Chapter 05 of 5
Waley, Woolf, and the Global Genji
How an 11th-century ghost stunned the Western canon.
- Turning Point
The Silent Export
For nine centuries, the Tale of Genji remained a treasure known primarily to the Japanese elite and scholars.
- The Catalyst
Arthur Waley's Vision
In the 1920s, British scholar Arthur Waley began the first major English translation, reimagining the prose for a modern audience.
- Literary Shock
A Modernist Discovery
When Waley’s translation reached the Bloomsbury Group, it shattered their Eurocentric view of the novel's history.
17 more cards in this chapter
Could you answer this?
Which prominent Modernist author was famously influenced by Arthur Waley's 1920s translation of Genji?
🎎 The Ghost Who Authored The Tale of Genji
- 01The Silent Revolution of KanaHow a 'women's script' birthed the world's first novel.
- 02Monogatari: The Art of ProseDeconstructing the narrative architecture of Genji.
- 03The Ghost in the BrushLegends of Murasaki as a deity and the price of genius.
- 04Paper, Silk, and Secret CopiesThe material survival of a hand-copied masterpiece.
- 05Waley, Woolf, and the Global GenjiHow an 11th-century ghost stunned the Western canon.