A study on the representation of morning glory in male love literature:Focuses on “The Great Mirror of Male Love”

This thesis focuses on “The Great Mirror of Male Love” by Ihara Saikaku, considers the representation of morning glory in male love literature of the Edo period. In the Samurai section of “The Great Mirror of Male Love,” the depiction of morning glory is striking. These representations contain images of impermanence and eroticism, like those in “The Tales of Ise” and “The Tale of Genji.” By using the image of morning glory from earlier literature, Saikaku symbolically portrays the transient fates of young men who indulges in male love. Besides morning glory, other flowers and symbols of water, such as dew, are also effectively depicted in Saikaku’s works on male love. Saikaku was proficient in Haikai (seventeen-syllable verse). Therefore, his artistic expression using flowers and water was influenced not only by Waka poetry but also by Haikai.