Memoirs of a Geisha

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden is a novel that states the inner and outer conflict that a teenage girl from Japan has to undergo to be an independent girl. Golden majored in art history, specializing in Japanese art. This love for Japanese culture pushed him to write the novel. Golden actually lived in Tokyo for a brief period, so he incorporated the culture of the Japanese into the book which brought the book to life. The genre of the book is realistic fiction. Golden had an intended audience that was guided towards teenagers. He makes this known by using exquisite diction along with many different forms of figurative language that relates to the teenage life. Memoirs of a Geisha is written in first person. While reading the book, the readers could clearly see all the struggles Sayuri undergoes. The setting of the book begins before World War II. The story follows Sayuri, the Japanese girl, through most of her life. It begins in a small town called Kyoto, a small fishing village. All seems to be well until the Great Depression strikes, and Sayuri’s father sells her and her sister to a business man for money. One thing about Sayuri stands out, her grayish blue eyes, and she is sold to a geisha house. This splits her entire family up, and it left her to fend for herself. In the beginning of the book Sayuri starts having flashbacks to when she was a young child. It is very sad to see how faintly she remembers her parents. The novel makes the reader feel like they are going through the experiences with Sayuri. She tries to stay strong, but it doesn’t appear to be all that easy. Golden really emphasizes what the impact of being a free woman really is. In America, the local mom is very rewarded with her freedom. In other countries, such as Japan, women are owned by men, and sometimes are forced to do degrading things that this side of the world has never seen. For example, in the book Sayuri is forced to be a prostitute, and to sell her body for money. This might be a little disturbing for some readers, but if they can overlook that aspect then they should really enjoy the book. Golden entices the reader by adding good diction and using actual Japanese words. This puts the reader in the correct plot, because Golden makes sure he brings some of the real life and culture into his novel. Golden’s style is unique. I like the fact that he took so much time to learn about the culture and then put it on a piece of paper so that other people could learn about it. The style has an informal tent to it though. He makes it an easy to comprehend novel. Most people enjoy an informative, easy read, fun book. Being a well written writer, Golden knew when to add the correct amount of imagery, and when to let it fade. Golden still gave you a crystal clear setting, but when it got too inappropriate, he knew when to start slowly shutting it down. For example, “I watched him walk away with sickness in my heart...” This is a quote close to the one of the first times she actually had to be forced to have sex with a man. The reader can infer that Sayuri was disgusted with herself, but could not do anything about it. She wasn’t a free woman anymore. Once Sayuri lives though her first encounter she thinks it becomes easier and easier. She is ashamed of what she is doing, but has no choice but to suffer though it. Another piece of figurative language that Golden uses well is similes. For example, “Hopes are like hair ornaments. Girls want to wear too many of them. When they become old women they look silly wearing even one.” This is comparing hopes to hair ornaments. Sayuri is about to give up on all her hopes of being free again, but then she finds out some critical information about her family that pushes her to keep striving on. She is tired of suffering, and wants to be a normal girl again, but once you’re sold into being a geisha it is a long and tiring process of finding your way out. Normally I do not enjoy books about sex and prostitution, but Golden knows how to

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden is a greatly detailed story of the hardships and success of one of Japan’s most celebrated geisha. Golden really gets into the mindset of a geisha and how tough it really was to be a geisha. Golden’s embodiment of a geisha with amazing detail and imagery makes you feel like you are there with this geisha hearing the story first-hand. The time set of the novel is 1930’s to the 1960’s. The setting of the novel is Yoroido, Japan at the beginning of the novel, then Kyoto, Japan in the middle towards the end, and then at the very end she finishes her story at New York in the United States. The theme is that although life is dictated by our destiny we can change parts of it by self determination. Self determination also moves the force of a tragic event inadvertently setting the stage for broader horizons or opportunities. Chiyo who is nine at the time is taken away from her home with her sister Satsu, sold by their own father. At Kyoto they then get separated. They each face a different fate; Chiyo is sold to a geisha house or okiya in the Gion district, while her sister, Satsu is sold to a prostitution house in the Miyagawa-cho district. Being separated, they have to continue on alone, Chiyo gets the mindset, that in order to become free, she must become a geisha, it is her destiny. Golden mainly wants the reader to understand the hardships and how much hard work it took to become a geisha or therefore get into a geisha house. Chiyo had to deal with many brutal people like Hatsumomo. Chiyo had to deal with her lies, pain, and brutality. She also has to deal with the classes with hard work and she was embarrassed by the teachers, which is greatly expressed by Golden’s detail and imagery he put in the novel, for example: “I couldn’t understand what was happening; but soon Hatsumomo had pulled me to my feet again, and began leading me up the stairs yanking my hair this way and that. She was shouting at me in anger...” This shows how evil and mean Hatsumomo is to Chiyo. With this excerpt from the book, I feel as though I am really there watching the scene and every page play out. Golden also wants you to feel what the characters are feeling like sadness, joy, exasperation, pain, and more. He puts great detail into each emotion to make sure you can feel what they are feeling. One of the most interesting and great things about Memoirs of a Geisha is the use of detail, imagery, and figurative language. The scenes in the book are vividly illustrated by Golden. He uses amazing imagery, like: “In our little fishing village of Yoroido, I live in what I called a “tipsy house.” It stood near a cliff where the wind off the ocean was always blowing. As a child it seemed to me as if the ocean had caught a terrible cold, because it was always wheezing and there would be spells when it let out a huge sneeze- which is to say there was a burst of wind with a tremendous spray.” Golden drags you right into the story as if you are the shadow of Chiyo watching her every move. Even though I was not very sure of what a geisha is or what life was exactly like for Japan during World War two I got the sense of the idea. They were first and for most artists, but they are also entertainers and even mistresses to men. The changes of the characters over time also greatly impressed me, Chiyo went from a shy, frail, little girl to a strong, out spoken, woman. In stories like Chiyo’s there will always be a great change in the main character and the book just falls together by the end of the book, you understand everything completely. You can enjoy the history of the geisha from Memoirs of a Geisha. I completely and immensely enjoy this book. The book also makes me want to read more books by Arthur Golden because his writing is so great with imagery and detail and how he embodies his characters giving you the true sense that a geisha wrote it, when they did not. I recommend this book to any adult or teenager who wants to read a good book with a little history and romance.

My brother had lived many years in Japan and knew much of Japanese culture. He had told of changes to their way of life after WWII and how many things that had long historical and cultural significance were forever changed after the war. Reading this story was an example of just such an instance. Though not a position in life I would want to bear, I can't imagine the strength it would have taken for these women to survive in a man's world of those times. I read it all over about 3 hours, and was worth it.