《源氏物语》中《末摘花》之章与平安时期的宫廷生活（上篇）(6)

In particular, the chapter “The Safflower” reflects a lot of these Heian ideals. The chapter starts with Genji talking with a female friend of his, Tayu, who mentions a mysterious and tragic friend of hers. This friend is the daughter of the late Prince Hitachi, a prominent figure of court life in his day. Genji is intrigued by this princess and asks to visit her. Unbeknownst to the very shy princess, Genji is present when she plays the koto for her friend Tayu. Genji leaves without making his presence known and decides he will begin pursuing his interest in the mysterious lady. He meets with his friend To no Chujo, who happened to be following Genji at the time, and they discuss the mysterious princess and her koto. Each write to the princess, and are upset when she does not respond to their letters. To no Chujo, believing a response to be the mark of an admirable woman, is appalled and stops his pursuits. Genji, however frustrated, decides to continue his advances to see the true nature of the mysterious princess, perhaps fueled by his rivalry with To no Chujo. He continues to write letters, to no avail, and again asks for Tayu’s help to see her. Tayu reluctantly agrees to help Genji, acknowledging this may put the princess in an uncomfortable position. Genji and Tayu arrive at the princess’ estate; Tayu announces Genji’s presence, much to the princess’ panicked dismay. The safflower princess agrees to meet with Genji, but behind her barrier, and only if she does not have to speak. She then meets with Genji, who begins to talk in verse as the princess remains silent. Driven mad by the silence, Genji opens the sliding door. The princess is stunned and remains as silent as ever. Her attending women were eager to forgive the incident, since they seem to not often have experiences with a respected and handsome man like Genji. Eventually, after the encounter, the princess sends a letter to Genji, who is no longer interested. However, he has sympathy for the strange reticent princess and decides he must look after her in her unfortunate circumstances. He starts sending her gifts, of a nonromantic value, to help support her in her decrepit estate. Later, he once again visits the princess, spending the night with her. However, upon stealing a glance of her, he notices her true features; she is a very thin girl in outdated clothing with a long face and an unusually long and red nose, reminding him of a safflower; the image is very unsightly to Genji. The chapter ends with Genji and his adoptive daughter Murasaki painting and musing about the color red (Murasaki, The Tales of Genji).