Geisha

’s Essay, Research Paper

Geisha s of the New World

Introduction

Many different cultures and countries have created niches in American society that sustain and envelop traditions from their native lands. Within these miniature sub-countries, some traditional practices defy the typical American beliefs. Of these, the Japanese cultural practice of the Geisha, has been brought to the societal forefront by the recently published novel, Memoirs of a Geisha. The artisan practice of being a Geisha is a long-lived tradition in Japan and some of its roots have been established in the Japanese-American subculture.

Background

Many of Japan’s unique cultural practices emerged during the Edo period (1600-1868), a period well known for Japan’s self-imposed isolation from the rest of the world. The first geisha appeared during this period as male entertainers much like court jesters where comedy played a central role in their performances. Women slowly infiltrated the profession and by 1800 most geisha were female.

The government controlled the profession by requiring licenses for each geisha. In 1872, the new Meiji government required that geisha who also practiced prostitution maintain a license for each service. This allowed some geisha to distinguish themselves as solely artistic professionals. The lengthy training and concomitant expense associated with such training limited the number of woman in the profession. It was during this time, the geisha overshadowed high-class courtesans and prostitutes by being harbingers of popular Japanese music and fashion.

In contrast, during the 1920s popular style was anything western. At this point, geisha made a critical change in the direction of their profession. While they had emerged triumphantly as the vanguard of popular style in the late 1800s, the 1920s saw the geisha instilling themselves as protectors of traditional Japanese culture. Their new role ensured the geisha’s place in modern Japan as living museums.

Definition

In order to be a Geisha, you must be born the daughter of a geisha or you are accepted by an okiya (geisha house) in a hanamachi (geisha community). The “acceptance” into the life of a geisha is very ill defined. Historically, girls you were beautiful and promising who were either orphaned or from impoverished families were sold to an okiya by relatives and sometimes their own parents. The okiya would invest large sums of money training the child and purchasing elegant kimonos that can cost several thousands of dollars. The return on the investment would be realized when the girl became a maiko (apprentice geisha) and later, a geisha. If the girl became a successful geisha she might be able to buy her independence from the okiya. Today most women choose to become geisha of their own free will, many from middle-income families.

The word Geisha in Japanese literally means artisan. Geisha begin studying various Japanese arts from as early as three years old and continue to practice throughout their careers. They usually choose a particular art form in which to specialize. One of the most difficult and highly regarded art forms is traditional Japanese dance. Geisha also study shamisen (Japanese guitar), singing, Japanese flute and drums, and tea ceremony. The tea ceremony is a ritual that requires a lifetime of study, where the simple task of making a cup of tea is performed with exceptional grace and apparent effortlessness following very stringent rules of etiquette. It must be practiced so often that the conscious mind is no longer needed to perform the ceremony, freeing it to participate in the experience on a more meditative and sensuous level.

Tea Ceremony and the Geisha as Art

The tea ceremony utensils are simple, but each is a work of art in its own right. Hence, the art of tea ceremony and a geisha are very similar. A geisha is an exquisite work of art in her adornment as well as her poise. Every detail of her ensemble is meticulously chosen to accentuate her beauty and coordinate with the time of year. A successful geisha must demonstrate beauty, grace, artistic talent, charm, impeccable etiquette, and refinement.

Within Tea Houses, the geisha organize themselves hierarchically with relationships based on the family model (i.e. mother/daughter younger/older sisters). Within each teahouse is a mother who is in charge of the conduct and class of all her geishas contained therein. Also, each geisha has a senior elder sister who helps in her continuous training. In this way the traditional knowledge of the highly respected tea ceremony can be carried on.

Memoirs of a Geisha Story Line

Presented as the memoirs of a celebrated Japanese geisha, Arthur Golden’s first novel follows a poor youngster from her humble origins in a rural fishing village to her later years spent in luxurious surroundings in New York City’s Waldorf-Astoria. In 1929, her desperate father sells nine-year-old Sayuri to an okiya in Kyoto, where she is to begin her training as a geisha. The intensive courses require her to learn how to dance, play a musical instrument, gracefully wear the heavy, layered costumes, apply elaborate makeup, and, most especially, beguile powerful men.

Initially obstructed by the jealous, vindictive Hatsumomo, the okiya’s top earner, Sayuri is eventually taken under the wing of one of Hats