Unknown Edo period artist on Wikimedia

If you're looking for a book to read, The Tale of Genji is one worth reaching for, even if you've read it before, and even if you've read it more than once. But why is this novel so important, and how has it shaped Japanese literature—and literature in general—as we know it today? As we touch on its history and impact in this article, you might just be inspired to pick up a copy and read along.

World's First Novel

Written in the early 11th century, The Tale of Genji is often considered to be the world's first proper novel. Perhaps even more notably, it was written by Murasaki Shikibu, a woman, and in varying forms of Japanese: kana script, the one reserved for women, and kanji, characters derived from Chinese that were reserved for men.

It wasn't short in length, either. The Tale of Genji was an arduous project, likely penned over the course of a decade by Shikibu. It consists of 54 chapters and 800 waka, or courtly poems, all centered on one protagonist: Prince Genji. Through Prince Genji's perspective, the reader is transported to Japan's Heian period (794-1185), getting a vivid taste of what life was like during that era. Shikibu's background also allowed her to incorporate accurate depictions of court politics into her work, making the novel that much more immersive.

Why It's So Important

Shōren'in Sonjun Shinnō on Wikimedia

The Tale of Genji has shaped literature in many ways. Not only was it the first novel, but it was also the first of its kind to delve into the inner lives of fictional characters, something that earlier historical epics never quite did. Shikibu's style allowed readers to get into the minds of the people in her story and understand the complex emotions each of them felt, a form of writing that wasn't quite the norm yet back in the 11th century.

For Japanese culture in particular, The Tale of Genji influenced everything from art to theater, poetry to long-form literature. One of the novel's most devoted readers was Yasunari Kawabata, who, in his Nobel Prize lecture in 1968 —where he was also the first Japanese author to win the Nobel Prize in Literature—said: "The Tale of Genji in particular is the highest pinnacle of Japanese literature. Even down to our day there has not been a piece of fiction to compare with it. That such a modern work should have been written in the eleventh century is a miracle."

The Tale of Genji's Lasting Impact

Despite having been written over 1,000 years ago, The Tale of Genji continues to be one of the world's most important pieces of literature, and its presence lives on in every corner, every crevice. To introduce and establish imaginative prose in an era where such a style didn't yet exist is not a simple feat, and Shikibu's work is a masterpiece that deserves every word of praise and recognition.

To date, there are four major translations available to English readers. Arthur Waley was the first to publish a complete translation in 1925, with the most recent interpretation by Dennis Washburn in 2015. Royall Tyler, who had published a translation of the work in 2001, wrote this in Harvard Magazine the following year: "After eight and a half years spent translating, pondering, and discussing it, I still cannot imagine how she created it."