SOAS Research Online

Abstract

This study describes the tale-collection Uji-shui-monogatari, usually assigned to the early thirteenth century, and attempts to assess its position in its genre. A background to the study of the work is first provided, in an outline of the historical development of such literature and a survey of the general trends in recent Japanese studies in this field. Further surveys of Japanese work are given later concerning the date of Uji-shui-monogatari and its relationship with other works. Original contributions are made in the following respects: (1) The style and literary qualities of the work are discussed, and the content of the stories is analysed in order to bring out the picture of the time which they give. (Detailed summaries of all the stories are given in an appendix.) (2) A comprehensive and systematic analysis is made of the nature and extent of parallels between Uji-shui-monogatari and other works. (3) An attempt is made to re-assess the date, structure and position of Uji-shui-monogatari. It is maintained that while the factor of oral tradition cannot be neglected, the interrelationships of the group of works to which Uji-shui- monogatari belongs must be basically through written texts. It is suggested as a possibility that Uji-shui-monogatari is not, as is usually said, simply based on, but actually incorporates some text of the now-lost eleventh-century Uji-dai-nagon-monogatari. But it is maintained that in any case the work shows a lack of uniformity which casts doubt on the usual view that it was written by one man and (except for one story) at one time. Unquestionably some stories date from the early thirteenth century, but linguistic and other comparisons with Kon jaku-monogatari do not point unequivocally to this period, and some even suggest that Uji-shui-monogatari preserves an earlier form of tales than this twelfth-century work.