Essay # 1 (the short one)

Of toilets and paper

It is not just Japanese writers who use traditional ideas and culture to “influence” them, every author is guilty of this in some way. In the case of Tanizaki’s In Praise of Shadows he uses specific cultural cues to invoke cultural pride in his readers, thus allowing him to make his writing appear more significant to the time period. He does this especially in his mini essays on the toilet, paper and lighting.
When talking about toilets in most western cultures there is an awkward silence, so reading a whole section of Tanizaki’s essay that was all about toilets was amusing and different for me. However, this is not the reaction Tanizaki expected, rather he expected most of his readers to be Japanese, who could understand and share his feelings. He explains the atheistic of the Japanese bathroom with such reverence that even people who would use such a bathroom daily suddenly feel privileged to use it, for example “…must agree that the Japanese toilet is perfection.” (5) He describes the calmness that surrounds him, and the feelings that other famous historical people such as Natsume Souseki (a famous novelist) have felt using the bathroom. While I can agree to having a wonderful trip to the bathroom, the way Tanizaki describes the experience of utilizing a Japanese toilet is something else.
By referencing famous temples and authors Tanizaki creates a culture link between him and the reader. He calls upon them to remember the historical information regarding that place or person and to make the connection to his topic. For example, his reference to Natsume Souseki acts as a support to his argument that Japanese toilets are awesome, because by quoting Souseki, Tanizaki borrows all the respect people have for Souseki and uses it to support his idea. The same is done in other texts we read this semester; poets borrowed the idea of dew drops that the ancient Heian poets created to add depth to their topic. Tanizaki does a similar thing, but he uses the information that is in the minds of his readers to confirm what he writing. The drawbacks to this are that he eventually sides with an in between version, which does not please him to the extent at an all wooden bathroom would, but pleases him more than a completely western tile bathroom would.
When Tanizaki writes about lighting and his problems with the fluorescent light bulbs that are used, he goes into detail about how much the dishes of tradition have changed. I agree with him that lacquered dishes look stunning in the darkness that would have been a traditional Japanese house, in fact I believe even people look better when lit with candlelight, because as it is the nature of the flame to shift and hide while showing small pieces with a warm, beautiful glow. And although I can respect the “sheen of antiquity” that appears on all loved items, I feel that sometimes it is inappropriate to have it, because it does not look always look well aged but it can look very dirty and uncared for.
In the end Tanizaki says that Japanese paper is the best out there because of its texture and that if the Chinese or Japanese had made the mechanical pen then everything would be completely different from how it is now. (8) But I can agree with him to some extent on this, I also feel that Japanese paper is more durable and feels nice to the touch, but I still feel that he is being too biased.
All in all, Tanizaki uses a common trope that all writers use in order to create a bond with their audience. They depend on the audience to know about the cultural cues that they are referencing and then they depend on them to make the connections. I would not say it is a cheap tactic, but rather a intellectual one, because it depends on the audience being educated. However As with everything in the world, there are drawbacks, and that is Tanizaki comes off as a person who accepts modern advancements but resents the Western culture, someone who is very much a nationalistic person.