Influential Words from the Stranger on the Page by Keren

Influential Words from the Stranger on the Page by Keren - April 2014 Scholarship Essay

I’ve plowed through thousands of wonderful works of literature, ranging from best-selling teen fictions to classic books that have maintained literary excellence for centuries. Many of the dynamic characters from these stories have left an everlasting impression on me. Arthur Golden’s novel “Memoirs of a Geisha” is a beautiful recounting of the world of Japanese geisha before World War II. The protagonist and narrator, Nitta Sayuri, blew me away with her story from rags to gorgeous kimonos and impressed me with her strength and perseverance in the face of adversity.

When I first picked up this novel I was a junior in high school, going through a difficult period where I trusted no one and looked at the world in a cynical light. I pick literature that reflects the type of mood or mindset I am in; a very good way to channel my feelings. My literary diet back then was Edgar Allen Poe and Ernest Hemmingway, my attitude dark and contemplative. I desperately needed a pick me up. My librarian suggested I try this novel, insisting that it was the most engaging book I’d ever read, so I gave it a try. Immediately, the eloquence of her voice and her detailed imagery drew me into her world. It was as if I were sitting in a small quiet room drinking tea with her, listening keenly as she relived her life.

Before she was Nitta Sayuri, famous geisha of Kyoto, Japan, she was Chiyo. Daughter of a poor fisherman and living in a “tipsy house” by the sea, Chiyo shined like a star in her bleak surroundings with her blue-gray eyes. Even as a child Chiyo had a deeper connection with the inner feelings of those around her, which is what first endeared her to me. She reminded me of a younger version of myself, hypersensitive to the emotions of my peers, loved ones, and even strangers. Chiyo confronted her father about his old age, an innocent inquiry, one that I have asked members of my own family. When her mother showed her the graves of her father’s previous family, Chiyo discovered “that sadness was a very heavy thing” and that changed her view of her father (Golden). He no longer was old, just worn down with the grief of losing his family. As I read further into the beginning of the book, I found that she looked at the world kind of like I did at the time; a curiosity that edged her forward but with awareness that made her cautious and attentive to her surroundings. Slowly I rose out of the darkness that I found myself in, brightened by the thought of reading more of Chiyo’s path out of that bleak fishing village.

I read on, completely engulfed in the book. Chiyo turned into a maid, then a young apprentice geisha, then into Nitta Sayuri. Where Chiyo was innocent, Sayuri was the worldly. The hardships of her adolescence had made her emotionally and mentally strong. Getting separated from her family forced her to rely on herself and become independent. Suffering under the cruelty of the older geisha of her okiya, Hatsumomo, developed her patience and wit. Sayuri utilized every one of her assets to launch herself to the elite status amongst the geisha of Kyoto. Unlike many of my peers, Sayuri wasted nothing and made sure to benefit from whatever opportunity that crossed her path. She used her height and graceful figure to capture the attention of anyone near her, filling the area with her presence. Her blue-gray eyes were at first deemed unusual, but later became her distinguishing feature. She never shied away from who she was, and even though she no longer was the girl from the fishing village, she retained her personality. She was like water. “Water can carve its way through stone. And when trapped, water makes a new path” (Golden).

Inadvertently, Sayuri taught me to adapt to my surroundings while remaining who I am as an individual. She flowed through hardships like a river, breaking dams that blocked her path and carving a path that ensured her success in life. Finishing this book, I realized that I had come across blocks in my path, and was unable to get past them due to my inability to adapt. I was stubborn, like most young women my age, and Sayuri’s flexibility influenced me to do the same. Her ability to harbor her true feelings inside her heart while keeping up a constant façade was inspiring. In doing that, she preserved good relations with many people and survived interaction with those whom she did not like at all. I took on that characteristic as well. I no longer liberally showcase my opinions of others, nor do I freely share my feelings with others. Keeping significant things inside myself and a bright smile on my face, I smoothed over many rough relationships by being like Sayuri.

In many ways I took pieces of her character and infused it with my own and developed into a well-rounded individual with more insight and less naivety. Sayuri also helped me to understand parts of myself that I had not before, unlocking the rest of my personality. “Memoirs of a Geisha” has been the most compelling novel I’ve ever had the pleasure to read, and Nitta Sayuri Is by far the most influential novel character I’ve ever read about.