Week 5 reading questions

Here are a few questions to think about as you read Hayashi Fumiko's Diary of a Vagabond

I. Artistic Aspiration, Creative Expression, Cultural Commentary, Poetic Elements

1. What role does the poetry play in the text?

2. How should we interpret the protagonist's literary and artistic aspirations? Are they distinct from her other occupations? Does it differentiate her from the other woman portrayed in the text?

3. How does her status as an aspiring writer differentiate her from the female characters we encountered in Edo-period works, like Life of an Amorous Woman or Love Suicides at Amijima?

4. In life Hayashi managed to publish her book and achieve remarkable literary success. Why does she leave this success out of her narrative? How would it change the narrative if it ended with a reference to her literary triumph?

5. As Gardner points out, the text contains innumerable references to different forms of cultural expression (classical poems, modern poems, popular songs, films, novels, etc.). What is the text saying about Japanese culture circa 1930? Is the protagonist primarily a producer of culture or a consumer of culture? Does she operate in the world of mainstream culture or some kind of subculture?

II. Social Class, Economic Class, Working Life, Financial Issues

6. Although Hayashi sympathetically depicts the conditions of the working class, left-wing activists and critics were very critical of the piece. What do you think was the source of their frustration with her work?

7. The narrator tries her hand at a mind-numbing variety of professions. Are there any that stand out? What role does work play in her life?

8. What role does money play in the narrative?

9. Does the narrative offer any type of commentary on the capitalist system?

10. Do the narrator's conflicts with male artists speak more to the issue of class or gender?

III. Sexuality, Desire, Love, Bodily Pleasure (e.g., food, etc.)

11. What is the narrator's attitude toward sex? Is it a source of pleasure, financial security, or emotional connection? Is it distinct from other sensuous experiences in her life, like eating?

12. How does the narrator's attitude toward sex differ from what we saw in Life of an Amorous Woman?

13. If Osan of Love Suicides at Amijima corresponds roughly to the archetype of the madonna and the protagonist of Life of an Amorous Woman to that of the whore, how does Diary of a Vagabond comment upon this traditional binary?

14. On occasion the protagonist is the victim of sexual violence. How do these incidents contribute to her portrait of a modern woman?

15. Near the end of the narrative, the protagonist establishes a close, possibly sexual relationship with another woman, Toki-chan. Why end the narrative on this note?

IV. Gender, Patriarchy, Familial Roles, Woman's Place in the World

16. The reception of this work is significant. It was huge commercial success, selling hundreds of thousands of copies, establishing Hayashi as a literary celebrity, and spawning various sequels and knock-offs. The text appealed most powerfully to young women. Why do you think this work exerted such a powerful impact on female readers in 1930?

17. Despite its popularity among women, Hayashi always claimed that her writing was not specifically aimed at women readers. Is that apparent in the text?

18. Is this a feminist or proto-feminist work?

19. How does Hayashi represent femininity, the status of women in society, and the bonds between women? How in particular does she depict the relationship between the protagonist and her mother?

20. Is the protagonist representative of all women or is she depicted as a unique individual?

21. How does Hayashi depict men? Do they conform to a single gender stereotype? What is the narrator's attitude toward men? What does she hope for in her relations with them?

22. Does the text focus more on the issue of gender than on class? Are these seen as separate issues or related?

Miscellaneous

23. What role does the opening play?

24. What genre does this piece belong to: Novel? Diary? Confession? Exposé of the modern girl? Poetic diary? Verbal montage? Avant-garde literary experiment?

25. What are some of the distinctive stylistic features of the text?

26. How does the structure of the narrative shape your experience of the material?

27. Would you describe this piece as realistic? Why or why not?

28. What is the dominant tone of the work: Playful? Belligerent? Sentimental? Or some mixture thereof?

29. What do you make of the fragmented progression of time? How specifically does this technique differ from the standard chronological progression of a work like Life of an Amorous Woman?