Appearing at a moment when the study of modernity has come to challenge the reified separation of text and society, this major work can be read as an engagement with modernity through its impact on the negotiation of an individual identity. I have taken up such concepts as they are represented in the works of the author Junichirō Tanizaki. Through examining two of Tanizaki’s defining novels, Naomi and Some Prefer Nettles, my critical response aims to critically evaluate Tanizaki’s literary representations of the impact of Western modernity on Japanese identity. In doing so, As Venice Sank fundamentally reassesses the fluid, dynamic identities cultivated by a modernity which rest on Western cultural dominance.
The major work bears the namesake …show more content…
Much of the content of the piece is laden with an academic vernacular conforming to the conventional presentation of a thesis in literary theory and literary studies. Furthermore, the focus on representations of identity oftentimes elevates the discussion to the conceptual realm, with a formal register allowing me to reference such terms as ‘alterity’ in the context of a discussion. Inspiration for my adoption of a formal tone has arisen from reading the works of such notables as Seidensticker, whose essay, Tanizaki Jun-ichiro, 1886-1965, demonstrates the technical approaches to material which is targeted to an audience of peers in the field of Japanese studies. Through the investigative process, I was also made aware of the essay form through a Japanese lens. The ‘running brush’ form (zuihitsu), practised by Tanizaki in his 1933 essay In Praise of Shadows, offered an alternative view to the idea of including subheadings. Zuihitsu is characterised by a natural flow which is often articulated in a series of fragmental thoughts composed without planning. The traditionally autobiographical spin on this form moreover lends itself to my arguments which rest on the relationship between the production of the characters and Tanizaki’s concerns about a Western modernity. These concerns remain pertinent in Japanese society, and are also perhaps true of the wider modernised
The major work bears the namesake …show more content…
Much of the content of the piece is laden with an academic vernacular conforming to the conventional presentation of a thesis in literary theory and literary studies. Furthermore, the focus on representations of identity oftentimes elevates the discussion to the conceptual realm, with a formal register allowing me to reference such terms as ‘alterity’ in the context of a discussion. Inspiration for my adoption of a formal tone has arisen from reading the works of such notables as Seidensticker, whose essay, Tanizaki Jun-ichiro, 1886-1965, demonstrates the technical approaches to material which is targeted to an audience of peers in the field of Japanese studies. Through the investigative process, I was also made aware of the essay form through a Japanese lens. The ‘running brush’ form (zuihitsu), practised by Tanizaki in his 1933 essay In Praise of Shadows, offered an alternative view to the idea of including subheadings. Zuihitsu is characterised by a natural flow which is often articulated in a series of fragmental thoughts composed without planning. The traditionally autobiographical spin on this form moreover lends itself to my arguments which rest on the relationship between the production of the characters and Tanizaki’s concerns about a Western modernity. These concerns remain pertinent in Japanese society, and are also perhaps true of the wider modernised