Donald Keene

Renu Krishnan, an Indian-born, American-educated scientist, discovers how NO (nitric oxide, now recognized as the causative agent of penile erection) can be used therapeutically to help men suffering from erectile dysfunction, while her husband, the Israeli scientist Jephtah Cohn, develops a new approach to ovulation prediction. When they gain government approval to manufacture and market their discoveries they are transformed into Wall Street darlings. Drawing on his experience as a founder, former officer, director, and advisor of similar biotech ventures, Djerassi examines the competing demands of academia and the fate of women who succeed in breaking the glass ceiling of male-dominated enterprises.

Along with the Tale of Genji and One Hundred Poets, One Poem Each, the Tales of Ise may be considered one of the three most important works of Japanese literature. A poem-tale collection from the early Heian period, the narrative is loosely composed around a series of stories spanning the period from a man's youth to his death, and offers deep insight into the world of courtly love in ancient Japan.

"Woodblock prints from the Meiji era (1868-1912) challenge our notion of Japanese pictures as romanticized, timeless images of geisha, kabuki actors, and picturesque landscapes. Instead, they depicted current events with a propagandistic flair, and were printed in vivid colors reflecting the vibrancy of Japan's rush toward modernization at the turn of the century. As feudal Japan was transformed into a unified, modern state and emerged as a military and industrial power, woodblock printmakers chronicled and validated the introduction of Western technology, architecture, dress, and social practices, as well as the wars that propelled Japan into the international community. In keeping with the new spirit of the Meiji years, the woodblock prints often feature lurid colors that prefigure twentieth-century poster art and stylistically point the way toward contemporary Japanese manga and animation.". "Japan at the Dawn of the Modern Age features over eighty Meiji-era prints in full color, along with two previously unpublished essays by the renowned literary critic, historian, and biographer Donald Keene on Meiji and his times. Additional writings by curators Anne Nishimura Morse and Louise E. Virgin, and the collector and historian Frederic A. Sharf place these prints in the context of their times, their collection, and their home at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston."--BOOK JACKET.

This extensive anthology includes excerpts from plays and novels plus stories, fairy tales, and many poems.

This extensive anthology includes excerpts from plays and novels plus stories, fairy tales, and many poems.

"Japanese prints have enthralled collectors in the West since the middle of the nineteenth century, when woodblock prints of landscapes, courtesans, kabuki actors, and warriors introduced the "floating world" of Edo period (1615-1868) Japan to an international audience. Masterful Illusions presents the collection of Anne van Biema, who began acquiring prints in the early 1960s. In contrast to collectors who have set out to form comprehensive representations of the varied artistic schools and subjects of Japanese prints, Anne van Biema has collected prints that interest her aesthetically and subjects that appeal to her imagination. The 332 prints included in this book reflect her fascination with dynamic and imaginative themes drawn from kabuki theater, history, and legend.". "In Masterful Illusions, scholars discuss major themes of the prints as they elucidate the historic, economic, and cultural environment of the Edo period. Essays by Donald Keene and Andrew Gerstle describe kabuki in Edo and Osaka, two major centers for theaters and print publishing. Elizabeth de Sabato Swinton writes on the history of warrior prints in the Edo period. Joshua Mostow discusses poetry and classical literature as the inspiration for many of the most evocative prints in the collection. Detailed commentary on 138 prints includes new translations of texts and interpretative analysis that sheds light on the prints and their meaning in a world that has long since disappeared. Masterful Illusions will appeal to those interested in Japanese art, history, theater, and literature."--BOOK JACKET.

"Yoshimasa may have been the worst shogun ever to rule Japan. He was a failure as a soldier, incompetent at dealing with state business, and dominated by his wife. But his influence on the cultural life of Japan was unparalleled. According to Donald Keene, Yoshimasa was the only shogun to leave a lasting heritage for the entire Japanese people." "Today Yoshimasa is remembered primarily as the builder of the Temple of the Silver Pavilion and as the ruler at the time of the Onin War (1467-1477), after which the authority of the shogun all but disappeared. Unable to control the daimyos - provincial military governors - he abandoned politics and devoted himself to the quest for beauty. It was then, after Yoshimasa resigned as shogun and made his home in the mountain retreat now known as the Silver Pavilion, that his aesthetic taste came to define that of the Japanese: the no theater flourished, Japanese gardens were developed, and the tea ceremony had its origins in a small room at the Silver Pavilion. Flower arrangement, ink painting, and shoin-zukua-i architecture began or became of major importance under Yoshimasa. Poets introduced their often barely literate warlord-hosts to the literary masterpieces of the past and taught them how to compose poetry. Even the most barbarous warlord came to want the trappings of culture that would enable him to feel like a civilized man." "Yoshimasa and the Silver Pavilion gives this long-neglected but critical period in Japanese history the thorough treatment it deserves."--Jacket.