Michinaga no kage no moto de. Murasaki Shikibu nikki ni okeru sekkan seiji no hōhō to chūgū saron no itonami no igi [In the shadow of Fujiwara no Michinaga. Political Strategies and the Role of the Empress’ Salon in the Murasaki Shikibu nikki]

In her memoir, Murasaki Shikibu describes with lively curiosity and plenty of detail ladies-in-waiting participating in cerimonies and parties. These women have particular physical attributes, wear clothes properly and publically exhibit social skills and refined culture. In the rear court where they live together rivalrous competition among them stimulates the cultivation of qualities to fit the ideal image of the aristocratic woman supported by Fujiwara no Michinaga and his entourage. The prerogatives of the ideal woman become a central issue in Murasaki Shikibu nikki as well as in Genji monogatari, providing a thematic coherence between these two works written in the same historical period. In both texts, the analyses of female figures disclose profound insight into their virtues and destinies. They show women how to fulfill a variety of roles in society and what positive or negative effects may arise from sharing certain examples of conduct. In a close reading of Murasaki Shikibu nikki, I will discuss the qualities that Murasaki Shikibu - who is supposed to speak for her patron, Fujiwara no Michinaga - belives are admirable for women and the central role they play in Heian society by responding to the social demands of a particular political agenda.