Despite its many rules and constraints, the stability of Japanese society for more than two centuries under the Shogunate’s policy of seclusion did not result in gloomy stagnation. How was this possible? The answer may lie in the era’s abundance of unambitious, self-contented elders, who can be labelled ‘modestly literate picnic
lovers (gakumon hodo hodo, yusan dai-suki)’. The existence of this group has been uncovered through a computer-processed analysis of the patterns of wear and tear on the bottom surfaces of more than sixty extant copies of the bulky Setsuyôshû, a household encyclopaedia used commonly by local community elders.
Professor Yokoyama will discuss the users of the book who tended to be detached from the establishment, while indulging in individual pursuits, and hence contributed to the radiance of old Japan. This is part of the Carmen Blacker Lecture Series, honouring the memory and scholarship of Carmen Blacker (1924-2009). Each year a
senior scholar lectures on a theme related to Japanese religion or folklore.
Please contact the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures on tel: 01603 597507 or email sisjac@sainsbury-institute.org. The lecture in Norwich will be given in conjunction with the Third Thursday Lecture Series.
http://sainsbury-institute.org/news-events/carmen-blacker-lecture-series/
credited partners (e.g. associates, sponsors): Japan Society