The New Tale of Taira (1)

In the New Tale of Taira, Shin Heike Monogatari, Eiji Yoshikawa tells the story of Japan's significant transformation from a civilian aristocratic society to a new samurai era at the end of the 12th century. The Taira tribe's master, Tadamori Taira, serves Japan's most powerful person, the retired emperor Toba, as the guard chief. Tadamori has earned the trust of the former emperor through his potent weapons and unique personality. This trust is a significant aspect of their relationship, which one gains slowly. However, despite this, his tribe is poor and discriminated against by the nobles. Tadamori's eldest son, Kiyomori, the novel's hero, is twenty. The oppression of the samurai by Fujiwara's family annoys Kiyomori greatly. Resistance to the nobility slowly germinates in Kiyomori's consciousness. With unwavering patience, he awaits his chance, which is yet to come. The nobles become entangled in intriguing power struggles over the choice of the first lady and the succession to the throne.

Eiji Yoshikawa (1892 - 1962) is one of Japan's best-known writers of popular literature. He wrote novels about historical characters and themes from an early age. From 1935 to 1939, he published the serial novel Miyamoto Musashi in a weekly newspaper. Japanese read no other serial novel as widely as Miyamoto Musashi. His literary portrayal of the famous swordsman resonated strongly with the Japanese suffering under the miserable circumstances of the Second World War. As renowned literature novel, Miyamoto Musashi was a great success. Eiji Yoshikawa was very disappointed by the defeat of the Second World War and the unimaginable destruction of Japan and was unable to write for several years. He only began writing the great novel Shin Heike Monogatari ,The New Tale of Taira, in 1950 and completed it after 7 years. In this novel, which Shukan Asahi published as a newspaper series, Eiji Yoshikawa interpreted the classic novel The Tale of The Heike from a new perspective. The Taira tribe perishes in the power struggle against arch-rival Minamoto. This long novel appealed to many Japanese, whom the postwar situation badly shook. A literature scholar says this novel is his life's work and Japan's eternal literature. Kodansha published 1989 the paperback version with 16 volumes. Shinchosha followed in 2014 with 20 books.