Word: geishas
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Dalby has good reason to be concerned about geishas in a way that goes beyond mere academic concern. As an anthropology student doing field research for her Ph.D dissertation, she became the first non-Japanese woman to be accepted into the geisha community and became the geisha lchgiku...
...Geishas are not prostitutes, as is commonly assumed among Americans. But because of the nature of their profession there is a certain risque and taboo element to their life. Geisha are entertainers; they are hired by small gatherings of men for evening amusement at banquets. Geisha perform traditional dances and songs, pour sake for the customers and provide the services of a very well-trained and amusing hostess who make parties run smoothly...
Most Americans--mindful of the nature of a geisha's work--react with disdain and shock. Women whose sole purpose is to entertain men seem outrageously chauvinist. It's not a new discovery that Japan is a male-dominated society, and Dalby certainly does not deny that, on the surface, the job of being a geisha might appear degrading. But she enters the world of the geisha and discovers--surprisingly--a world of women with a strong sense of independence, self-respect and love for the art which is their job. In short, geisha lead an intriguing life that offers...
...that geisha's lives do not revolve around men. Geisha take lovers and have parlors who give them money and support them. Taking a patron is never obligatory and, unlike most Japanese women, geisha don't feel an intense social pressure to marry...
...Geisha is full of anecdotes about the social life of the geisha, but interestingly enough, Dalby concentrates on the interpersonal geisha relationships rather than supplying the reader with what is most fascinating--how a banquet is run and what it is in particular about geisha that make them so exotic. The occasions when she describes the course of a banquet are some of the most amusing in the book. It is not surprising that Dalby conveys a greater interest in the internal world of the geisha--how the women relate to one another. And what she finds in the Kyoto...