Basic Information
Summary
Baba Sayuri (Teikyo University)
“Kanji Expressions in the Kojiki—A Comparison with the Nihon Shoki.”
Host
KAKENHI Program “Development of the Next Generation of East Asian Classical Studies through International Collaboration: From the Perspective of the Frontier of the Realm of Chinese Characters”
Reports
This online seminar was held for undergraduate and graduate students studying Japanese language and culture at the Department of Foreign Languages, Peking University. In this first session, Professor Baba Sayuri gave a presentation entitled “Kanji Expressions in the Kojiki—A Comparison with the Nihon Shoki.”
First, it was explained that while the Nihon shoki was written in literary Sinitic, the Kojiki was an attempt to write Japanese using Chinese characters. It was noted that this became possible through the stabilization of kanbun kundoku. Next, it was shown that in the Kojiki, while the prose sections are primarily written in kundoku, the poems are written phonetically, reflecting a distinction in writing styles. This distinction was discussed as creating a dualistic expression, where the prose narrates objective facts, and the poems represent the world as perceived by the participants. Finally, it was pointed out that in the case of the Nihon shoki, the prose serves to interpret the poems, revealing a different relationship between prose and poetry compared to the Kojiki.
Since this seminar was aimed at participants including undergraduate students, the presentation started with a review of basic concepts and then progressed onto more specialized discussions. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the seminar was held online, but it provided a meaningful opportunity to connect with members of the Peking University university for the first time.
Written by Tobita Hidenobu, PhD Candidate, Tokyo University.
