"24 Views of Mt. Fuji, by Hokusai" excerpts and ukiyo-e

[Giovanna Clairval]

Roger Zelazny's short story, ''24 Views of Mt. Fuji, by Hokusai'' ,

written in 1985, won the Hugo award in 1986.

Hokusai Katsushika (1760-1849) was an acclaimed artist well know for his ukiyo-e woodblock prints.

A view of the mountains near Santa Fé inspired Roger Zelazny, who was also familiar with an abridged version of the 36 original ukiyo-e, to write a story around Hokusai's prints.


Mari, the protagonist and narrator, uses these 24 views, along with allusions to Dante Alighieri, Chaucer, Cervantes, and Reiner Maria Rilke, among others, as frames to her personal journey.
She is about to carry out something horrible, and Hokusaï, so descriptive and emotionally restrained, helps her in steeling herself and strengthening her resolve.


This first view depicts the last glimpse of Mt. Fuji that can be seen. The mountain is only a small, solitary triangle that appears through the circle of the barrel.



"Kit lives, though he is buried not far from here; and I am dead, though I watch the days-end light pinking cloudstreaks above the mountain in the distance, a tree in the foreground for suitable contrast. The old barrel-man is dust; his cask, too, I daresay."

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

"…A soft blueness to the dawn sky, Fuji to the left, seen through the teahouse window by two women; other bowed, drowsing figures like puppets on a shelf…"





#2 - Mount Fuji from a Tea House at Yoshida

 

[Snowdog]

I don't know if Chris Kovacs mentioned it (too lazy to check) but in the 5-volume collection when they print this story, they're also planning to reproduce at least some of these drawings as an accompaniment.

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

Wonderful, Snowy One!

The prints will be larger than these, won't they?

But we will have already displayed the things (public domain) here on the Chrons...

 

[ckovacs]

A few comments and corrections -

1) The story was written in 1984. It was published in 1985.

2) The book that Zelazny consulted, which I also own, was "Hokusai’s Views of Mt. Fuji" published by Charles Tuttle, 1965. It also contains poetry by Easley Stephen Jones, one poem for each image. The book contains the 24 images (and no more than that) in exactly the order that Zelazny referred to them in the story. The first image with the barrel maker is thus the first image in the book and the story; it is not the last image. Copies of this book are available online through used booksellers (eg abebooks.com). I've enjoyed rereading the story while flipping to the image in the book that corresponds to each section. If you have the images at hand, you'll realize that a lot of commentary from the protagonist (Mari) refers to elements in the images, and not in her surroundings.

3) The original images were quite small, I think about 4 inches wide - they were woodcuts, after all. They'll be reproduced no bigger than that in the book, but they will have to be in grayscale because colour would not be affordable.

Chris Kovacs

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

"I find a place of twisted pines along the Tokaido, and I halt to view Fuji through them.
The travelers who pass in the first hour or so of my vigil do not look like Hokusai's, but no matter.
The horse, the sedan chair, the blue garments, the big hats - faded into the past, traveling forever on the print now."






#3 Mt. Fuji from Hodogaya

 

[ckovacs]

I had written a reply in this thread, but it didn't get posted for some reason.

The story was written in 1984, not 1985. It was published in 1985.

The book that Zelazny owned, and which I also have, is "Hokuai’s Views of Mt. Fuji" published by Charles Tuttle in 1965. It contains exactly 24 of Hokusai's images with poetry by Easley Stephen Jones to accompany each painting. Zelazny's story cites the paintings in exactly the same order in which they occur in this small book. I highly recommend viewing the images as you reread the story, because it will then be clear that the narrator (Mari) is referring to a lot of elements in the paintings as the story goes along.

Hokusai's book containing 36 views of Mt. Fuji is better known, which has led to confusion as to whether Zelazny was cherry-picking 24 from the 36 in that book. But he wasn't, as I mentioned, he was using the book containing 24.

Hokusai did well over 100 paintings of Mt. Fuji, and one book of his has exactly 100 of these images.

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

Sorry, my friend Ckovacs, I typed that RZ wrote this short story in 1985, but I meant that it was published in 1985, as the short story bibliography I posted here indicates.

ZELAZNY's Complete SHORT STORIES Bibliography

This list is surely incomplete, though, given that a few texts that are not published to date, and maybe I forgot others in compiling different sources.

The posts in this sub-forum are not the result of the work of researchers or bibliographers, that's why your contribution is highly appreciated.

This thread, particularly, has no ambition other than advertise a wonderful short story to readers who haven't read it yet.

It's a tribute.

But I hope it was clear from the first post that RZ owned an abridged version consisting of 24 views, and he didn't pick a few prints out of the 36 famous ones for some reason.

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

"I compare the print with reality. Not bad this time. The horse and the man are absent from the shore, but there is a small boat out on the water . . . 'La navicella del mio ingegno' - 'the little bark of my wit' on which Dante hoisted sail for that second realm, Purgatory. Fuji then . . . Perhaps so. The hells beneath, the heavens above, Fuji between . . ."


and with the narrow navicella del mio ingegno, maybe I managed to resize the print correctly, this time... Moon!

We'll see...

The waves are a favourite feature of mine, here. And the mountain is coming to us.

#4 MT. Fuji from Tamagawa

 

[Strife]

this one is the best, so far

i've started to read it. And i like it, so far.

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

"Now it seems as if Fuji supports the bridge and without his presence it will be broken like Bifrost, preventing the demons of the past from attacking our present Asgard - or perhaps the demons of the future from storming our ancient Asgard."



#5 Mt. Fuji from Fukagawa in Edo


...

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

Happy new Fuji
to everyone!


​

"I watch the fisherman above those waves, smaller versions of Hokusai's big one, which has always symbolized death for me. The little deaths rolling about him, the man hauls in a silver-sided catch."

6. Mt Fuji from Kajikazawa

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

"It is difficult, before the ancient powers of the Ring of Fire, not to stand with some trepidation, sliding back through geological eons to times of creation and destruction when new lands were formed. The great outpourings, the bomblike flash and dazzle, the dance of the lightnings like a crown . . ."


# 7. Mt. Fuji from the Foot

The peculiar red colouring was considered revolutionary when the print was published.

 

[Snowdog]

Very dramatic. I like that one a lot.

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

It's my favourite as well, Snowdog.

The red Fuji is, with the "big wave", #18, the most famous of the original 36 views.

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

Change and personal transformation: the greatest theme developed by Roger Zelazny, but in Mari's words, the impending change may be death...

"Blue-gray Fuji, salted with snow, long angle of repose to my left . . . I never seem to look upon the same mountain twice. You change as much as I myself, yet you remain what you are." ​

#8 Mt. Mt. Fuji from Tagonura

A path of waves before the fisherman. On the shore, villagers busy themselves with the gathering of salt.

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

"I am fond of this print: the torii of a Shinto shrine are visible above the sea at low tide,
and people dig clams among the sunken ruins.
Fuji of course is visible through the torii."

--Roger Zelazny, 24 Views
​

TORII: the gateway of a Japanese temple. The torii marks the transition from the profane world
to the sacred area.


[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"Shall I knock
At Miidera Temple's gate?
Ah, moon of to-night!"
[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]a hokku by Basho[/FONT]
​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Suppose you stand at that temple's gate high upon the hill lapped an
again lapped by the slow water, with your dreamy face towards this
Lake Biwa in the shape ot a biwa-lute, which, as a certain poetess ha
written, "like a shell of white lies dropped by the passing day." I am
sure you will feel yourself to be a god or goddess in the beginning of
the world as in the Japanese mythology, who by accident or mystery
has risen above the opalescent mists which softly cover the earth of
later night.
[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]--Jone Noguchi, Through the Torii[/FONT]
​

Oh, here it is...

#9 Mt. Fuji from Naborito

 

[Strife]

I've finished reading the story. It's great. And I'm happy to be able to see what Mari sees.

A couple of silly questions for the experts.

In this print, people are collecting clams in the sacred area. Why?

And why are the gates built in the water?

 

[Talysia]

I can't believe I haven't seen this thread until now. These paintings are wonderful - in fact, I think I may make a point to look out for this story myself. Thank you for posting them, Giovanna.

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

Hi, Talysia.

Have you got answers for our inquisitive friend?

I'll venture.....

I am no expert, Strife, but it would seem that:

1) the Torii upper bar, slightly curved, represents the bottom section of a circle describing all of creation;

2) the gate marks the entrance of a temple where a kami (literally, a demon, which we could also call a "deity") is inshrined--in a simple stone, or any sacred object, which is secreted and can't be seen by anybody;

3) or else it indicates a place where the kami dwells, or manifested itself. That is why the Torii on our print are set in the water: perhaps the deity stepped out of the sea just there.

I vaguely remember that the number two has some significance in Japanese tradition, but I have forgotten which.

Surely the kami doesn't mind having people culling seafood at the gate of his home. Otherwise, those people wouldn't do it (Hokusai was born in 1760).