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Hojoki: Building for the Self, Building the Self.

Biagini, Bruno
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1620333132011375

Abstract Details

2021, Master of Arts, Ohio State University, East Asian Studies.
In Hojoki, Kamo no Chomei presents an alternative to the way court society organizes life. To present this life project, Chomei uses the image of the hut. The hut emerges as a reworking of several aspects of human existence. Although the hut works as an emblem of this transformation, it does not provide an explicit analysis of its content. In approaching Hojoki from different angles, diverse interpretations in English have revealed several dimensions of this transformation. However, none of them thematizes an important element of the piece: the individual. The present thesis aims to explore how the dimension of the individual is presented and developed in Hojoki. To develop this proposal, I use an interdisciplinary approach. I try to connect the piece with the theme of the individual from three perspectives: literary, historical and philosophical. First, I trace a comparison with Chiteiki, an earlier piece and an important influence on Chomei. Second, I explore the historical context in which the piece was produced. Finally, I use Michel Foucault's ideas on the subject to show how the concern with the individual articulates the hut. This reading shows us the centrality of the problem of the individual. The comparison with Chiteiki makes clear that Hojoki conforms to a type of discourse that has the question of the individual among its central concerns. This concern was widespread among literary producers in the second half of the Heian period, which can be linked to changes in the Heian social structure. Finally, the hut can be seen as emerging as a way to deal with this concern. Foucault's framework allows us a fresh perspective on Chomei was deals with the problem of the individual through the image of the hut.
Shelley Quinn (Advisor)
Nancy Ettlinger (Committee Member)
Naomi Fukumori (Committee Member)
125 p.
Literature
Japanese literature; Culture; Philosophy; Kamo no Chomei; Michel Foucault

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Biagini, B. (2021). Hojoki: Building for the Self, Building the Self. [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1620333132011375

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Biagini, Bruno. Hojoki: Building for the Self, Building the Self. 2021. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1620333132011375.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Biagini, Bruno. "Hojoki: Building for the Self, Building the Self." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2021. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1620333132011375

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1620333132011375
199
© 2021, some rights reserved.Creative Commons License Hojoki: Building for the Self, Building the Self. by Bruno Biagini is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at etd.ohiolink.edu.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.