From the nineteenth century many people--Japanese and non-Japanese--have held stereotypes of what constitutes Japanese art and culture. To Europeans and Americans, Japan has often appeared as part of "the mysterious Orient," at once intriguing and incomprehensible. Japanese have often encouraged such characterizations (true or not), especially at times when definitions of Japan, Japanese people, and Japanese culture have been based on difference from "the West," real or imagined.

While Japan in the 1920s and 1930s (at least in the big cities like Tokyo) seemed dominated by western forms--whether it be in architecture, fashion, films, factories, food, or literature--this period also saw among writers and intellectuals serious reflection on the nature and fate of Japanese culture. Indeed, the apparent inundation of non-indigenous forms stimulated this reflection and sometimes led to a cultural retrenchment that sought to salvage and assert that which was "authentically Japanese."

Tanizaki Jun'ichirô, known primarily for his numerous works of fiction and not his philosophizing, wrote in 1933 a curious little essay entitled "In'ei raisan" (In praise of shadows) which can be counted among these attempts to define "Japaneseness" in the face of modern changes inspired by foreign forms. Centered on what he claims are Japanese sensibilities, Tanizaki describes an aesthetic of shadows which, according to him, envelopes and embodies pure and authentic Japanese culture.

Instructions: Read In Praise of Shadows. Then view the following slide show of images that have been paired with passages of Tanizaki's essay. They are intended as a visual accompaniment to the text and as an inspiration for your contemplation over these questions, to which you will respond in about 500 aesthetically pleasing words emailed to me: In your reading of In Praise of Shadows, what did Tanizaki seem to value most and why? What, in your view, led him to value what he does? Think expansively.