Open Collections

Abstract

Anthropomorphism is both universal and specific: while the tendency to humanize the nonhuman has been found in every culture and time period, how and why it manifests is unique to a particular place, culture, and time. Among a group of medieval Japanese short narratives (otogizōshi お伽草子) containing nonhuman characters, anthropomorphic plants stand out in their role as educators and entertainers. Literary analysis of Kajō monogatari 花情物語 (The Tale of Flower Feelings, ca. early 1600s) shows that these plant characters educate their audiences about the universality of Buddhist salvation while simultaneously entertaining them through references to preexisting literary sources such as popular narratives (Kochō monogatari 胡蝶物語, The Tale of Kochō), classical tales (such as Genji monogatari 源氏物語, The Tale of Genji), and waka poetry (including anthologies like the Kokinshū 古今集). Moreover, these plant educators in otogizōshi are remarkably similar to plant characters from nō theater, suggesting a larger medieval consciousness in which plants were known to serve this role. This study emphasizes the interpenetration of medieval Japanese literature, popular culture, religion, and performance arts by considering Kajō monogatari from multiple perspectives: theories of preaching and performance; approaches to anthropomorphism from literary, psychological, and Buddhist studies; specific Buddhist doctrines such as sōmoku jōbutsu 草木成仏 (plants becoming buddhas) and nyonin jōbutsu 女人成仏 (women becoming buddhas) that are closely connected to plants; and the myriad poetic connections suggested by the plant characters in an unusually long sequence of fifteen waka poems at the end of the tale.