Monogatari
Monogatari is a literary form in traditional Japanese literature – an extended prose narrative tale comparable to epic literature. Monogatari is closely tied to aspects of the oral tradition, and almost always relates a fictional or fictionalized story, even when retelling a historical event. Many of the great works of Japanese fiction, such as the Genji Monogatari and the Heike Monogatari, are in the monogatari form.
History
The form was prominent around the 9th to 15th centuries, reaching a peak between the 10th and 13th centuries. Monogatari was the court literature during the Heian era and also persisted in the form of archaic fiction until the sixteenth century. The Fūyō Wakashū indicates that at least 198 monogatari existed by the 13th century. Today, only 24 exist.
Genres
The genre is subdivided into multiple categories depending on their contents:
''Denki-monogatari''
Stories dealing with fantastical events.
''Uta-monogatari''
Stories drawn from poetry.
''Tsukuri-monogatari''
Aristocratic court romances.
''Rekishi-monogatari''
Historical tales that emerged during the late Heian period, flourishing until the Japanese literature|medieval] age. These narratives were commonly written in kanbun or wabun. Two of the most notable of this monogatari included the Eiga Monogatari and Ōkagami, which both narrated the story of Michinaga, the renowned Fujiwara regent.
''Gunki-monogatari''
Military chronicles and stories about war.
''Setsuwa-monogatari''
Anecdotal tales.
''Giko-monogatari''
Pseudo-classical imitations of earlier tales.
Influence
When European and other foreign literature later became known to Japan, the word monogatari began to be used in Japanese titles of foreign works of a similar nature. For example, A Tale of Two Cities is known as Nito Monogatari, One Thousand and One Nights as Sen'ichiya Monogatari and more recently The Lord of the Rings as Yubiwa Monogatari and To Kill a Mockingbird as Arabama Monogatari.