Saturday, May 26, 2012

(959) Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

I read this book many years ago. Reading it a second time was different from the first round. This time I noticed many smaller things apart from the main story line. When I borrowed it the first time, I was curious about the motion picture. After all, a country woman of mine won an award as an actress in the movie. This round, I was reading to enjoy the strange tale of a fisher girl being sold to an okiya(a sort of Geisha family enterprise) and later became a famous geisha.

There are many elements in this story that contribute to its box office appeal. We have an innocent beauty: Sayuri. Then there are dragons: granny and mother. Also we have a wicked witch: Hatsumomo. We have a fairy God sister: Mameha. Quite a few wannerbe knights: Dr. Crab, the Baron, the General, Nobu and the Minister. Finally the fairy princess found her prince when her long dreamed of Chairman came on board.

I won't say the story is ideal, after all, the Chairman had a legally wedded wife and two lovely daughters. Yet there is a certain appeal in him being able to be a family man and yet spent so many nights of his latter years with Sayuri. I particularly like the part where Sayuri chose to migrate to New York city with her illegitimate son. She was far sighted enough to realize she had a decent living to make in the Big Apple. That way, she was free of her "Mother" and "Auntie". At the same time, the Chairman's daughter would be free to marry her sweet heart who could really become the Chairman's heir without worrying about the son of a geisha as a contender to the estate. In the strategic step, Sayuri became the Chairman's mistress in America, which probably made it easier for the Chairman's family to be able to view her as less of a threat!

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