Gender Roles In The Heian Period

The Heian period in Japanese history was one of high court culture. Much of the literature from this time period focused on the court and the relationships of those in it. The capital in what is now Kyōto was a cultural hub, often glorified in writing. Two genres that gained traction during this time period were monogatari and nikki, or tales and diaries. Through these stories one can learn about prevailing gender stereotypes and roles. While women had less agency than men and more controlling rules, both wanted to be seen as vulnerable in different aspects of their lives.

Monogatari and nikki are two common genres in the Heian period. Monogatari are “vernacular prose fiction depicting aristocratic life” (Shirane, 117). These stories became

Readers of monogatari know the tales to be simply stories, but in writing as if in a diary, authors of nikki make their stories seem more real. Even the protagonist of the Kagerō Nikki mentions this, saying that the monogatari “are just so much fantasy” (Shirane, 224). Therefore, some aspects in monogatari might be exaggerations or even unrealistic, which is less likely of nikki. This is not to say that nikki are completely true, as scholars still debate whether or not some events recorded in nikki truly took place. We also know that monogatari were widely read because of mentions of them in other works. In The Pillow Book, Sei Shōnagon says a pleasing thing is “Finding a large number of tales that one has not read before. Or acquiring the second volume of a tale whose first volume one has enjoyed” (282). Many other tales are also referenced. Daughter of Takasue, the author of Sarashina Nikki, wrote four monogatari, but only two still exist (453). Other monogatari are referenced in many essays and letters, but many do not exist anymore. This makes each of the ones surviving precious, as we have to get all of the information we can from the small percentage of surviving works from this