This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Hijiri88 (talk | contribs) at 05:58, 13 September 2012 (→See also: The pillow book never had anything to do with "tanka prose" -- in fact the word "tanka" was anachronistic in relation to mid-Heian literature to begin with.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 05:58, 13 September 2012 by Hijiri88 (talk | contribs) (→See also: The pillow book never had anything to do with "tanka prose" -- in fact the word "tanka" was anachronistic in relation to mid-Heian literature to begin with.)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Uta monogatari (歌物語, literally "poem-tale") is a literary sub-genre of the monogatari. It is characterized by an emphasis of waka poetry, with prose sections interspersed. While most other monogatari of the Heian period and later contain waka, the uta monogatari feature poetry as the core of successive narrative episodes, with the prose sections sometimes limited to a brief note about the composition of the poetry.
History
One of the most influential and early examples of uta monogatari is the Tales of Ise. An anonymous work sometimes attributed to Ariwara no Narihira, it is a series of 125 largely unconnected prose narratives about "a man", many of said narratives beginning with the short sentence Mukashi otoko arikeri (Long ago, there was a man). These narratives are largely centered around poetry composed by the "man", usually identified as a fictionalized version of Narihira.
The name uta monogatari was first applied to the sub-genre during the Meiji period.
Influence outside Japan
Some English-language works influenced by uta monogatari have been produced in recent years. In the English-speaking world, such works are occasionally called "tanka prose" Sanford Goldstein’s “Tanka Walk,” (1983), is one example. Online journals where new examples of the genre appear with some regularity include Modern Haibun & Tanka Prose,Haibun Today, Modern English Tanka and Atlas Poetica. Tanka prose is included in the anthology series, Take Five : Best Contemporary Tanka" (MET Press, 2009) and Take Five, Vol 2 (MET Press, 2010).
Notable examples
Notes
- Keene, Donald. A History of Japanese Literature: Volume 1. NY: Columbia University Press, 1999. p451. ISBN 978-0-231-11441-7
- Keene, Donald. A History of Japanese Literature: Volume 1. NY: Columbia University Press, 1999. p452-457. ISBN 978-0-231-11441-7
- Keene, Donald. A History of Japanese Literature: Volume 1. NY: Columbia University Press, 1999. p451. ISBN 978-0-231-11441-7
- Sanford Goldstein, “Tanka Walk,” Northeast III:15 (1983), 26–32.