A novel from 1958 and not published in English until 1983, this book by Fumiko Enchi is about a woman in her fifties manipulating and controlling her widowed daughter in law as she moves forward in remarriage. I don’t know much about this author, but her name came up several times in broad-minded research into Japanese literature (of the 20th century), and this book is a real gem for expanding that research. The main character Mieko and one of the potential suitors both work in the literary world, and Mieko is well known as the writer of a seminal essay on one scene from Murasaki’s Tale of Genji. In addition, there are numerous discussions on Noh theater masks, where the novel takes its title.
For me this novel is about the inability to step aside into modernity, and this is shown in numerous places throughout. The masks, as they’re described in the novel, are fixed entities, and represent archetypal figures of characters. This concept has a long history in theater across many different cultures such as ancient Greek plays and Comedia del Artes, and even Punch and Judy shows. And so here, the locked in character has a way of controlling, in strict ways, cultural forms. The deference paid and references made to older literary figures, especially Murakami, spark a lot of the same idea in my reading. And so, bringing us the Mieko’s inability to let go of her control and allow her daughter in law to make choices on her speak to this as well. And I think there’s perhaps a broader concern for how modernity will play out in a post-war Japan.
This novel read a lot like a blend of Junichiro Tanazaki and Iris Murdoch.
(Photo: https://www.amazon.com/Masks-Fumiko-Enchi/dp/0394509455/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3GWWDBO982DBO&keywords=fumiko+enchi&qid=1550106797&s=gateway&sprefix=fumiko+%2Caps%2C127&sr=8-1)
