Essay Database

Summary of the Introduction Chikamatsu Monzaemon was born in Echizen, Japan in 1653 with the name of "Sugimore Nobumori" and was to become perhaps the greatest dramatist in the history of the Japanese theater. Most of his early history is unknown. His father, a samurai, gave up his feudal responsibilities in the late 1660s and moved the family to Kyoto. As a teenager Chikamatsu may have been introduced to the theater while serving in a nobleman's …

…compared to the Shogun’s style of life, I found it easier to imagine how these commoners lived. The book explained how it was accepted in Japanese society to use prostitutes as a release for the pressures of life. The strange thing is that the stories that had prostitutes in them caused the characters more stress, heartache, and death. I guess if they solved all of their problems, the story wouldn’t be a tragedy.