"All this he saw, for one moment breathless and intense, vivid on the morning sky; and still, as he looked, he lived; and still, as he lived, he wondered."

Shirabyōshi dancers in the diary of Lady Sarashina

For a very small and specific part of the novel, I decided to research the role of a specific kind of dancers in medieval Japan, called shirabyōshi. As it happens, their role and characteristics are highly romanticized (i.e., objectified) by male authors of the time: they’re often portrayed as femmes fatales and seductresses, and this is marginally what this part of the novel is about.
In order to look for better sources, we need to be sexist and look for female contemporary authors, and one of the most relevant is lady Sarashima, the daughter of a provincial governor who writes a sort of retrospective diary. In today’s post on my Patreon, we read a snippet of her night encounter with three travelling entertainers.
books and literature

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Following next Friday, I’ll be publishing some fairytales collected by W.R. Ralston, correspondent of the Imperial Geographical Society for the British Museum. W. R. S. Ralston, M.A.,Of the British Museum,Corresponding Member of the Imperial Geographical SocietyOf Russia, Author of “The Songs of the RussianPeople,” “Krilof

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architecture, engineering and construction

Mermaids in Milan

I know, I know, it’s hot.And if you’re still in Milan — maybe marooned here because of a project that just couldn’t wait or simply because life sucks or because, on the contrary, you enjoy the empty city just as I do — I’ve got

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books and literature

Bepi from the Ice

During this summer break, I started reading a charming little book I bought in Venice at the remarkable venue Libreria Acqua Alta (High Waters Bookshop): it’s a small volume whose title roughly translates to Mysteries of the Lagoon and Tales of Witches, by one Alberto

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Fairytale Friday – Russian Fairy Tales

Following next Friday, I’ll be publishing some fairytales collected by W.R. Ralston, correspondent of the Imperial Geographical Society for the British Museum. W. R. S. Ralston, M.A.,Of the British Museum,Corresponding Member of the Imperial Geographical SocietyOf Russia, Author of “The Songs of the RussianPeople,” “Krilof

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