Final Thoughts

I wanted to write a blog on my final thoughts and or comments. Anyone is welcome to comment or write a blog yourself. In the process of reading Tale of Genji I felt moved in many ways. Trying to find Western connections in an Eastern text was nonetheless very interesting. I enjoyed this project very much. Whether or not Shikibu meant to use 'symbolism' is still up for debate . I am very proud of our project and will look on it very fondly. Some people may think that reading Tale of Genji may be like reading the same chapter over and over (Genji finds a flower, falls in love, leaves, women longs for him etc). I do not think this is so because in each chapter Genji has grown and he himself has blossomed.
I was speaking to Professor Ogden about not finishing the story because Genji had died. I was saying that Genji was magic. When he was gone the magic was gone. What makes Genji himself is the women that surround him; they are what push him and they make him exist. Finally, flowers always continue to bloom year after year and in a way the text keeps on inspiring and 'blooming' even after this course and project is finished.