31 - The late medieval warrior tales: fromSoga monogataritoTaiheiki

Summary

In the late medieval period, or the Muromachi period, a body of works developed that focused, not only on war and battles, but instead on the lives of specific warriors associated with the Genpei period. The two most representative are Soga monogatari and Gikeiki, two long war tales about events related to Minamoto Yoritomo's establishment of the Kamakura shogunate. Soga monogatari is episodic and demonstrates a clearly Buddhist editorial hand. The final major medieval war tale, arguably as important for medieval and early modern readers and audiences as Heike, is Taiheiki, which narrates the tumultuous events and aftermath of the Kenmu Restoration of 1333-6. Written in mixed Chinese-Japanese style, the forty chapters of Taiheiki trace events from 1318 to 1367, a period that witnessed the division of the royal line and simultaneous existence of Northern and Southern imperial courts, as well as the overthrow of the Kamakura shogunate, an event closely tied to the royal schism.