Tales from Old Japanese Dramas/Introduction
Tales from Old Japanese Dramas
INTRODUCTION
HE Japanese drama is of four classes: the nō (yōkyoku) or lyrical drama, the kyōgen or farce, the kyaku-hon or pure drama, and the jōruri or epical drama.
The nō dramas are short lyrical stories founded for the most part on the folklore of Japan, China, and other Oriental countries. They are written in exceedingly beautiful language, and are full of quotations from ancient saws and songs. They bear a curious resemblance to the old Greek drama in that they are entirely chanted, in that many of the characters use masks, and in that a chorus takes up the action where the dialogue leaves off. But they are too simple and primitive in plot, and too deficient in lucidity and coherence to have much value as dramas. These compositions were devised for the entertainment of the military dasses in the Muromachi Period (1392–1603), the Dark Age of Japan; and their performance was favoured and protected by the Shogun and other noblemen. Their chanted recitation is nowadays in much vogue among the upper classes.
The kyōgen or farces are even shorter and more primitive, and of slight construction. They are performed generally on the same stage as the nō, in the intervals between the more serious pieces. The nō and the kyōgen, therefore, may be called sister dramas for the upper classes.
The kyaku-hon, which are nearly the same as the European drama, were mostly written in the middle and the latter days of the Yedo Period. They were, and are much used for the theatre. But most of their authors were minor writers; and therefore the kyaku-hon, as a whole, do not contain much work of a literary value, although they are incomparably superior as dramas to the nō and the kyōgen.
On the other hand, the jōruri or epical dramas, which were also written in the Yedo Period, are such valuable literature, that they are generally considered to be the representative works of the Yedo Period, and jōruri, and gikyoku or drama, are commonly used as synonyms. The jōruri is in form an epic poem, consisting of a long story, written largely in a series of the alternation of seven- and five-syllable phrases, as follows:
No-ko-ru tsu-bo-mi no
Ha-na hi-to-tsu
Mi-zu a-ge-ka-ne-shi
Fu-ze-i ni-té
Shi-an na-ge-ku-bi
Shi-o-ru-ru ba-ka-ri.
Yō-yō na-mi-da
O-shi-to-do-mé
Ha-ha sa-ma ni-mo
Ba-ba sa-ma ni-mo
Ko-re kon-jō no
I-to-ma-go-i.
Ko-no mi-no ne-ga-i
Ka-nō ta-re-ba
O-mo-i o-ku-ko-to
Sa-ra-ni na-shi.
Etc. etc.
"Alone left, he fell into reverie,[1]
With drooping head like a flower withering,
Incapable of drawing water up.
A good while later, tears he wiped away,
And said in whispers, 'Mother, grandmother,
'Tis my last farewell unto you, my dears.
As my request is granted willingly,
I leave this world without regrets whatever.
How kindly eighteen years you've brought me up!
Your favours higher than the mountain are.
And deeper than the ocean depths indeed!
Remember 'tis a soldier's common lot
To bravely fight to death on battlefield.
And pardon me for leaving life ere you.
And now, Hatsugiku, 'tis fortunate
For us, that we've not nuptial cups exchanged.
So give me up, and wed another man.
But oh, poor girl! at tidings of my death.
How bitterly she'll weep and grieve, methinks!'"
But in substance and use, the jōruri is a drama. It has a well-marked movement of plot from the opening soene, up to the final catastrophe; it abounds in dramatic situations, and many of the scenes are obviously designed with a view to spectacular effect. It was originally written for the ayatsuri shibai, or marionette theatre, but afterwards its use was also adopted for the regular theatre.
Its large narrative element, and often a part of the dialogue are of the poetic character just Marionette Performances
A scene from The Chūshingura
A scene from The Yoshitsuné Sembonzakura
described. These parts are chanted to the music of the samisen, a three-stringed guitar, by a chorus seated on a platform overlooking the stage, on the spectator's right. The chorus also declaims the speeches of the puppet actors. In the case of the theatre proper, the actors carry on all the dialogue, except a part of it just mentioned, and act and dance to the recitation of the narrative part, in a similar manner to the puppets. The narrative part not only supplies the thread of the story, in order to connect the scenes represented by the puppet actors, or the living actors on the stage, but aids the imagination of the audience by describing expressions of countenance, scenery, and many other details that the resources of a theatre cannot but fail to convey. Though the jōruri is poetry, yet it is written in simple and easy language, quite intelligible even to peasants, coolies, and children. It is emphatically a literature for the masses.
From this general account regarding the nature of the epical drama, we may now take a glance at a brief history of its origin and development.
Some time during the Muromachi Period (1392–1603) the profession of chanting or reciting stories or popular histories in public came into existence. These recitals were accompanied by taps of a fan, to mark time or to give emphasis. The Taiheiki, a sketch of the political history of the Kamakura Period (1186–1332), the Heiké-Monogatari, or the "Story of the Taira Family," and several children's stories were made use of for this purpose. Toward the dose of the sixteenth century, to this accompaniment was added the music of the samisen, a three-stringed guitar introduced shortly before from Loochoo. This improvement gave a stimulus to the profession which became more and more popular.
About that time was written a story entitled Jōruri Jūnidan Soshi, or the "Story of Lady Jōruri." It was in twelve acts, and had a wide circulation among the story reciters. Tradition says that its author was a maid of honour to Oda Nobunaga, named Ono no Otsū, but there is no authenticity for this belief. The following is the gist of the story:
A high-ranked samurai in the post-town of Yahagi, in Mikawa Province, prays the God Jōruri Kō to bless him with a child. In response to his earnest prayers, a beautiful girl is born to 
A marionette performance given at the Horiyeza, Ōsaka
his wife. He names the girl Jōruri after the God. Many years later, when she is a blooming maiden, Shana-ō-Maru (the famous hero Yoshitsuné), on his way to Ōshyū, stays at Yahagi. He and Jōruri fall in love with each other, and exchange vows of fidelity. Though simple in plot, the story embodies the rudiments of a drama. Henceforward any compositions used by the professional reciters came to be called jōruri, and the reciters themselves, jōruri-katari, or jōruri chanters; and this is the origin of the name of jōruri which is now applied to the epical drama.
In the era of Keichō (1596–1615) a noted samisen player of Kyōto named Menukiya Chōzaburō, in conjunction with a certain Hikita, a puppet showman of Nishinomiya in Settsu, started the art of working marionettes to the accompaniment of jōruri recitation, and the samisen music. This ayatsuri-shibai, or marionette theatre, rapidly grew in general favour, so much that the Emperor Go-Yōzei was pleased to summon the troupe to his palace to inspect their performances.
Towards the middle of the seventeenth century there was in Yedo a great jōruri chanter called Satsuma Jōun. His bold and energetic manner of recitation was well suited to the martial spirit then prevalent. He not only commanded large audiences, but daimios and other noblemen gave him their patronage. An author named Oka Seibei is said to have written for him a number of stories. Some of them are known as "Kimpira-Bon," and are still in existence. They relate the adventures of Kimpira, a fictitious hero of Herculean strength and gigantic stature, who achieves military exploits, destroys demons, and slays savage beasts. These stories were listened to with great interest by the general public. They particularly received an enthusiastic welcome from the ignorant samurai of those days. Thus Jōun and his pupils enjoyed great popularity for some years.
Several years after the death of Jōun, a great jōruri chanter named Takemoto Gidayū made his appearance in Ōsaka. He was gifted with a loud, musical voice, and originated a new style of recitation. In 1685 he established a marionette theatre called the Takemoto Za in Dōtombori, Ōsaka. The following year he began to chant pieces written at his request by Chikamatsu Monzayemon, the founder of the epical drama. Now that an era of peace and refinement had prevailed for many long years under the Tokugawa régime, the public was tired of primitive stories, such as "Kimpira-Bon" and the "Story of Lady Jōruri," chanted in a simple and monotonous manner. The people craved for something novel and exhilarating. Under the circumstances the Takemoto Za supplied just what was wanted. Accordingly, Gidayū's fame soon spread throughout Japan, and his style overshadowed all the other artistes of that time. His school flourished more and more as time went on, until at last the jōruri began to be more popularly called gidayū and its reciters gidayū-katari.
There has been much dispute concerning the birthplace of Chikamatsu Monzayemon. The most accepted opinion was that he was a native of Hagi in the province of Chōshū. But most of the scholars of recent times have concluded that he was born a samurai of Kyōto in 1653. In his younger days he was a Buddhist priest. It must be remembered that the priests were then the most learned class; and it is probable that Monzayemon's great erudition, which afterwards blossomed forth into his immortal masterpieces, was acquired chiefly during his sacerdotal life. Later he returned to sectdar life, and for a few years served a Kyōto court noble as his retainer. Next we find him an author of stories and kyaku-hon or pure dramas. His name, however, was not widely known.
The Shussé Kagékiyo, or "The Successful Career of Kagékiyo," his very first epical drama, was written for Gidayū. It was performed at the Takemoto Za in 1686. The performance of this historical play raised the fame of both its author and chanter to great prominence. At that time a new epoch in the literary and chanters' world began. Four years later Monzayemon took up his residence in Ōsaka as playwright for the Takemoto Za. From this time until his death in 1724 he produced, in rapid succession, about a hundred pieces. His acquaintance with the Chinese and the Japanese classics, and with the Buddhist and Shinto religions, his good knowledge of the world, and his fertile and inventive genius, combined to make him a writer of unique merits.
The Nagamachi Onna Harakiri, or "The Woman's Harakiri at Long Street," appeared in 1700. This realistic drama, the very first of his so-called sewa mono or dramas of life and manners, of which he wrote twenty-four, was warmly welcomed by the public. In 1703 appeared the Sonezaki Shinjū. This drama deals with the shinjū or double suicide of a couple of young lovers. This was the first of the so-called shinjū-mono, or dramas of double suicide; and it was so enthusiastically received by the public, that this subject became a favourite theme for the work of contemporary dramatists. Shinjū, it must be remarked en passant, often takes place in Japan. When a pair of passionate young lovers despair of obtaining their parents' permission for their marriage, or when any other circumstance prevents them from attaining their purpose, they, instead of eloping, often commit suicide together. By doing this, they hope to be united in the next world. And it is said that the Sonezaki Shinjū, the Tenno Amijima, and other shinjū mono by Monzayemon, which describe this tragic suicide in beautiful language, interested the hearers to such an extent, that after their appearance the number of cases of suicide among lovers increased to an alarming extent. This was, if it was a fact, surely an evil influence of Monzayemon's dramas; but it is undeniable that his works, and those by the subsequent writers, on the whole, exerted a good influence on public morals, as we shall learn later on.
In 1715, after Gidayū's death, and when the Takemoto Za was on the verge of bankruptcy, though his pupils Tanomo and some other able chanters did their best, the Kokusenya Kassen by Monzayemon appeared. It is reproduced in the present volume as "The Battles of Kokusenya." It met with such an enthusiastic reception, that it was performed to overcrowded audiences for seventeen months in succession, and the resultant income saved the theatre from the crisis. This piece, together with the Yuki-onna Gomai Hagoita, or "The Loyalty of Five Heroes," and the Soga Kwaikeizan, or "The Revenge of the Soga Brothers," all historical plays, are generally considered to be Monzayemon's greatest masterpieces. But it is the present writer's humble opinion that the Tenno Amijima, or "The Double Suicide at Amijima," must be added to the honoured number. Dr. Tsubouchi, an authority on this subject, says: "The Tenno Amijima is evidently the greatest of Monzayemon's masterpieces."
The popularity of the Takemoto Za gave rise to a powerful rival, and their competition contributed to the improvement of marionettes and the development of the epical drama. An ambitious, excellent pupil of Gidayū, named Toyotaké Wakatayū, established an independent marionette theatre called the Toyotaké Za in 1702, in the same quarter as the Takemoto Za, with Ki-no-Kaion, an able writer, as its playwright. After Gidayū's retirement three years later, the new theatre prospered nearly as much as the older one did.
Kaion was born in 1663, so that he was ten years younger than Monzayemon. His father, though merely a confectioner, was proficient in writing haikai or seventeen-syllabled verse, and his elder brother was a well-known kyōkashi or comic poet called Yuyensai Teiryū. In his youth Kaion was a pupil of Abbot Yetsuzan of the Kakimoto Temple at Sakai, in the province of Izumi. Later he became a layman; and taking up his residence in Ōsaka, practised medicine. In his leisure hours he studied Japanese classics under Keicha, a noted scholar.
From 1702, when his connection with the Toyotaké Za commenced, until his retirement in 1723, he diligently wrote one drama after another. In order to compete with Monzayemon, he often wrote on nearly the same topic as his antagonist. Thus while Monzayemon wrote the Sanezaki Shinjū, or "The Love Suicide at Sonezaki," in 1703, Kaion wrote the Yaoya O-Shichi, or "O-Shichi, the Greengrocer's Daughter," in the following year. The Aburaya Osamé Tamoto no Shirashibori, and the Banshū Soné no Matsu by Kaion, answer respectively to the Umegawa Chūbei, and the Yōmei Tennō Shokunin-Kagami by Monzayemon. And it can be greatly ascribed to the merits of Kaion's dramas, that the Toyotaké Za could hold its own with the Takemoto Za. Among his forty dramas, the Yaoya O-Shichi, the Kamakura Sandaiki, and the Shinjū Futatsu Hara-obi, are generally considered the best pieces. But in the present author's judgment, the Ono no Komachi Miyako no Toshidama, which is represented in this volume under the title of "The Love of Komachi the Poetess," is as great a work as any of them, and far more interesting to European readers.
Kaion was succeeded by Nishizawa Ippū (1665–1731) who wrote twelve pieces in collaboration with Yasuda Abun, and Namiki Sōsuké. About this time the custom originated of two or three, sometimes five or six authors collaborating in writing the same drama. Ippū's best work, the Hōjō Tokiyori Ki, though it was an adaptation from Monzayemon's the Hyakunin Jōrō, was so warmly received that it was considered as good as the Kokusenya Kassen.
Namiki Sōsuké (1694–1750), the greatest writer next to Kaion for the Toyotaké Za, wrote more than twenty pieces in collaboration with three or four authors. Among his best works are the Nasuno Yoichi Saikai no Suzuri, the Karukaya Dōshin Tsukushi no Iyezuto, and the Ichinotani Futaba Gunki, the last of which is reproduced in the present volume as "The Battle of Ichi-no-tani." Sōsuké wrote the first three acts of this long and intricate drama, and died without completing it. Asada Itchō, and four other pupils of his, wrote the sequel, which consists of two long acts. The drama is very popular as an excellent illustration of bushidō, or the moral principles regulating the actions of the Japanese knighthood.
The playwright for the Takemoto Za, who succeeded Monzayemon, was Takéda Izumo ( 1691–1756). He also became proprietor of the theatre when Gidayū retired. He wrote thirty-two excellent pieces. In 1723 appeared his maiden work, the Ōtō no Miya Asahi no Yoroi, which he wrote in collaboration with Matsuda Bunkōdō. It was revised by his master Monzayemon. Among his best works are the Yoshitsuné Sembonzakura, the Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami, and the Kanadehon Chūshingura, or "The Treasury of Faithful Retainers," which is a version of the famous story of the Forty-seven Rōnins. The Chūshingura[2] is such a favourite with the Japanese that any theatre, whose audiences are remarkably falling off, can regain its popularity by performing one or two acts of this drama.
Matsuda Bunkōdō, who wrote the Ōtō no Miya Asahi no Yoroi in collaboration with Izumo, was also the author of twenty other dramas, the best of which are the Ki-ichi Hōgen Sanryaku no Maki and the Danno-ura Kabuto Gunki. But most of them were joint works written with Miyoshi Shōraku and Haségawa Senshi. Miyoshi Shōraku, who was first a priest and then a physician, took lessons under Izumo, and became a dramatist. He wrote about fifty pieces, as a collaborator. His best work is the Imoséyama Onna Teikin. Shōraku and Bunkōdō were also playwriters for the Takemoto Za.
Chikamatsu Hanji, who called himself Chikamatsu on account of his being a writer of the Monzayemon school, wrote fifty-four pieces for the Takemoto Za, in collaboration with two or three writers. His best works are the Honchō Nijūshikō, the Sekitari Senryō Nobori and the Shimpan Uta Zaimon, from the last of which the present author has adapted "O-Somé and Hisamatsu," or a Japanese Romeo and Juliet. This drama is so popular, that it is performed all the year round at some theatre or other.
Chikamatsu Tokuzō (1753–1810), a pupil of Chikamatsu Hanji, wrote many pieces for the Toyotaké Za. His best works are the Hana wa Uyeno Homaré no Ishibumi, and the Hakoné Reigen Izari Kataki-uchi, which is reproduced in the present volume as "Katsugorō's Revenge." About 1804, he wrote a kyaku-hon entitled the Asagao Nikki, or "Miss Morning-glory's Diary," the plot of which was suggested to him by Kumazawa Banzan's poem on the morning-glory, and a folklore story in the Konjaku Monogatari. In 1850, another author adapted this kyaku-hon and wrote the famous Shō-utsushi Asagao Banashi. This is represented in the present volume as "The Sufferings of Miss Deep-Snow." Strangely enough, the author of this drama, which has made myriads of our countrymen weep and rejoice over the sorrows and joys of its heroine Miyuki, is unknown, although we have his pseudonym "Yamada Kagashi."
Chikamatsu Yanagi, who flourished at the end of the eighteenth century, wrote the Yehon Taikō Ki, and five other pieces. The Taikō Ki, which is reproduced by the present author under the title of "The Treason of Mitsuhidé," is another favourite drama with our countrymen. Its tenth act, which is retold in Chapter V of the story in this volume, at nearly the same length as in the original, is familiar to any adult person. This piece was performed at a small marionette theatre in Osaka in 1799.
Both the Takemoto Za and the Toyotaké Za reached the zenith of their prosperity at the middle of the eighteenth century, when Izumo and Sōsuké wrote for them. Then they began gradually to decline, and were closed towards the end of the same century. Then the centre of the marionette theatre, and of the epical drama, was transferred to Yedo, where they flourished for a little more than half a century. It must further be noted that, while the above-mentioned theatres flourished in Ōsaka, there were one or two small marionette theatres in Kyōto, and that the troupes of the Ōsaka theatres now and then visited Kyōto, and the chief towns in the vicinity of Ōsaka, to give their performances. It is said that the epical dramatists, who lived during this whole period, numbered about two hundred, and their compositions reached the enormous total of one thousand. But it is only about thirty of these writers, including those mentioned above, whose works are worthy of note, and most of these best authors were connected with the Ōsaka theatres.
As has just been remarked, towards the end of the eighteenth century the epical drama had declined in Ōsaka, and begun to bloom forth in Yedo, where it flourished until towards the middle of the nineteenth century. It is true that in the era of Kyōhō (1716–1735) and afterwards, many of gidayū chanters and puppet players of Ōsaka went up to Yedo, and gave their performances. But the epical dramas they used were all compositions by the Ōsaka writers. About that time, Toyotaké Hizen no Jō, a famous gidayū chanter, established a marionette theatre called Hizen Za in Yedo; while another great chanter, Satsuma Geki, established a rival theatre called Geki Za or Satsuma Za. For several years after their establishment, these theatres invited chanters from Osaka, and performed dramas by Ōsaka writers; but about 1770, they began to perform pieces by Yedo dramatists.
Hiraga Gennai (1729–1779), whose pseudonym was Puku-uchi Kigwai, was the greatest among the Yedo epical dramatists. He was the eldest son of a samurai of low rank of Shido-ura in Sanuki Province. But the ambitious youth gave his birthright to his brother, and went to Nagasaki, where he studied the Dutch language, botany, and physics. Later he went to Yedo, where he studied Chinese and Japanese classics. He was gifted with wonderful talents, and made several industrial inventions. Unluckily, however, he could find no one to patronize them. Therefore, by way of giving vent to his discontent, he took to writing humorous essays and epical dramas. His best drama is the Shinrei Yaguchi no Watashi. The present author names his story adapted from it, "The Miracle at the Perry of Yaguchi." It was performed at the Hizen Za in 1770, and was enthusiastically received. Its fourth act, which relates the adventure of Nitta Yoshiminé at the ferry of Yaguchi, is nowadays often performed. In 1779, Gennai went mad and killed a man, and was thrown into prison where he soon died of illness.
The following are the most noteworthy dramas by other great writers of Yedo: The Koimusumé Mukashi Hachijō (1778), by Chimakatsu Kwanshi and Yoshida Sumimaru; the Shigano Kataki-uchi (1776), by Kinokami Tarō; the Itozakura Honchō Sodachi (1777), by Kinokami Tarō and Tatsuda Benji; the Kagamiyama Kyū no Nishikiyé (1782), by Yo Yotai; the Meiboku Sendai Hagi (1785), by Chikamatsu Kwanshi, Takashi Mohei, and Yoshida Sumimaru; the Gotaiheiki Shiraiski Banashi (1787), by Utei Yemma and Kinokami Tarō.
The Shō-utsushi Asagao Banashi which, as has been stated appeared in 1850, and the Hanano Kumo Sakura no Akebono, by Toyoshima Gyokuwaken and a collaborator, which appeared in 1853, were the last epical dramas ever written. These two dramas were performed in Yedo for the first time.
At present, marionette performances are now and then given in Tokyo, at Asakusa Park, by two skilful puppet players named Yoki Magosaburō and Yoshida Kunigorō; but they attract few spectators. There are in Ōsaka two marionette theatres called respectively the Bunraku Za and the Chikamatsu Za. The former was established about a hundred years ago by an amateur chanter named Uyemura Bimraku Ken. The latter was established in 1911. These two theatres, where some skilful chanters and puppet players are giving their performances, are among the great attractions of the city.
The decline of the marionette theatre and the cessation of the composition of new epical dramas are attributable chiefly to the fact that the kabuki shibai, or the popular theatre which was as old as the marionette theatre, had found its way by degrees into general favour and at last deprived the marionette theatre of its audiences. We may therefore turn for a moment from the present subject and give a short account of the kahuki shibai.
A priestess named O Kuni, of the great shrine at Kizuki in the province of Izumo, is said to have originated the kabuki shibai. O Kuni went to Kyōto with her lover Nagoya Sanzaburō about 1605, They soon erected a rough stage on the dry bed of the Kamo River, on which the expriestess with a few other girls danced. They sang simple songs composed by Sanzaburō, to the accompaniment of the primitive music of flutes, bells, and drums. They were enthusiastically received by the citizens; and their reputation rapidly spreading far and wide, many girls took to the profession in several provinces. In 1607, O Kuni went to Yedo where her performances were greatly admired. Then in Yedo, Ōsaka, and Kyōto, actresses increased in number and some of them attained great skill. Theatre-going became fashionable among the townsfolk, and as the actresses' theatre developed it exerted evil influences on public morals. Therefore, in 1629, actresses' performances were stopped by the authorities. Then actors' theatres, which had recently been established, became popular and some of the actors were obliged to play women's rôles. This unnatural art of the onna-gata (oyama), or "actors in women's rôles," gradually developed, until we hear of great onna-gata in different eras. Some famous onna-gata took great pains, even in their daily lives, to train themselves for women's rôles. They usually wore women's garments and used women's instruments and articles. They even spoke and behaved like women. The law prohibiting actresses was in force, in most parts of the country, until the middle of the nineteenth century. This is the reason why there have been few actresses until quite recent years. Since a few years ago, many educated girls have taken to the profession. But these actresses are generally considered to be much inferior to the onna-gata of the old school.
By the time Monzayaeon and Kaion were flourishing, kabuki theatres throve in Ōsaka, Yedo, and Kyōto. But they could not compete with the marionette theatres, because both the performers and the dramas were still in nonage. At first, the pieces produced in these theatres were the compositions of the ignorant actors, but 
Mr. Utayemon as Lady Yayegaki
The theatres proper of the present day are of two classes, i. e., the kabuki theatres and the theatres of the new school. In the older style theatres, the epical dramas, old kyaku-hon, and kyaku-hon adapted from the epical dramas are used. In the modern theatres new kyaku-hon by native authors, and translations from European dramatists such as Shakespeare, Ibsen, Maeterlinck, Shaw, and Wilde are used. These new kyaku-hon are quite commonplace and unpopular, while the translations are very popular among the younger generation. But it is still the performances of the epical dramas in the old school theatres which appeal most strongly to the imagination of the nation at large.
Another important thing about the epical drama is its extensive use merely for chanting purposes. In yosé or variety-halls, of which there are in Tokyo at least one hundred and fifty, one or two gidayū chanters are numbered among their nightly performers. There are also about ten halls devoted to chantresses. The institution of chantresses 
Mrs. Roshō, the most famous drama chantress
Mrs. Fumiryū, a drama chantress
is as old as that of chanters. At the beginning of the seventeenth century, there was in Yedo a great chantress named Rokuji Namuyemon. As time went on chantresses increased in number and popularity, until in the beginning of the nineteenth century there were in Yedo a hundred halls exclusively used for their recitations. But in 1842 their performances were prohibited by the authorities on account of certain abuses, and Toyotaké Hazan and a few other great chantresses were thrown into prison, where they died. In consequence of this chantresses went out of existence. In fifteen years or so, however, the prohibition became lax, and chantresses again became popular. Nowadays, in Osaka and Kyoto, as well as in Tokyo, musumé-gidayū or girl chanters, as they are generally called, are far more numerous than male chanters. It must be remarked in passing, that every geisha can chant one or two acts of some famous drama or other.
Besides professional chanters, there are numerous amateur chanters throughout Japan. Among various circles of people, the chanting of the epical dramas has been popular from of old. They assiduously take lessons in the art from professional chanters. Indeed in every town, every village, and every hamlet, there are found some people who make it their chief pastime to chant the dramas. It is no exaggeration to say that some passages of the Asagao Banashi and of the Taikō-ki are as familiar to any adult person as the national anthem.
In connection with the general prevalence of the chanting of the epical dramas, there is another noteworthy fact which must not be lost sight of. That is to say, the paramount position they have occupied in social education. It will be remembered that higher education in feudal Japan was confined to a portion of the community, i. e., the samurai and the priests. The common education carried on in the terakoya, primitive elementary schools, was far from satisfactory. Yet, in spite of such poor means of education, the people at large were alive with patriotic sentiments, and fully understood the duties of loyalty and filial piety, and the other moral principles of bushidō. All this was due to some special educational organs which made up for the imperfections of school education. That is to say, the theatres, story-tellers, and gidayū chanters were so many .jpg)
Mr. Settsu Daijō, the most famous drama chanter (on the left)
powerful educators. It was especially the case with the epical dramas, particularly historical dramas, such as The Battle of Ichinotani, The Treason of Mitsuhidé, and The Sendai-Hagi, in which the principles of bushidō are preached most eloquently through the mouths of the characters. Thus, some of the epical dramas were, so to speak, the text-books of bushidō, for the common classes of the Yedo Period. Nobody can deny the epical dramas and their chanters the honour of having been important agents of social education.
Gidayū chanters, both professional and amateur, when they chant in public, wear kataginu (a sort of cape) and hakama (like a pair of loose trousers), and sit in a respectful attitude before a kendai, or bookstand, on which a book containing the text printed in large characters is placed. Then, with their hands on their laps, and with all their energy concentrated on their abdomens, they chant forth loudly and musically to the accompaniment of the samisen. The chanter himself often plays the instrument, while he chants the drama. But more frequently, other hands play the instrument. A chanter combines in himself an opera singer and an elocutionist; and it may safely be said that a unique form of elocution was developed in Japan as early as the beginning of the seventeenth century, when Satsuma Jōun the chanter was at the height of his popularity.
Thus the epical dramas, as pieces to be chanted, and to be used for theatres, and as literature to be read, have an everlasting future before them. A Marionette Performance
A scene from O-somé and Hisamatsu
Marionette Performances
A scene from The Sendai-Hagi
A scene from The Sekitori Senryō Nobori
Marionette Performances
A scene from The Taikō-Ki
A scene from The Gotaiheiki Shiraishibanashi
Marionette Performances
A scene from Yūgiri and Izayemon
A scene from The Kokusenya