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In Praise of Shadows

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In Praise of Shadows

By: Junichiro Tanizaki
Narrated by: David Rintoul
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About this listen

"Were it not for shadows there would be no beauty."

In Praise of Shadows is an eloquent tribute to the austere beauty of traditional Japanese aesthetics. Through architecture, ceramics, theatre, food, women, and even toilets, Tanizaki explains the essence of shadows and darkness, and how they are able to augment beauty. He laments the heavy electric lighting of the West and its introduction to Japan, and shows how the artificial, bright, and polished aesthetic of the West contrasts unfavorably with the moody and natural light of the East. Dreamy, melancholic, and mysterious, In Praise of Shadows is a haunting insight into a forgotten world.

The popular translation by Thomas J. Harper and Edward G. Seidensticker is essential listening for anyone interested in Japan and Japanese culture.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©1977 Leete’s Island Books, Inc. (P)2017 Naxos AudioBooks Aesthetics Essays Philosophy Nonfiction

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a classic read from Japanese literature slightly dated but when read with an understanding of its era a true classic

master piece of it's time

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The opening paragraphs of this literary gem seem very pedestrian - a querulous old man complaining about the difficulty and expense of incorporating Western mod cons into a traditional Japanese house. Tanizaki laments the proliferation of American taste (bright electric lighting, tiled bathrooms, Western clothes) Complaints lead on to a meditation of what Tanizaki feels is at the root of traditional Japanese aesthetics - an appreciation of beauty created from (and dependent on) shadows and darkness. Tanizaki’s masterful prose makes accessible an aesthetic that seems impossibly distant from Western concerns. My favourite passage is his eulogy to traditional ideals of female beauty, dimly remembered from his own childhood. His description of a woman’s pale face, floating in the darkness, her teeth painted black and her lips a bright, elfin green, conjures an image of strange and yet profound beauty.

Exquisite meditation on traditional Japanese aesthetics

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interesting insight into Japanese culture, but hard to listen to with the way the writer talks about race and objectifies women. particularly the innapropriate use of certain words and stereotyping black and Jewish people

outdated, racist and sexist views and comments.

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