Morgan Pitelka, Reiko Tanimura, and Takashi Masuda. Letters from Japan’s Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries: The Correspondence of Warlords, Tea Masters, Zen Priests, and Aristocrats. Institute for East Asian Studies, UC Berkeley, 2021.

In this book, historians Morgan Pitelka and Reiko Tanimura team up with one of the premier experts in calligraphy in Japan, Takashi Masuda, to translate, analyze, and explain twenty-three letters from one of the most fascinating periods in Japanese history: the transition from medieval to early modern.


The book includes attention to:

• The etiquette and protocols of writing, sending, receiving, and responding to letters

• Elite food culture and gift exchange

• The social and political power of participation in tea culture

• The often hidden influence and roles of elite women in a hierarchical society dominated by warriors 

• The social life of the samurai

• Political and cultural change in the late sixteenth and seventeenth centuries

Contents

A Melodramatic Age                                     -    Morgan Pitelka

Letters as a Window on Culture                  -    Reiko Tanimura

Musings on Letters                                        -    Takashi Masuda

Letters and Commentaries                           -    Morgan Pitelka


1.    Takeda Shingen (1521-1573), Warlord

2.    Sen no Rikyū (1522-1591), Tea Master

3.    Hosokawa Yūsai (1534-1610), Warlord and Tea Master

4.    Inagaki Toshitsugu (late 16th c.), Vassal of Toyotomi Hidenaga (1540-1591)

5.    Furuta Oribe (1544-1615), Warlord and Tea Master

6.    Hōshun’in (1547-1617), Samurai Woman, Wife of a Warlord

7.    Tōdō Takatora (1556-1630), Warlord and Construction Commissioner

8.    Hon’ami Kōetsu (1558-1637), Sword Appraiser and Calligrapher

9.    Konoe Nobutada (1565-1614), Courtier and Calligrapher

10.    Date Masamune (1567-1636), Warlord and Falconer

11.    Doi Toshikatsu (1573-1644), Warlord

12.    Kōgetsu Sōgan (1574-1643), Zen Priest

13.    Takuan Sōhō (1573-1645), Zen Priest

14.    Karasuma Mitsuhiro (1579-1638), Courtier and Artist

15.    Kobori Enshū (1579-1647), Warlord, Tea Master, and Garden Designer

16.    Nagaoka Kyūmu (1580-1646), Tea Practitioner, Hosokawa family member

17.    Kanamori Sōwa (1584-1657), Warlord and Tea Master

18.    Shōkadō Shōjō (1584-1639), Shingon Priest and Calligrapher

19.    Hosokawa Tadatoshi (1586-1641), Warlord

20.    Maeda Toshitsune (1594-1658), Warlord, Collector, and Tea Practitioner

21.    Okabe Nobukatsu (1597-1668), Warlord

22.    Konoe Nobuhiro (1599-1649), Courtier

23.    Tōfukumon’in (1607-1678), Empress and Patron of the Arts


Japanese Character List


Bibliography

BLURBS

"Letters from Japan's Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries offers vivid and varied glimpses into elite life and cultural practices in early modern Japan. With its careful translations, detailed contextualization, and expert guidance, it is sure to be an invaluable classroom resource."

    —Erin Brightwell, University of Michigan


"This is just the sort of (not so little) handbook I wish had been around when I was an undergraduate or even a brand new grad student. With hefty introductions to the subject matter, reproduced originals, glosses, translations, and extensive commentaries, it should make a great many students and instructors happy."

    —David Spafford, University of Pennsylvania


"The combination of scholarly introductory essays and documents with transcription, translation, and accompanying commentary-not to mention photographs of the original documents-make this an invaluable book with multiple uses for undergraduate students, graduate students, and scholarly audiences alike."

    —Constantine Vaporis, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

SAMPLE LETTER:

Here is a sample of one letter, by the fierce warlord Takeda Shingen. One of the most respected and feared warlords of the sixteenth century, Shingen wrested control of the province of Kai from his own father, and relentlessly expanded his territory until his sudden death in 1573. A skilled swordsman and perceptive strategist, Shingen is well known for his military activities and effective rule of his domain. 

Errata: 

TOC: in the table of contents and on p. 152, we mistakenly list the occupation of Shōkadō Shōjō as “Zen priest.” While he was closely associated with the Zen temple Daitokuji, and he did produce calligraphy in a Zen style, he was in fact a Shingon priest. 

p. 14, Sekigara -> Sekigahara 

p. 15, (1564-1647) -> (1547-?)

p. 16, Kugō bu’nin -> Kugyō bu’nin

p. 18, Tomohito -> Toshihito

p. 63, 1552-1587 -> 1556-1588

p. 70, 666 -> 669

p. 76, Sōza -> Sōze

p. 83, Kimura -> Murai

p. 94, gomyō -> gomei

p. six struts -> five struts

p. 101, Jōjitsu -> Jōshi

    ōi-men -> ōhi-wata

    kise-men -> kise-wata

    kiku-men -> kiku-wata

p. 106, 1596 -> 1569

p. 118, Gyokushū Sōshitsu -> Gyokushitsu Sōhaku

p. 119, Sō’ō -> Sōbon

p. 143, Sotan -> Sōtan

    Toshihiro -> Toshihito

p. 154, remove word “an”

    Manhō -> Manbō

p. 156, haboki -> habōki

p. 160, Ogura -> Kokura

p. 166, Kanazawa -> Ishikawa

    Tomotada -> Toshitada

p. 179, 1619 -> 1605

p. 184, Nishonokōji -> Nishikikōji

p. 185, 1577 -> 1596

p. 192, 女房書 -> 女奉房書 


These errors will be marked by a note included with each printed or PDF version of the book. 


Apologies from the coeditors!