Японские средневековые иллюстрированные повести: Оторидзоси

Japanese literary genre
medieval Japanese illustrated short stories

(御伽草子) are a group of about 350 Japanese prose narratives written primarily in the Muromachi period (1392–1573). These illustrated short stories, which remain unattributed, together form one of the representative literary genres of the Japanese medieval era.

Otogi zōshi is a general term for narrative literature written between the Muromachi period (approximately 1336–1573) and the beginning of the Edo period (1603–1867). The term originates with a mid Edo collection of 23 stories, titled (御伽文庫) or (御伽草紙/御伽草子). It later came to denote other works of the same genre and period. Modern scholarship sometimes distinguishes between "true" otogi zōshi, covering only the 23 works included in the aforementioned collection, and other works that it instead terms (室町時代物語) or (中世小説).

Kuge mono are tales of the aristocracy. They mark a continuation of the earlier monogatari literature, and are noted for the influence of The Tale of Genji. Many of them are rewritten or abridged versions of earlier works. Among the romantic works in this sub genre are (忍音物語) and (若草物語), and most end sadly with the characters cutting themselves off from society ( (悲恋遁世)).

Otogi zōshi have been broken down into multiple categories: tales of the aristocracy, which are derived from earlier works such as The Tale of Genji; religious tales; tales of warriors, often based on The Tale of the Heike, the Taiheiki, The Tale of the Soga and the Gikeiki (The Tale of Yoshitsune); tales of foreign countries, based on the Konjaku Monogatarishū. The most well known of the tales, however, are retellings of familiar legends and folktales, such as Issun bōshi, the story of a one inch tall boy who overcomes countless obstacles to achieve success in the capital.

The term otogi literally means 'companion', with the full name of the genre translating to 'companion tale'. This designation, however, did not come into use until 1725, when a publisher in Osaka released a set of 23 illustrated booklets titled Shūgen otogibunko (Fortuitous Companion Library). As other publishers produced their own versions of Shūgen otogibunko, they began referring to the set of tales as otogi zōshi. Gradually the term came to describe any work from the Muromachi or early Edo period that exhibited the same general style as the tales in Shūgen otogibunko.

Otogi zōshi came to the attention of modern literary historians in the late 19th century. For the most part, scholars have been critical of this genre, dismissing it for its perceived faults when compared to the aristocratic literature of the Heian and Kamakura periods. As a result, standardized Japanese school textbooks often omit any reference to otogi zōshi from their discussions of medieval Japanese literature. Recent studies, however, have contradicted this critical stance, highlighting the vitality and inherent appeal of this underappreciated genre. The term chusei shosetsu ('medieval novels'), coined by eminent scholar Ichiko Teiji, attempts to situate the tales within a narrative continuum.