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A review by afreen7
In Praise of Shadows by Jun'ichirō Tanizaki, Charles Moore
3.0
"when we gaze into the darkness that gathers behind the crossbeam, around the flower vase, beneath the shelves, though we know perfectly well it is mere shadow, we are overcome with the feeling that in this small corner of the atmosphere there reigns complete and utter silence; that here in the darkness immutable tranquility holds sway. The “mysterious Orient” of which Westerners speak probably refers to the uncanny silence of these dark places.
In Praise of Shadows is an interesting essay collection because like the content or not you'll definitely be amused reading it. On the surface, it sounds like an old man rambling about the good old days but then I found it also funny how Tanizaki would admit that going back to those good old days and ways isn't feasible and maybe not so good.
The topics seem disconnected and random at first but once you read it you find that it flows really well. Every subject plays a part in the next be it Japanese toilets or kabuki. And it was easy and interesting to read the thoughts and opinions of an old writer on functions of traditional aesthetics who just wanted to put them down on paper before they disappeared forever
What I found distasteful though was the comparison of things like an illuminated Japanese toilet to that of an exposed woman. Or the old school thought of lighter skin colour being superior when he talks about how oriental women who cover their darker skin with white make-up is akin to "dirt at the bottom of a pool of pure water". And when he wrote about the orient developing "their own science" I initially thought he meant scientific progress in harmony with their culture but he was talking about how the basic physics, chemistry and function of atoms could be different than that of westerners which are kinda cringy and prideful. But then again ill give him the benefit of the doubt because he admits funnily later that as a writer he knows nothing of scientific matters. Although the development of "tools of our culture, suited to us" rather than borrowing from western countries is a very agreeable idea
It was also interesting to read about how gold was used in excess for illumination before electricity was commonplace but now it has reversed and gold is a lot rarer and costlier than lightbulbs. So many of his opinions are rooted in aesthetics but don't lean toward the nationalist view of inherent Japanese sensibility and more on necessity and culture. But they are also outdated and the idea of preservations of shadows for the aesthetics of a traditional Japanese room doesn't take into account, for example, the struggles of someone who is visually impaired.
In Praise of Shadows is an interesting essay collection because like the content or not you'll definitely be amused reading it. On the surface, it sounds like an old man rambling about the good old days but then I found it also funny how Tanizaki would admit that going back to those good old days and ways isn't feasible and maybe not so good.
The topics seem disconnected and random at first but once you read it you find that it flows really well. Every subject plays a part in the next be it Japanese toilets or kabuki. And it was easy and interesting to read the thoughts and opinions of an old writer on functions of traditional aesthetics who just wanted to put them down on paper before they disappeared forever
What I found distasteful though was the comparison of things like an illuminated Japanese toilet to that of an exposed woman. Or the old school thought of lighter skin colour being superior when he talks about how oriental women who cover their darker skin with white make-up is akin to "dirt at the bottom of a pool of pure water". And when he wrote about the orient developing "their own science" I initially thought he meant scientific progress in harmony with their culture but he was talking about how the basic physics, chemistry and function of atoms could be different than that of westerners which are kinda cringy and prideful. But then again ill give him the benefit of the doubt because he admits funnily later that as a writer he knows nothing of scientific matters. Although the development of "tools of our culture, suited to us" rather than borrowing from western countries is a very agreeable idea
It was also interesting to read about how gold was used in excess for illumination before electricity was commonplace but now it has reversed and gold is a lot rarer and costlier than lightbulbs. So many of his opinions are rooted in aesthetics but don't lean toward the nationalist view of inherent Japanese sensibility and more on necessity and culture. But they are also outdated and the idea of preservations of shadows for the aesthetics of a traditional Japanese room doesn't take into account, for example, the struggles of someone who is visually impaired.