Japanese
Literature WebQuest 
Japanese
Literature WebQuest Instructions: Run off a copy of this WebQuest and write your answers as you work on the computer. You will be given points according to your answers, most of which will be found as you press on certain links or on the Japanese Literature Web Page. Ready?
1. Put these historical periods into sequence from the 1st (earliest) to the 6th (most recent) on the lines:
____
Heian Period: Women influenced Japanese literature by writing novels, diaries; they wrote in hiragana (Japanese writing) as well as in Chinese characters.
____
Edo Period: Increasing influence of the merchants changed literary tastes; plays and puppet shows were popular. Haiku poetry became popular.
____
Nara Period: Great influence of Chinese writing styles; the government sponsored writing of mythology which justified their position.
____
Kamakura-Muromachi Period: Samurai ruled Japan. Stories about heroes and battles were more popular.
____
Jomun, Yayoi; prehistoric periods (first of hunting and gathering, then rice agriculture, then unification by clan leaders). There was no literature.
____
Asuka Period: (593-708) Introduction of Chinese culture and Buddhism into Japan; Chinese writing was used for the Japanese language. Prince Shotoku established a Chinese-style government in Japan.
2. Long before there was a written form of Japanese, there were stories that were told. Some of the earliest stories were about the gods and about how Japan was created. One story was about the Sun Goddess, who she sent her grandson, Ninigi no Mikoto, to pacify the Japanese islands. She gave him
the sacred mirror, ................................. and ............................... that became the Imperial
Regalia (the emperor's family treasures). His great-grandson became the first ............................., Jimmu.
These stories were written in a collection of myths called .............................................................
3. Perhaps the most brilliant literary product of this period was the Man'yoshu
( Collection of....................................Leaves), an anthology of 4,500 poems composed by people ranging from unknown commoners to emperors and compiled around 759. Already emerging was a verse form
comprising 31 syllables (5-7-5-7-7) known as ..........................
4. At first Japanese was written with Chinese characters. (In Japanese it's called ............................. .)
In the Heian period, a Japanese style of writing called ........................................ was developed.
5. During the Heian Period, court women wrote novels. The most famous one is Tale of ........................
by Lady ...................................... This tells about the love affairs of a prince. It is famous because it also shows about the way of thinking of men and women of that period, and because of its beautiful language.
6. The rise of the ......................................... and warlords as the ruling class led to a period of about 150 years when tales of war became popular. This period produced a number of major historical
romances, including The Tale of ....................................
7. During this time, ......................... plays were also written and performed before the ruling class.
Only ......................... could be actors, and the main characters wore a ........................... over
the face. The story was told by a narrator with .................................... accompaniment.
8. During the Edo Period (1603 - 1867) the .................................. became more wealthy and powerful. New types of drama, novels, and poetry became popular for common people. The most important type of drama was
.......................................... The first person to perform kabuki was a woman named
..................................., but soon only men were allowed to perform in public. Another type of theater was popular, too. It was the puppet theater. A famous man, called the "Shakespeare of Japan", wrote for the kabuki and puppet theaters.
His name is ....................................... and his plays are still performed today.
The most popular type of poetry during the Edo Period was ................................ which is a three-line poem of
5, .............., and 5 syllables. The most popular poet of the period was ............................
Challenge Questions: - Under Construction -