Stephanie Buff
Becoming
a Geisha: BBC documentary
Reaction Paper
November 13, 2012
Becoming a Geisha is a captivating
documentary that follows Yukina, a fifteen year-old Japanese girl, through the
process of becoming a geisha. The concept of geisha entertainment and training
is interesting and provides insight into the priorities and values of Japanese
culture. It is evident from the documentary that a geisha is a revered figure
of Japanese society. This honor is not given lightly, and the dedication of
those pursuing a career as a geisha is admirable.
The documentary
depicts Yukina’s progression through the process of becoming a geisha. During
the documentary, Yukina is a “Maiko”, which is essentially an apprentice. The
apprenticeship begins in the early teenage years. Specifically, Yukina is
fifteen years old. Because of the commitment required to be a Maiko, Yukina is
not enrolled in school. One scene that especially expresses the commitment
required to become a geisha was when Yukina stayed awake until two in the
morning waiting for her geisha sister to return from work. Yukina described the
lack of sleep required for the job, and the hours of training that are required
to complete Maiko training. This level of dedication even eliminates the
possibility of dating for those intending to become a geisha professionally.
Furthermore, the profession intrudes deeper into personal life by removing
young girls from their families for training. The documentary specified that
Yukina had not seen her family in sixth months since beginning her training.
A few more aspects
of geisha culture that surprised me were the frequency of haircuts, which was
specified as five to seven times per week. Another staggering quantitative
value was relating to the number of kimonos in a geisha’s wardrobe. Apparently,
the average number of kimonos’ in a wardrobe is forty. Additionally, I was
unaware of the sexual connotation that accompanies the geisha’s job. Becoming a Geisha was a very
enlightening documentary.
I agree that the document was very enlightening. Like previously I hadn't known that the geisha would get a bald spot due to the frequent and intense hair styles.
ReplyDeleteThis documentary was very interesting and opened my eyes to how difficult it actually is to become a geisha. I was also unaware of the sexual connotation and that suprised me very much.
ReplyDeleteI was not aware of the Geisha culture, especially the emotional toll it took on the lives of the young girls. I too was unaware of the sexual connotation, many of my preconceptions were inaccurate.
ReplyDelete