歌舞伎と人形浄瑠璃の老人像

Abstract

The depictions of the old man in Japanese classical literary art vary from sacred to humorous. The former is a characteristic of the agricultural and economic society that values ​​the experience of the elder, and is a tradition that regards the weak as the incarnation of God. On the other hand, the latter is a result of playing with the behavior of an old man according to the deterioration of physical ability. These images are connected to the literary arts of the Middle Ages, but in Noh, the tendency to portray old age as a symbol of perpetuity began to emerge. Bunraku in modern times is typified by the image of the old man until then, being sacrificed for his son, solving problems, or living greedily. The sacrifice may have been due to the charity of the child. And the respect as a senior citizen of society may have led to the image of an old man who solves a difficult problem. Also, the position of the old man, who was not economically wealthy, seems to have formed a greedy image of the old man.