Synopses & Reviews
andlt;bandgt;andlt;iandgt;The Noh Plays of Japanandlt;/iandgt; is the most respected collection of Noh plays in English.andlt;/bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;The classic Japanese plays can be read for their great literary merit and also provide the reader with an understanding of a unique theatre art and important insights into the cultural, spiritual and artistic traditions of Japan.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;iandgt;The Noh Plays of Japanandlt;/iandgt;, first published in 1921 and justly famous for more than three-quarters of a century, established the Noh play for the Western reader as beautiful literature. It contains Arthur Waley's exquisite translations of nineteen plays and summaries of sixteen more, together with a revealing introductory essay that furnishes the background for a clear understanding and a genuine appreciation of the Noh as a highly significant dramatic form.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Noh plays live on as a magnificent artistic heritage handed down from the high culture of medieval Japan. Among the major types of Japanese drama, the Noh, which is often called the classical theatre of Japan, has had perhaps the greatest attraction for the West. Introduced to Europe and America through the translations of Arthur Waley and Ezra Pound, it found an ardent admirer in William Butler Yeats, who described it as a form of drama "distinguished, indirect, and symbolic" and created plays in its image.
Review
The acclaim that greeted the book on its first appearance is reflected in the following comments: "It isandhellip;the highest tribute to this book that, fascinating as is the introduction, the text is more fascinating stillandhellip;The natural beauty of the poetry rises like a flower." andlt;bandgt;and#8212;andlt;iandgt;New Statesmanandlt;/iandgt;andlt;/bandgt;
Synopsis
First published in 1921, The Noh Plays of Japan has been justly famous for more than three-quarters of a century and established the Noh play for the Western reader as beautiful literature. It contains translations of nineteen plays and summaries of sixteen more.
About the Author
Stewart W. Holmes has made extensive forays -- via general semantics and Zen -- into the realm of nonverbal experience. As an officer of the Cambridge Buddhist Association, he was well acquainted with its former president, the eminent Zen scholar Daisetz Suzuki. Dr. Shinichi Hisamatsu, the founder of the Association, was his first Zen master. Among his other publications are Meaning in Language and articles for a number of journals. At present Dr. Holmes, who holds a Ph.D. in English from Yale University, is on the English faculty of Castleton State College, Vermont.
Chimyo Horioka, who is responsible for the nonverbal aspects of this volume, is Far Eastern Librarian in the Asiatic Department of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and author of many articles on Buddhist art. A priest of the Shingon sect and graduate of Koyasan University, he also studied philosophy at Hamburg and Koenigsberg universities. He has been president of the Cambridge Buddhist Association since the death of Dr. Daisetz Suzuki in 1966.