MAN/WOMAN RELATIONS IN ASIA.   Term Paper ID:19714 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Changes from classical to modern times in India, Japan & China, as shown in literature of both eras.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Changes from classical to modern times in India, Japan & China, as shown in literature of both eras. Paper Introduction: In the 20th Century the countries of Asia, specifically India, Japan and China have undergone great cultural changes. The West has exerted great influence upon these countries. And Asia, both unable to resist and also open to change has accepted and assimilated the influence of the West into its own cultures. This is evident in the literature of Asia. By looking at the contemporary literature of India, Japan and China and comparing it to the Classical literature of these countries one can see just what some of the changes are. One of the most significant changes is the relationship between men and women. In Vedic India (2000-1000 B.C.) marriages were considered more honorable when the bride was bought or better yet when the bride was stolen. Polygamy was allowable and even encouraged for those men who could, in fact, support more than one wife. The Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. Paraneshacharyarepresents the confusion that has ultimately beset brahminism.Paraneshacharya did not know how to deal with Naranappa when he was aliveand especially when he was dead. Wedlock is a psychological examination of ahusband and wife and is not a re-examination of their roles or obligationsto each other as can be found in Samskara. New York: Penguin Books, 1981.Murthy, Anantha. In the literature of India, Japan and China both classical and modernmen and women and their relationships are depicted differently. In it one can catch a glimpse of how men and women related. In the story there is only a faint hint ofthe male dominance in society--Reiko stays at home while Hisao has a job.However Reiko does have autonomy and independence and is not wholly devotedto Hisao or even marriage. [6]Anantha Murthy, Samskara, trans. New York: Alfred A. In the 2 th Century the countries of Asia, specifically India, Japanand China have undergone great cultural changes. However The Judicial Murder of TsaiNing is a piece of Chinese detective fiction from around the 12th and 13thcenturies A.D. Translated by A. Sakuntala byKalidasa was written in the height of the Classical Age. The story shows the interplay between a man, Liu Chun-chien his wife andhis concubine. Women werepampered in that they were to be preserved for marriage. I'll roll it up andthrow it away for a little bit of pleasure with one female."[8] Naranappa represents the growing influence of the West on India andthe destructive pressure it put upon the caste system. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1963.Kalidasa. Yohannan, Asian Literature (New York: John Day, 1956), 55. And "romantic love"between men and women is then seen as symbolic of the soul's devotion toGod since love is faltering on earth it can only be accounted for in therealm of faith.[5] Samskara written in the 196 's by Anantha Murthy shows the pretensesof the relationships between men and women as seen in Sakuntala as breakingdown in the 2 th Century. [1 ]Ibid. Early in the book, despite Wangquan's lovefor Qiaying he is forced to marry Xefing by his grandfather, "The story ofhow Sun Wanshui subdued the Black Dragon King with a sod chopper passedinto legend. The relationship between men and women as depicted in Japaneseliterature is quite different than in Indian literature. This is evident in the literature of Asia. But they do not face up to their actions. [14]Furui Yoshikichi, "Wedlock," Contemporary Japanese Literature, ed.Howard Hibbet (New York: Alfred A. One of the most significant changes is the relationshipbetween men and women. MichaelCoulsun (New York: Penguin Books, 1981), 1 2. But with the growing influence of thewest on Asia in the 2 th century men and women have come to be depictedmore and more in western terms. And Asia, both unable to resist and alsoopen to change has accepted and assimilated the influence of the West intoits own cultures. In Act IV, verse 21 Kavna, Sakuntala's adopted father, tellsSakuntala, "When you are honored as the wife of an illustrious husband,/And continually engrossed in the duties his position brings,/ When, notlong from now, you bear him an heir as the East brings forth the sun, Youwill not think about your grief at leaving me, my dear."[3] This passageexemplifies women's essential subordinance to men in India. Delphi: Oxford University Press, 1976.Yohannan, John D. Naranapparesponded to the sensuality of Kalidasa's Sakuntala but sought to redefineit in modern terms. Paraneshacharya, the main brahminof the agrahara, on the other hand, was married to and invalid. Ramanujan (Delphi: OxfordUniversity Press, 1976), 1. No one form wasnecessarily isolated for one purpose. Polygamy was allowable and even encouraged for those men whocould, in fact, support more than one wife.[1] The caste system whichforbade the mixture of Moslem and Hindu blood went through many conceptionsfrom the Vedic days to medieval India (1 A.D.-Present) where it becamemore rigid and complex. To speak of classical Chinese literature is difficult since fictionwas not well regarded in China.[17] Chinese literature encompassed allforms of written expression such as theological or poetic. Let's see how long this brahminbusiness will last. Ramanujan. And this is an underlying theme in Samskara, Wedlock and OldWell--can traditional views be maintained when new ones are adopted. Morality was linked to dharma which is the ruleseach person has to follow as determined by caste or socio-economicstatus.[2] Indian society was thus very structured. In China the relationships between men and women were at one timevery structured. [17]Yohannan, 39. In the end, Sakuntala has as a central theme the folly of marriageentered into by mutual consent. It takes asupernatural event for the King to remember and accept Sakuntala as hiswife. That is Hisao felt that while working all day a man needs awife to take care of the household in his absence, 'After all, whether theywere married or only living together, the men went out to work and thewomen stayed at home taking care of household affairs."[14] But even thisrole is called into question, "Still, it always gave him an odd feeling tothink of his wife in that role--in a little two-room apartment with noextra space inside or out, no children, nothing to manage but a monthlysalary, no ancient ritual to perform.[15] This shows a sense of respect ofmen for women as being individuals outside of societal bounds. In the play,Sakuntala was born from a nymph and taken in by a hermitage. San Fraancisco: China Books and Periodicals, 1989.----------------------- [1]Will Durant, Our Oriental Heritage (New York: Simon and Schuster,1963), 4 1. [15]Ibid. A.K. BibliographyDurant, Will. Knopf, 1977.Zheng, Yi. [4]Ibid., 65. Decades later, armed with the same sod chopper, he put an endto the hopes of marriage between Wangquan and Qiaying."[18] This perfectlyexemplifies the conflict between the old and the new. Men and women are not pure spirit, yet the brahmins behaved as ifthey were, or rather as if they thought they were. It was not a marriage that wasnormally sanctioned for a brahmin and it threatened the entire agrahara. [18]Yi Zheng, Old Well, trans. She tellshim, "Being married to me is no joy."[6] Where Paraneshacharya could acceptsuch a situation, Naranappa could not. [9]Durant, 86 . Translated by David Kwan. Our Oriental Heritage. At one point he toldParaneshacharya, "O Acharya who could live with a girl who gives nopleasure--except of course some barren brahmins!"[7] The brahmins and theirwives are depicted as succumbing to natural human weaknesses such as lust,greed and gluttony. [3]Kalidasa, Sakuntala, from Three Sanskrit Plays, trans. [7]Ibid., 2 . Clearly in the story one can see that man is the dominantfigure in society and mutual love, admiration and respect have little to dowith determining marriages or relationships. In Vedic India (2 -1 B.C.) marriages were considered morehonorable when the bride was bought or better yet when the bride wasstolen. [5]Durant, 491. And as in The Tale of Genjithere is a recognition of the sensuality between men and women as beingnatural. However the relationships between men andwomen have charged little. Love is not the deciding principle in therelationships between men and women. Sensuality in Samskara is denied bythe brahmins yet they fall victim to it. Asian Literature. Fertility, industryand obedience were prized far above a woman's beauty or culture.[16] As inIndia polygamy was encouraged for those who could support more than onewife and concubines were often taken. [11]John D. However, despite thetightening of the caste system on through the Classical Age (A.D.-1 )marriage practices changed very little since the Vedic Age. All your brahmin respectability. By looking atthe contemporary literature of India, Japan and China and comparing it tothe Classical literature of these countries one can see just what some ofthe changes are. In 2 th centuryChina among the young marriage was entered into more out of free choice andmutual consent and polygamy is less and less an option.[19] In Old Wellthese new concerns are seen as powerful and in the end winning over theolder traditional ways of arranged marriages. Old Well. After theKing and Sakuntala separate in Act III, the King subsequently forgetsSakuntala although in Sakuntala's mind they are married. RatherWedlock expresses modern concerns of marriage that can be found in anynumber of American novels or short stores--namely can a husband and wifeever truly know one another. Howard Hilbert. Where Samskara shows a breaking downof classical conceptions of men and women handed down from Sakuntala,Wedlock written in 197 by the Japanese writer Furui Yoshikichi does notshow any such breaking down of society as it was not necessary. [13]Ibid., 863. David Kwan (San Francisco: China Booksand Periodicals, 1989), 32. Men, as depicted in Sakuntala are the guardiansof not only religion and faith in the brahmin caste but also as guardiansof women as in the case of fathers and husbands. [8]Ibid., 2 -21. It has more to do with birth, fate orsimply the will of the man. K. [12]Durant, 861. Husbands and wives often lived separately and men thoughtof their wives as merely the mother of their children. "Wedlock." In Contemporary Japanese Literature, ed. [16]Durant, 793. While huntingone afternoon, King Dushyanta catches sight of her and immediately falls inlove with her beauty and insomuch as she posed as a challenge and possibleconquest, "That unsmelt blossom, that unsnapped stem,/ That unpierced gem,that fresh, untasted wine,/ That unharvested fruit of past good deeds, herflawless beauty-/ who in this world, In wonder, will be allowed to enjoyit?"[4] Sakuntala's love for the King can be seen more as devotion. Samskara. In both life and death the character of Naranappachallenged the entire caste system of India. The Japanese werenot so constricted and repressed as Indians were under the caste system.Historically women had a great deal of freedom and power in government andliterary positions.[9] Women were often seen as being more sexuallypromiscuous than men but were not ostracized from society because ofit.[1 ] The Tale of Genji, written between the 1 th and 11th centuries byLady Murasaki Shikibu is a profound recognition of the sensuality thatexists between men and women.[11] Also there is a sense of an underlyingequality between men and women in this fashion. Sensuality is only hinted at in Sakuntala and has no realimportance in determining marriage. The West has exerted greatinfluence upon these countries. New York: John Day, 1956.Yoshikichi, Furui. Perhaps this is due to Japan's classicalconceptions of men and women resembled the West's conception and therebywas not necessarily threatened by the emergence of the West's influence onJapan as was not the case in India. And the relationshipsbetween men and women are seen as rather passionless, entered into not outof love or desire but out of obligation, tradition or necessity. Knopf, 1977), 16. [19]Durant, 819.----------------------- 1 They feelthat since they are of the brahmin caste they are free from retributions.It is against this hypocrisy that Naranappa stands. Itwas a marriage born from sexual desire. "Sakuntala." In Three Sanskrit Plays, Translated by MIchael Coulsun. [2]Ibid., 4 2. He toldParaneshacharya, "Your Garuda he robs shaven widows, he plots evil withblack-magic men and he is one of your brahmins, isn't he?...All right,let's see who wins, Acharya, You or me? Traditionally, love does not assume much significance in Japaneseliterature.[13] There is a sense of Wedlock that Hisao and Reiko did notenter into their marriage completely out of love but out of economicnecessity. Thesedifferences are often subtle as one would see men and women being depicteddifferently in the literature of France and in the literature of America.The greatest differences lie in how men and women are depicted in Asia andhow they are depicted in the west. Naranappa was a brahmin yet hechose to marry Chandri, an outcaste. However for the most partmen controlled society and women were subservient, dedicated to the "ThreeObediances"--the father, husband and son.[12] By 197 , arguably Japan underwent the most drastic cultural changesof any of the Asian countries. But what isclear is that the brahmins had denied a very real part of life--earthlydesire. In Old Well by Zheng Yi, from 1989 the conflict between thetraditions of China and emerging concepts of love are shown explicitly asraging in the life of Wangquan. However, tradition is not completelyabandoned. Paraneshacharya was forced to reconsidereverything he knew and in the end came to no final conclusion. 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