Word: geishas
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...their own biological possibilities and derive their identity solely from their Commanders. The narrator's new name, Offred, really identifies her owner; she belongs for the time being to a man named Fred. She explains the duties of her station: "We are for breeding purposes: we aren't concubines, geisha girls, courtesans. On the contrary: everything possible has been done to remove us from that category. There is supposed to be nothing entertaining about...
...Geisha have varied reasons for entering their profession; some are devoted to the art which they practice, others want the freedom, while still more are attracted to the exotic world of "the flower and willow" as it is called, but plan one day to drop out and get married Despite the reasons for joining, no geisha practices her livelihood without...
...Geisha began in the 17th century as entertainers for prostitutes, and given that dubious beginning it is no wonder that geisha have always been associated with a sensual way of life. Originally geisha were the innovators in fashion and music; they were the vanguard of society. But as Japan became more modern and Western, geisha realized that their profession was intimately tied with the traditional Japanese arts. So where most Japanese women felt uncomfortable in a kimono, the geisha leads her life...
Dalby likes this traditional element and devotes a large amount of her book to descriptions of the kimono and the shamisen--a geisha's musical instrument...
Dalby not only likes the traditional element, but she also likes the world of the geisha. Immersed as she was in it for over a year in 1975, one cannot help but wonder how truly objective she is. She obviously loved the world and found it an attractive way of life. Her personal intimacy with geisha, however, gives the book an appealing quality. Dalby understands the world of flowers and bamboo and does an admirable job of transmitting that understanding to her Western readers who may be more concerned with car imports than understanding the Japanese...