The Polish Journal of Aesthetics (Dec 2019)
Rotting Bodies: Sex, Gender, and Horror in Tōkaidō Yotsuya Kaidan
Abstract
The success that the kabuki play Tōkaidō Yotsuya Kaidan enjoyed was not simply due to its spectacular stage tricks, but also because of the inescapably intimate (human) nature of the horror displayed on stage. Sexuality and gender in particular dominate the horror on stage. The central character Oiwa serves as a vehicle for gendered fears rooted in Edo-period attitudes towards sexuality.
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