Ancient Literature in our Modern World

The painting I chose is called The Tale of Genji by Shizuo Nishizawa. The painting is of a young Murasaki  who looks to be still a child. Murasaki has her eyes closed and it’s as though she is feeling the wind in her face. She is wearing a big yellow gown that looks like gold and the most incorporated color in the painting is this golden yellow color. I believe it is to represent wealth and a prosperous time in China. The tree branch next to her looks like it comes from an Empress tree which I assume it’s to represent class and social status. It seems almost like Murasaki is aware of the social impacts and all she craves is freedom. She looks like an angel that’s just trying to escape to a better place. In the background behind her there are a bunch of entangled shapes. I believe that they represent the chaos in her life to come or the chaos that Genji will bring. In reality she doesn’t want any of it and she just wants to be at peace. Murasaki is one of the few characters who stays innocent throughout Tale of Genji and she is the purest soul. She has only good intentions in the book but when Genji kidnaps her she is forced to deal with Genji’s life of casual sexual encounters and lovers. She has been strong from the start and she has stuck through by Genji. She is truly a good person from the inside out.