Author Archives: yan.revzin

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A man sees women, all manner of them, who seem beyond reproach, said the guards officer, but when it comes to picking the wife who must be everything, matters are not simple. The emperor has trouble, after all, finding the minister who has all the qualifications. A man may be very wise, but no man can govern by himself. Superior is helped by subordinate, subordinate defers to superior, and so affairs proceed by agreement and concession. But when it comes to choosing the woman who is to be in charge of your house, the qualifications are altogether too many. A merit is balanced by a defect, there is this good point and that bad point, and even women who though not perfect can be made to do are not easy to find. I would not like to have you think me a profligate who has to try them all. But it is a question of the woman who must be everything, and it seems best, other things being equal, to find someone who does not require shaping and training, someone who has most of the qualifications from the start. The man who begins his search with all this in mind must be reconciled to searching for a very long time. (The Broom Tree, Page 36)

This passage, which is spoken by a guards officer, reveals something about the way women and marriage were seen in the Japanese society of this period. Finding a suitable wife is compared to finding the right person to fill a political office. “The emperor has trouble, after all, finding the minister who has all the qualifications.” According to the speaker, finding the right woman is even more difficult because “the qualifications are altogether too many.” He also says that it’s better to find a woman who has the right qualifications from the start and “does not require shaping and training.” This reveals the practical view of marriage that was popular in this time and place. The main role of the woman was to “be in charge of your house,” so she was to be chosen in a way similar to an employee.

What are the main “qualifications” that a woman should have according to the guards officer and others who share his opinion?

The shining Genji: it was almost too grand a name. Yet he did not escape criticism for numerous little adventures. It seemed indeed that his indiscretions might give him a name for frivolity, and he did what he could to hide them. But his most secret affairs (such is the malicious work of the gossips) became common talk. If, on the other hand, he were to go through life concerned only for his name and avoid all these interesting and amusing little affairs, then he would be laughed to shame by the likes of the lieutenant of Katano. The Broom Tree: Page 34)

This passage explains something essential about The Tale of Genji and how people respond to the protagonist and the kind of reputation he is trying to uphold. The name Genji is known by, Hikaru, which means “shining,” is indicative of his unusual qualities. Because of his handsome appearance and uncommon charisma, people are naturally drawn to him and women are strongly attracted to him. His name, while fitting, also causes certain difficulties. “…it was almost too grand a name” suggests someone destined for great things. This puts a certain pressure on Genji to live up to his name. It also leaves him open to criticism when he engages in “numerous little adventures,” referring to his affairs with various women.

This passage also reveals that Genji’s many affairs were common knowledge. Even affairs he wants to keep secret are exposed because of “the malicious work of the gossips.” This phrase seems intent on making the reader sympathetic go Genji, as it doesn’t criticize him for his actions but the people who gossip about him. There is also the fact that Genji actually wants to maintain his reputation as a lover in certain circles. He clearly does not want to be seen as a cautious individual “concerned only for his name.” This is made obvious by the quote that if he were to “avoid all these interesting and amusing little affairs, then he would be laughed to shame by the likes of the lieutenant of Katano.”

Genji is a complicated character who is trying to accomplish at least two different things, which are in some ways contradictory. On the one hand, he tries to be discrete about some of his affairs as “his indiscretions might give him a name for frivolity, and he did what he could to hide them.” Yet, since he also wants to be respected by reckless men such as the lieutenant of Katano. So, while Genji wants to   have the public image of someone who is noble and “shining,” he also likes to be considered a kind of rogue in certain circles. How he wants to be perceived depends on the company he is keeping at the moment.

Since Genji has ambitions to improve his station in life, he wants to be taken seriously. At the same time, he enjoys having fun and pursuing women, and he doesn’t want to ignore this side of his nature. This passage reflects his attempts to find a balance between these two sides of his personality.

When thinking of a modern day show that incorporates all the elements of jacobean style play, the first show that comes to mind is “The Following.” In this show, Joe Carroll is a diabolical serial killer who goes on a killing rampage and doesn’t sympathize with anyone except his ex-wife and child. The protagonist of the show is Ryan who is Joe’s arch nemesis because he had an affair with Joe’s ex-wife (Claire). Throughout the show, Joe makes multiple attempts to kill Ryan even though Ryan deeply cares for Joe’s his ex-wife and genuinely loves her, feelings Joe is incapable of expressing to her. Joe’s ex-wife and Ryan form a deep bond and Joe is aware of this, however, chooses to disregard his ex-wife’s happiness because Joe wants her to be with no one other than himself.

A lot of Joe Carroll’s characteristics are portrayed in the character Ferdinand in the play “The Duchess of Malfi.” Similar to Joe, Ferdinand is ruthless when it comes to killing and makes it very clear that he does not want his sister marrying anyone unless he approves of that person.

In both scenarios, you have two men who care about a woman but both are manipulative and disregard what the person they care for really wants and see no wrong doing in their actions.

In the scene below we see Joe confront Ryan and the extreme measures that Joe is willing to take to get back with his ex-wife.

The poem Bring In the Wine depicts a joyous, merry environment filled with people drinking and experiencing satisfaction and pleasure in their actions. It describes that neither money nor physical possessions compare with a group of people drinking and laughing.

“And only the greatest drinkers have a fame that lingers on!” demonstrates the poem’s perspective that individuals who are drinking and joyous will be more successful individuals that will leave a legacy behind.

I found the song “Pass The Courvoisier” by Busta Rhymes relates to the poem “Bring in the wine” for many reasons. In the song you have several different rappers singing about how good they feel while they are drinking and drunk. These are individuals that can have anything they want but they choose to have one thing and one thing only and that is Corvoissoer which is a type of  cognac. Throughout the song each of the rappers talk about all the materialistic things they have but in the chorus below they both rap about how they would rather have the Courvoisier.

Give me the Henny, you can give me the Cris
You can pass me the Remi, but the pass the Courvoisier

Give me the ass, you could give me the dough
You can give me ‘dro, but pass the Courvoisier
Give me some money, you can give me some cars
But you can give me the bitch make sure you pass the Courvoisier
Give me some shit, you can give me the cribs
You can give me whatever just pass the Courvoisier

My name is Yan Revzin and my major is finance. Due to my work schedule this is my second semester as a full time student in Baruch. I personally love hybrid classes because you have the ability to learn from the comfort of your own home as opposed to wasting time commuting to school. It takes me an hour to get to school and an hour back so I would rather spend those 2 hours completing my assignments.

My favorite book is “The Alchemist” by . I was riding the train one day and this book called “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho was laying there so after waiting 4-5 train stops and realizing that someone had either forgotten it or left it on purpose as a strange way to “spread the knowledge” I decided to pick it up and read it. Needless to say this is one of my favorite books because the authors descriptive style of writing really got me involved into the story to the point where I finished the book in a week (please keep in mind that I tend to read more news articles than books).

Since the goal of these blogs is to be completely honest I will admit that one of my favorite interests is attending networking events. I’ve been to many events where I had the opportunity to speak with a  lot of successful individuals and learn about different industries and some secrets to how they got to their position today. It also doesn’t hurt that a lot of these events serve great food.

The part of the text that threw me off was when the writer wrote “Materialist critics are therefore wrong when they claim that a culturalist model is inappropriate for studying what is essentially an economic phenomenon. And yet, cultural critics are also mistaken when they ignore the economic and material aspects of globalization. I feel that every person reading this will have a different interpretation of what the writer is trying to say because his delivery and choice of words is confusing.