{"id":563,"date":"2020-11-12T13:18:46","date_gmt":"2020-11-12T04:18:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsletter.nichibun.ac.jp\/messages\/563\/"},"modified":"2021-02-25T13:06:44","modified_gmt":"2021-02-25T04:06:44","slug":"%e6%bc%a2%e5%ad%97%e3%81%8b%e3%82%89%e3%81%8f%e3%81%9a%e3%81%97%e5%ad%97%e3%81%b8%e2%80%95%e2%80%95%e6%97%a5%e6%96%87%e7%a0%94%e3%81%a7%e3%81%ae%e6%bb%9e%e5%9c%a8%e7%a0%94%e7%a9%b6%e3%81%ab%e3%81%a4","status":"publish","type":"messages","link":"https:\/\/newsletter.nichibun.ac.jp\/en\/messages\/563\/","title":{"rendered":"From Kanji to Kuzushiji<\/i>: My Sojourn at Nichibunken"},"content":{"rendered":"

I began my Japanese studies from kanshibun<\/em> (classical Chinese prose and poetry written by Japanese). I felt relaxed when I read kanji because Japanese uses many kanji, and as a Chinese, that made me think Japanese was not very difficult and that I would never quit learning it.<\/p>\r\n

Actually, understanding kanji is not enough for studying Japanese kanshibun<\/em>. I have to read a lot of related materials, and some of them are written in kuzushiji<\/em>, the cursive handwriting widely used in the Edo period. For example, in the course of my research into kanshi<\/em> on Mt. Fuji, I came across, a Nara ehon<\/em> picture book written in kuzushiji<\/em>, titled Fuji no hitoana z\u014dshi<\/em>. Fortunately there were some transliterations and introductions to this work, so I was able to read through it and understand the content in detail.<\/p>\r\n

My research subject at Nichibunken, meanwhile, focuses on Edo-period illustrated fiction. The library has countless resources on this subject, and some of them are written in kuzushiji<\/em> and not yet transliterated into modern Japanese. When I consulted Professor Araki Hiroshi about what to do, he arranged for a Kuzushiji<\/em> Reading Class to be held twice a month from January to March 2020. Ph.D. candidates Ishihara Tomoaki and Yu Xuejian taught me and other scholars how to read kuzushiji<\/em>.<\/p>\r\n

\"Figure

Figure 1: Texts used in the Kuzushiji<\/i> Reading Class<\/p><\/div>\r\n

After completing the class sessions, I found I was gradually more able to read kuzushiji<\/em>. But I thought I should try to practice every day for a while, so even on weekends and holidays, I would bring my eldest daughter to my research office. She practiced kana characters in her kindergarten\u2019s exercise book while I wrote my kuzushiji<\/em> over and over. When we got tired, we would go to the corridor in front of the library and take a break looking at the green outside, or enjoyed taking photos. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, I\u2019m extremely lucky and thankful to have been able to stay at Nichibunken and pursue research in a peaceful environment.<\/p>\r\n

\"Figure

Figure 2: Taking a break in the corridor outside the Nichibunken Library (photograph by my eldest daughter, July 2020)<\/p><\/div>\r\n

Professor Araki took up the kuzushiji<\/em> text of Tsurezure-gusa<\/em> nagusami-gusa<\/em> in his Medieval Literature Class from June 29, and I can now read the book smoothly without the aid of a transliteration. Surmounting the challenge of kuzushiji <\/em>is very important for my research on Japanese literature.<\/p>\r\n

To me, Nichibunken is not only a hub of research materials, but also a hub of human resources. Since there are so many outstanding scholars and students at Nichibunken, I have received a great deal of help. I am sure my sojourn at Nichibunken will be of great benefit to me throughout my career.<\/p>\r\n

\r\n

See also the expanded version of the introduction to Dr. Li\u2019s research <\/a><\/strong>on the Nichibunken Facebook page.<\/p>\r\n

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