This Master Thesis is an interdisciplinary case study that examines physical sexual violence in the form of female displacement in Murasaki Shikibu’s eleventh-century Japanese masterpiece, The Tale of Genji. By investigating several cases ranging from spatial relocation to abduction and kidnapping involving four major Genji heroines, Utsusemi, Yūgao, Murasaki and Ukifune, I define violent displacement as an autonomous act of sexual violence by which a male character removes a female character from her initial location to a place of his choice. The man’s motivations are predominantly related to gaining sexual access to the woman’s body or ensuring control over her. Often such cases of displacement occur in the same context as other cases of physical sexual violence, such as forced sexual intercourse, which they may precede and facilitate, but rarely do they constitute mere preludes to more severe acts of sexual violence. I have posited several hypotheses about displacement, such as differences in rank and status between the protagonists, the man’s violation of standard courtship procedures, and the reactions by the woman and her female entourage. With these criteria, I have interpreted episodes of displacement in the female author’s tale, with particular emphasis on her choice of words and narrative techniques. I have supplemented textual analysis by examining the history of motifs in Genji illustrations by artists who interpreted these displacement episodes very differently or not at all. I conclude that the discourse on sexual violence in The Tale of Genji cannot be limited to the incidents involving forced sexual intercourse. The presence of female displacement indicates that sexual violence in the tale is not an accidental occurrence, but a topos carefully constructed by Murasaki Shikibu and strategically placed within the context of the tale.

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In this thesis, using Ōshiro Tatsuhiro’s “Meiro” (Maze, 1991) and Nakandakari Hatsu’s “Hahatachi onnatachi” (Mothers/Women, 1984) as primary sources, I have pursued two main questions about postwar Okinawan literature: the question of how memory is transmitted, along gender lines, about a traumatic past through the generations and the question of yuta operating as transmitters, mediators, and anchors of cultural identity under the threat of foreign influence. Both “Maze” and “Mothers/Women” address the issue of postwar Okinawan identity in the face of an influx of new ideas and practices by portraying Okinawan women’s struggle to find their identity. These two stories reveal the link between women’s spirituality and the construction of Okinawan postwar identity. In doing so, they demonstrate how the Okinawan religious view of women as spiritual and religious figures have inspired Okinawan authors to construct narratives of postwar Okinawan society and Okinawan people’s lives therein.

This thesis consists of research on women and Buddhism in light of a medieval Japanese Buddhist tales collection called Kankyo no Ｔomo. This collection reveals the predicament in which women in medieval Japan found themselves. As the focus of sexual desire (towards them and by them), they were also inherently polluted due to their connection with blood (kegare).

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Thirteen assorted fairy tales by early 20th century Japanese poet/author Miyazawa Kenji, collected and translated with an analytical introduction by the translator. The introduction explores the presence of "the agent of the outside" in the majority of the author's work and how this literary concept serves to encourage the reader to escape subjective viewpoints.

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