Final Report: Sei Shonagon (Cont.)

By: Robin Cook H01


As I mentioned in my midterm report on Sei Shonagon she was a courtier under Empress Teishi during the Heian period in Japan. Her journal that she kept during her time as a member of the court was The Pillow Book. This diary of sorts details both her feelings of the world around her at the time as well as her opinions on the other court members and how they behaved.

While reading more into her journal, I realized that many of the things she says are very telling of her philosophy. There were quite a few sections in which she either calls out men or reprimands her fellow ladies for being to weak toward men and not standing up for themselves. I would argue she was an early feminist. She also made some remarks in regards to preachers and that they should be nice to look at or they shall encourage sin. She quite often makes comments on things that are pretty or not and tends to hold the idea that if something is not pleasing to the eye then it is not worth anything. Shonagon also puts much emphasis into the importance of making oneself presentable for others. She suggests that appearance is of high importance - likely due to her being a member of the court - and places serious judgment on things she does not find pretty.

Shonagon also tends to add in humor to many of her entries, especially those that are more sad in nature. She often puts a bit of sarcasm in her sections on nobles as well or situations in which other nobles or those working for them do not understand the importance of some silly thing. As an example, there was one entry in which she complained a royal’s gate was much too small simply because her carriage could not fit through the entrance and she was forced to walk through the gate rather than ride through it. Another interesting aspect is that she criticizes her fellow courtiers about gossiping so relentlessly, however, she often does so herself. She especially seems to be extra judgmental of her fellow courtiers as she either praises them for how elegant and refined they are or she berates their character and makes them out to be awful. She does this as well about the townspeople but tends to remark on their appearance rather than their character.

After reading The Pillow Book I think I was able to grasp some of Sei Shonagon’s many philosophies. She was definitely a feminist, perhaps even a semi-radical one. She had a clear appreciation for nature and tended to hold it in a high regard. Shonagon also exhibited the unique philosophy that if someone or something was not beautiful to the eye than it was nothing more than pointless and ugly.


Quiz Questions:


1. What position (in terms of work) did Sei Shonagon hold when she was writing The Pillow Book?

2. T/F: She generally had a negative view of men.

3. What gave things value in Sei Shonagon’s eyes?

4. What does she do that she hates hearing others do?


Discussion Questions:

1. Do you think that things that are not appealing to the eye are worthless?

2. Do you think men are as bad as she makes them out to be? Why or why not?

3. Is humor a good way to hide sadness? If so, why?


Link to midterm post: https://cophilosophy.blogspot.com/search?q=sei+shonagon