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Reinventing China: cultural adaptation in medieval Japanese Nô Theatre

Yip, Leo Shing Chi
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1087569643

Abstract Details

2004, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, East Asian Languages and Literatures.
This study examines adaptations of Chinese culture in medieval Japanese Nô theatre through analyzing a group of Nô plays featuring Chinese motifs, also referred to as “Chinese plays,” written between the late fourteenth and the early sixteenth centuries. It investigates how changing relations with China, reception history of Chinese motifs, as well as evolving aesthetic and cultural norms on the part of playwrights and audiences of Nô, shaped the making of these plays. I propose what I refer to as a Filter Model, based on my reading of treatises of Nô and supported by contemporary theory of intercultural theatre, to analyze the (re)interpretations and (re)construction of various images of China within specific historical and cultural contexts. I argue that this group of plays was not about representing China, but rather about manipulating the perceived images of China and catering to the cultural practices, aesthetic preferences, and sociopolitical attitudes of various audience groups in medieval Japan. It is through the different images of China constructed in these plays that the playwrights amplify certain aspects of Nô, such as auspiciousness, cultural identity, depictions of human emotion, and dance performances. Chapter One lays out the theoretical and historical framework for the study. I critically review current scholarship on issues of Other and Self, and on conceptions of Intercultural Theatre. I then trace the dynamics of cultural exchanges between China and Japan that had influenced the reception of Chinese motifs in Nô theatre. Chapter Two centers on the underlying variables in the composition of “Chinese plays.” I first assess the influential role of audience and patron of Nô. I then introduce my Filter Model, which illustrates the complex interplay of sociopolitical milieux, basic sources, perspectives and dramaturgies of the playwrights, in the making of “Chinese plays.” Chapters Three to Seven examine ten “Chinese plays” that, taken together, display a well-rounded representation of Chinese images constructed in Nô. Chapter Eight identifies the characteristics and significance of cross-cultural adaptations involved in these plays. Furthermore, I put relevant modern theories to the test against my findings to highlight the particularities of “Chinese plays” in an East-East context.
Shelley Quinn (Advisor)
347 p.
Literature, Asian
Literature; Theatre; Japan; China; Asian; Noh Theatre; Cultural Adaptation; Intercultural Theatre; Other and Self; Interdisciplinary Studies; Cultural Studies; Performance Theory; Reception Theory; Art History; Religious Studies; History; Audience

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Yip, L. S. C. (2004). Reinventing China: cultural adaptation in medieval Japanese Nô Theatre [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1087569643

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Yip, Leo Shing Chi. Reinventing China: cultural adaptation in medieval Japanese Nô Theatre. 2004. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1087569643.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Yip, Leo Shing Chi. "Reinventing China: cultural adaptation in medieval Japanese Nô Theatre." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2004. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1087569643

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.