User:Hijiri88/Kiritsubo

Kiritsubo (桐壺 or 桐壷 in shinjitai) is the first chapter in The Tale of Genji. It chronicles events from before the birth of the work's protagonist, Hikaru Genji, to when he is in his twelfth year.

Synopsis

A young woman of relatively low birth (the Kiritsubo Consort) arrives at court and wins the affection of the emperor (the Kiritsubo Emperor), which earns her the resentment of the other women. She bears the emperor a prince, but when the child is in his third year she passes away, and the child is cared for by his maternal grandmother. She dies when the prince is in his fifth year, and the child goes to attend court permanently. The child is made a commoner and given the clan name Minamoto (Genji). The emperor misses his lost love dearly, and another woman, a princess born to a previous emperor (Lady Fujitsubo), who is said to bear a striking resemblance to the dead woman, comes to court to serve him. The child comes of age and is wedded to the daughter of the Minister of the Left (Aoi no Ue).