![]() ![]() Sei is disdainful of commoners and can be sharp-tongued at times, but she is also readily moved by the affairs of the close-knit imperial household. ![]() Accordingly, Sei makes well over 100 lists of things she finds particularly beautiful or interesting (or the opposite) in her diary. This tradition placed importance on aesthetic beauty and finding small instances of “delight” in one’s everyday surroundings. Sei is sensitive to the quality of okashi, roughly translated “delight,” a significant aspect of Japanese culture during the Heian period during which her diary entries were written. The Pillow Book (Dover Thrift Editions: Biography/Autobiography) Sei Shonagon 27 Kindle Edition 3.85 This item: The Pillow Book (Penguin Classics) Sei Shonagon 330 Kindle Edition 10.99 Essays in Idleness: and Hojoki (Penguin Classics) Kenk 169 Kindle Edition 10. ![]() This wins her the respect of her peers, particularly male courtiers like Tadanobu. ![]() While in court, she appears to have enjoyed Empress Teishi’s warm regard, in part because of her talent for poetry-Sei describes herself as often having a poem or quote ready for an appropriate occasion. She seems to have been married to Norimitsu for a brief period. Sei reveals relatively little about her life and relationships within The Pillow Book itself. She would have been in her late twenties when she became a courtier, and she remained in Teishi’s court until the Empress’s death around the year 1000 C.E. She is a gentlewoman in the service of Empress Teishi. Sei Shōnagon is the author of the diary entries that comprise The Pillow Book. ![]()
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