own.


Genji is 32. Aoi’s father dies, then Fujitsubo becomes sick and dies. After Fujitsubo dies, a monk reveals to Reizei that Genji is actually his father. After learning this, Reizei hints to Genji that he should abdicate so that Genji can rule. Genji, however, wants to live his life at leisure, without the pressure of court, and so he declines.


When Genji is 33, Yūgiri comes of age, but Genji embarrasses by giving him only the sixth rank. He has a precocious sexual relationship with his cousin, Kumoi no Kari (Tō no Chūjō’s daughter), and Tō no Chūjō separates them upon finding out. Yūgiri feels bitter because he thinks his low rank is the reason he’s not worthy of Kumoi no Kari. Meanwhile, Reizei makes Akikonomu Empress.


Genji, 35, completes his Rokujō estate. He has Hanachirusato, Suetsumuhana, Murasaki, and later Akashi move there, each in separate homes. Tamakazura, the lost daughter of Yūgao, moves to the City. Genji discovers her and brings her to Rokujō (to live with Hanachirusato) where he starts raising her as a daughter.

In Genji’s 36th year, there are lots of parties at the Rokujō estate. Numerous men start courting Tamakazura, and Genji gives into temptation and tries to court her as well. Meanwhile, Tō no Chūjō, still unaware of Tamakazura’s existence, accepts another lost child of his from Ōmi. She is humorously crass and uncivilized. For the first time in his life, Yūgiri sees Murasaki, and is impressed with her beauty. He understands why Genji would work so hard to hide her from even his son.


Genji (37) lets Tō no Chūjō know that Tamakazura is at Rokujō. Ōmiya (Tō no Chūjō’s mother) dies. In spite of plans to send Tamakazura to the palace, she marries Higekuro. This makes Higekuro’s current wife furious (she dumps a container of ashes on his head in protest). Tamakazura still goes to the palace, but for a shorter time, and not as a consort, as would have been the case originally. The next year, she gives birth to a son.


Genji is now 39. This year, Tō no Chūjō finally gives in to Yūgiri’s longing for Kumoi no Kari, and he allows the two to marry. Later, Genji’s daughter enters the palace where her mother (the Akashi Lady) joins her. This also provides the opportunity for the Akashi Lady and Murasaki to meet for the first time. Though they have reason to be jealous of each other, they find respect for each other and become friends over time. Genji now has the rank of a Retired Emperor. At the end of the year, Suzaku becomes a monk, leaves the City, and entrusts the future of his third (and favorite) daughter (Onna no Miya) to Genji.


Early the next year Genji (40) moves Onna no Miya to Rokujō and marries her. This disappoints Murasaki (who believes she won’t live up to Onna no Miya’s imperial rank). There are a lot of celebrations for Genji’s 40th year. When he’s 41, his daughter gives birth to a boy. During a party at Rokujō, Kashiwagi (Tō no Chūjō’s oldest son) sees Onna no Miya and falls for her.


4 years pass, then Reizei steps down, Suzaku’s son takes over, and Genji’s (46) grandson (the son of the Consort) is made Heir Apparent. Murasaki, however, becomes ill and Genji (47) takes her to his home at Nijo. He spends a lot of time there with her, ignoring his wife Onna no Miya. Kashiwagi (who had just married Suzaku’s second daughter Ochiba), meanwhile, is able to sleep with her and she becomes pregnant with his child. This upsets Onna no Miya intensely, but Genji takes this as she is upset he has not been there to visit her. Murasaki seems to be getting better, so he spends some time with Onna no Miya. Murasaki appears to die, but then the spirit of the Rokujō Haven is expelled from her, and she returns to life. Kashiwagi gets sick over guilt of having betrayed Genji and slept with Onna no Miya.


Onna no Miya gives birth the next year to a son (Kaoru) and then immediately becomes a nun to deal with her own guilt. Kashiwagi dies from his guilt induced sickness. Genji is 48. Nothing much else happens in Genji’s 48th, 49th, or 50th years. When Genji is 51, Murasaki weakens considerably, but Genji will not allow her to become a nun (because he wants to enter religion, but won’t for the sake of Murasaki). She soon dies. The next year, Genji(52) prepares to take his vows. There is a gap of 8 years and a completely blank chapter (“Vanished into the Clouds”). The title implies Genji’s death. During this time Tō no Chūjō, Higekuro, Suzaku and Hotaru die as well.


From this point forward, the story follows Kaoru (14), the son of Kashiwagi and Onna no Miya. From 14 to 21, life is pretty uneventful for Kaoru. We are introduced to Niou, the Third Prince of the Consort and the current Emperor and the favorite of Murasaki, who is both friends and rivals with Kaoru (much like Genji and Tō no Chūjō once were).


Kaoru (22) goes to visit Hachi no Miya (the Eighth Prince) in Uji. He is a holy layman who Kaoru visits to improve his own religious endeavors. Kaoru wants to leave the world and enter religion. While there, he sees Hachi no Miya’s two daugthers, Ōigimi (24) and Naka no Kimi (22). He falls in love with Ōigimi and begins to court her. He also learns from Ben, a gentlewoman, that he is really Kashiwagi’s son, and not Genji’s. Over the next year, Kaoru continues to visit Hachi no Miya, and Niou sends letters to Naka no Kimi to court her. Later in the year, Hachi no Miya dies, but not before asking Kaoru to provide for his daughters. He also intimates he should marry one (or both) of them. With this encouragement, Kaoru tells Ōigimi how he feels, but she rejects him.


Kaoru (24) learns that the Emperor wants him to marry his second princess, but he still wants to marry Ōigimi. He continues to try to court her, but she rejects him. He does not force the situation. Niou, meanwhile, sleeps with Naka no Kimi. The two men continue to visit and write, but Ōigimi falls ill. She dies near the end of the year, and Kaoru is heartbroken.


Niou brings Naka no Kimi back with him to the City. She is soon pregnant. Naka no Kimi wishes to be back at Uji, and asks Kaoru (25) to take her back. He refuses, but not before Niou starts to suspect that they are involved. Kaoru falls for her, because he wants to replace Ōigimi, but he does not act on his desires. Towards the end of the year, Kaoru learns from Naka no Kimi and Ben about Ukifune – a third, but unrecognized, daughter of Hachi no Miya.


Kaoru (26) marries the Second Princess. While visiting Uji to oversee the construction of a temple there, Kaoru has the opportunity to spy on Ukifune. Meanwhile, Ukifune’s plan to marry her to Lieutenant fails, and so she sends Ukifune to Naka no Kimi (her half-sister). Naka no Kimi encourages Kaoru to marry her (so as to get the attention off of her), and Kaoru decides to pursue her since she so closely resembles Ōigimi. One night while at Naka no Kimi’s, Niou finds her and attempts to seduce her. Kaoru learns of this and moves her to Uji.


Some time passes, and Niou eventually finds Ukifune at Uji. He sleeps with her, pretending to be Kaoru (27 - who has not slept with her), but in the morning the truth is discovered. Kaoru sees some letters between Ukifune and Niou, discovering that they are having an affair. In order to stop him, Kaoru posts guards at Uji. They succeed in preventing Niou from returning to her. Overcome with guilt, and trauma of being caught between the two men, Ukifune decides to drown herself. She disappears, and a funeral is held without her body.


The Prelate of Yokawa finds Ukifune, weeping and near death, when he is forced to stop to rest at Uji when his mother (in her 80s) begins to feel ill. He returns her to his mother’s home, where his sister takes her in to replace her own dead daughter. Niou and Kaoru mourn Ukifune, believing she is dead. The Prelate is able to exorcise a spirit of a monk from Ukifune, and she begins to recover. However, she does not want to reveal her past to the Prelate’s sister. Ukifune begs the Prelate to make her into a nun to make dealing with Kaoru and Niou easier or less likely. The Prelate meets with the Empress and tells her about Ukifune.


Kaoru (28) meets with the Empress, and she tells him that Ukifune is still alive. He then goes and speaks with the Prelate, who confirms what the Empress has told him. Kaoru sends a note to Ukifune, and then her half-brother, but she refuses to meet with him. He grieves his loss and the rejection yet again.




There is so much to say about The Tale of Genji, that it’s ridiculous to even pretend like I can get everything in during this small critique. I’ll do my best, however, to condense my experience of reading this 1200 page epic as much as possible.


In general, the writing (and of course the translation) is excellent. Considering the massive scope of this book, it’s amazing to consider how it never seems to repeat itself, it never gets dull, and it never relies on cheap tricks or melodrama to move the story forward. The characters are interesting because they behave the way real people behave, for both good and ill. Genji himself delivers what is arguably the theme of the entire work: "Not that tales accurately describe any particular person, rather, the telling begins when all those things the teller longs to have pass on to future generations – whatever there is about the way people live their lives, for better or worse, that is a sight to see or a wonder to hear – overflows the teller’s heart" (461).

The use of poetry in this book (and in Japan at this time, depending on how accurate a reflection of reality this is) is utterly fascinating. To think, these characters were all so familiar with so many poems, that it wasn’t ever necessary to explain or elaborate on a reference to a poem. Moreover, if your poems were not full of symbolism and metaphor you were looked down upon. It’s also amazing to think that Mursaki’s audience was so comfortable with all these poetic allusions. It both makes me feel inadequate (because I have next to nothing memorized any more) and inspired to memorize poetry in an attempt to engage in the world around in a different way. One of my favorite poems is no explicitly in the text, but it is alluded to. On page 1073, footnote 41, attributed to Gosenshū 1264: "That which they call this world lasts just the little while a mayfly lives, so briefly it might not be there at all."


Speaking of the poetry, I also enjoyed how certain poems, which were referenced frequently, became familiar enough that by the end of the book, I didn’t have to check the footnote in order to know which poem it was referencing. In this regard, special accolade should be given to Royall Tyler for the consistency of translation, and the extremely informative notations.


Through my reading, I tagged numerous moments that I thought were particularly poignant, or funny, or just interesting, but it would take too long to go through them all here. Needless to say, if you are paying close attention, there are lots of great moments in The Tale of Genji. I especially enjoyed it when Murasaki spoke to the reader directly, feigning an inability to remember what had happened, a lack of confidence in the quality of poems during a particular evening of drinking and music, or a desire to not bore us with tedious details. This intimate moments always helped me feel a more intense connection with the work.


There were several moments in the work that I was reminded of ideas that were common in ancient Greek culture. I’m not trying to imply that there was influence between the two cultures, but I think it’s interesting, none the less, to draw the parallels. First, on page 463, Genji is reflecting on how he must not let Yūgiri catch even a glimpse of Murasaki. This reminded me of the fear prevalent in Greek myth of a father being usurped by his son. (This is especially evident in the myths about where the gods came from). Second, on page 643, we read "Yes, in this world of ours, where everything seems to be going from bad to worse, one is no doubt merely eccentric to leave one’s family to sally forth alone to roam Koma and Cathay." (Koma is Korea, Cathay is China). Here we see that common sentiment that the past is the Golden Age of life, while things now are just a poor reflection of the glory of the past.


Finally, on page 898, we are privy to an internal monologue by Ōigimi, in which she laments the fact that despite her own good intentions, it will be the end result of Kaoru and Niou forcing themselves upon them that matters. Just as a character in a Greek myth would be punished for something they had no control over, here Ōigimi is going to be looked down upon, or mocked, or considered sinful even though she is literally in no position to do more than she already is to resist the amorous affection of Kaoru.


The biggest negative (if you can really even call it that) for me was the difficulty of following exactly who all the characters were at a particular moment. With the fact that no one really had a name (usually just a key characteristic that readers began to use to identify them) coupled with the ever changing array of titles, I often found myself flipping back and forth through the text and the appendices just to make sure I understand who I was reading about, or what their family tie was to another character I might be more familiar with. It was the only truly frustrating aspect of this otherwise wonderful piece of literature.


If you are the kind of reader who enjoys a book that is methodical in pacing, without moments of intense excitement or unnecessary melodrama, then I strongly recommend The Tale of Genji. The writing is beautiful, and the world is so rich and full of so many characters that it really does feel like you are watching the lives of those who lived over a thousand years ago in Japan. While the book my not feature a lot of nail-biting excitement, it is never boring. The characters in Genji have many of the same struggles, aspirations, and fears that we do now, and Mursaki captures it all so vividly that it’s amazing to think it was written over a thousand years ago. Ultimately, this epic work may not have the structure of a modern novel, with climactic moments and a tidy ending, but it makes up for that in the intimacy it elicits by portraying the reality of life, as distant and foreign as it may be to modern American readers.




"How true it is that bitter experience yields fond memories!" (815).



16 - Mature relationships and content; no explicit language



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