The polygenesis of the novel in Taketori monogatari

Abstract

The article debates the theory of the polygenesis of the novel, which proposes that the genre had multiple origins in different times and places, following a multitude of evolutionary lineages. This hypothesis demands a reevaluation of canonical trends in the history and theory of the novel, following the inclusion in the genre’s expanded history of texts written in periods and places previously ignored. One of these contexts of emergence of the novel which requires deeper investigation is the Heian period in Japan, during which the monogatari, fictional works written in prose, circulated among courtly readers. More specifically, we discuss the classification of the Taketori monogatari as an early novel, by identifying in its composition a few trans-historical structures present in novels of diverse places and periods: its fictional condition, its prose writing, its rapport to prosaic life, and its initial marginality within elite culture. As we understand that the flexibility and hybrid quality of the novel are among its defining characteristics, we also discuss the Taketori’s appropriation of elements from other genres of discourse as a possible index of its novelistic quality.