Moreover, he does not provide a straightforward, stand-alone translation, but instead offers a mix of translated passages and commentary that contextualizes and explains the original text. a full three-quarters of the text) he found dull, unintelligible and repetitive, or that required too much explanation.

Waley informs us at the very beginning of his work that he has translated only about one-quarter of the original, omitting “only” those portions (i.e. Printed in Singapore TUTTLE PUBLISHING ® is a registered trademark of Tuttle Publishing, a division of Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd.Īrthur Waley’s translation of Sei Sh ō nagon’s The Pillow Book ( Makura no s ō shi ), which was first published in 1928, may strike contemporary readers as something of a literary curiosity. North America, Latin America & Europe Tuttle Publishing 364 Innovation Drive North Clarendon, VT 05759-9436 U.S.A. The pillow book of Sei Shonagon: The Diary of a Courtesan in Tenth Century Japan / translated by Arthur Waley with a foreword by Dennis Washburn. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission from the publisher. Published by Tuttle Publishing, an imprint of Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd.Ĭopyright © 2011 Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd.Ĭredit Images used with the permission of The Clark Center for Japanese Art & Culture All rights reserved.

The Pillow Book by Sei Shōnagon