Memoirs of a Geisha

Usagi · Post by **Usagi** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 11:29 -0700

Hi you guys! I was brousing around in the atic before I left home, and found a book a read a while back called "Memoirs of a Geisha" by Arthur Golden.

It was a great book and one of my top 10 favorite books. I also went online and saw that there is a movie based on the book.

Hear is the link to the Movie, but have any of you guys hurd anything about it being released?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0397535/

When I read the book, I went out and also bough "The World of Geisha" DVD by Tatsumi Kumashiro. Its from the late 70's. When I bought it , I was exspecting something along the line of the book "Memoirs of a Geisha"- but this movie really broke apart into the darker side of what geisha's do.

http://www.kino.com/video/item.php?product_id=870

I thought this would be interesting to show you guys, but are geisha's today, likely to still be considerd Prostitues, or has their title simmerd down to the colorful cloths and tea parites?

estee · Post by **estee** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 14:27 -0700

From what little I know on the subject, Geisha's weren't prostitutes, they were entertainers, schooled in the art of conversation.

hakucho · Post by **hakucho** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 14:48 -0700

Heh, I was just about to post a thread about the book and the upcoming film! ^^

I remember when someone complained about the novel and had a book published about her own experiences as a geisha, passing them off as being universal to what others experienced and did. It's called "Geisha of Gion", and I personally recommend that you DON'T read it, because it's boring and pointless as it's only about ONE woman's memories and experiences of her past career.

"Memoirs of a Geisha" is a beautifully written novel, and - if I remember correctly - it was recommended to Stan by his editor

I also know that in volume 17 of Usagi Yojimbo ("Duel at Kitanoji Temple") Katsuichi-sensei and his friend laugh about their days as student warriors when they used to sneak off to the Geisha houses at night and got punished by their teacher for it.

Stan, if you don't mind what where your thoughts on the novel "Memoirs of a Geisha", and from what you've researched were geisha considered to be more or less like entertaining prostitutes (in that they had a danna with whom they had sexual affairs)?

Usagi · Post by **Usagi** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 15:49 -0700

Well, I should rephrase that- when I mean Prostitute I Do not mean, they just sell their body, If I remember right, Geishas’ were able to have sex with their clients, but it was consensual, and of no relationship involvement. I do not mean to give them a title of a whore, but if the client wished, and paid, geisha’s were able to have sex or spend the night. Their was a Geisha in the book, who got pregnant and she had an Abortion I think…Geisha's skilled in the arts of entertainment also had a personal role to please the man, if he so wanted, and if he had the money.

If you were a Prostitute there was another house for that, and a Mistress who was in charge of the girls. Their Obies would be tied at the front, which was a indication that she was a prostitute (And it was easier to tie on and take off)

Hear is the discription to the DvD "World if Geisha",but all in all, you would have to watch the film to better understand were Im comming from...

"Set in a geisha house just before the Russo-Japanese War, a beautiful Geisha spends the night with a first-time customer who is about to be married. As an experienced geisha, she is not supposed to become personally involved (or sexually excited), but does anyway.

Her fellow geishas, both young and old, become involved with a variety of relationships as Kumashiro boldly analyzes the politics of the period using images of rice riots, Korean uprisings, and the eventual Japanese invasion of Siberia. "

hakucho- When you mean volume 17 do you mean the Graphic novels or the Issues?..

Stan Sakai · Post by **Stan Sakai** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 16:45 -0700

I did enjoy the book.

The geisha were versed in the arts of conversation, dance, poetry, etc. They were not courtesans, but could have a male "benefactor".

I understand the Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi (Crouching Tiger, House of Flying Daggers) will star in the movie. She isn't Japanese, but she is the popular Asian actress.

estee · Post by **estee** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 16:56 -0700

Stan Sakai wrote:I did enjoy the book.

The geisha were versed in the arts of conversation, dance, poetry, etc. They were not courtesans, but could have a male "benefactor".

I understand the Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi (Crouching Tiger, House of Flying Daggers) will star in the movie. She isn't Japanese, but she is the popular Asian actress.

Well I guess if Anthony Hopkins can play Nixon....This just feels like the Producers are pandering to Western audiences' need for a famous face, in this case a famous Asian face.

hakucho · Post by **hakucho** » Sun Oct 02, 2005 4:54 -0700

Usagi wrote:hakucho- When you mean volume 17 do you mean the Graphic novels or the Issues?..

I should have specified ^^; The graphic novels. I'm not sure what issue it was on its own, though.

Stan and Usagi, thanks fore clearifying information about geisha. Man, I still remember when a teacher kept ranting and raveing against the book, accusing it of impingeing American views onto foreigners even though he hadn't even read the book!

Apparently there are more Geisha (non-fiction) biographies out there since the novel came out, and they seem to be more darker like the "World of Geisha" you bought.

"Autobiography of a Geisha"
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... ce&s=books

Apparently Michelle Yeoh is also to star in the film, being another famous Asian face.

Usagi · Post by **Usagi** » Sun Oct 02, 2005 6:29 -0700

Stan Sakai wrote: The geisha were versed in the arts of conversation, dance, poetry, etc. They were not courtesans, but could have a male "benefactor".
.

There we go, thats what I mean

....coudlent find the right words for it

hakucho wrote:
Usagi wrote:hakucho- When you mean volume 17 do you mean the Graphic novels or the Issues?..
I should have specified ^^; The graphic novels. I'm not sure what issue it was on its own, though.

Stan and Usagi, thanks fore clearifying information about geisha. Man, I still remember when a teacher kept ranting and raveing against the book, accusing it of impingeing American views onto foreigners even though he hadn't even read the book!

Apparently there are more Geisha (non-fiction) biographies out there since the novel came out, and they seem to be more darker like the "World of Geisha" you bought.

"Autobiography of a Geisha"
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... ce&s=books

Apparently Michelle Yeoh is also to star in the film, being another famous Asian face.

Ah, See, I dont read the GN for Usagi, its not that I don't want to, its just, they are harder to find, so I bought the Issues....and even those can get hard to find. I'll have to keep an eye out on that on.

To prduce a good story without really having to "Live it" does take a lot of work and in a way, its a foarm acting. I think each charactor was brought out very well regarless of the 'American Man" writing it. Im sure he had to do a lot of study and research about this subject long before he started writting the book.

Yea, when I bough World of Geisha, and made my sister and friend watch it, they either laughed at me, or they were like "You bought a Japanese Porn!"- When really, it was out of courioscity, and well....it killed my cat, but I did learn from it, but their are way better and recent storys of the Geisha that can be found today in a much more tastfull setting.

hakucho · Post by **hakucho** » Tue Oct 04, 2005 6:51 -0700

Usagi wrote:To prduce a good story without really having to "Live it" does take a lot of work and in a way, its a foarm acting. I think each charactor was brought out very well regarless of the 'American Man" writing it. Im sure he had to do a lot of study and research about this subject long before he started writting the book.

Yeah. Just because Arthur Golden happens to be American doesn't mean that he's going to reinforce stereotypes or whatever. The guy did his research, for crying out loud! Sorry, I'm still annoyed at the way that teacher insisted that the novel was nothing more than the imposing of a foreigner's ideals and stereotypes -_-;;