Post on 11-May-2023
MASARYK UNIVERSITY
FACULTY OF EDUCATION
Department of English Language and Literature
Arthur Golden’s “Memoirs of Geisha“:
Translation and analysis with special regard to
syntax and FSP
Diploma thesis
Brno 2022
Supervisor Author
doc. Mgr. Martin Adam, Ph.D. Bc. Michaela Doležalová
Anotace
Diplomová práce se zabývá anglicko-českým překladem vybraných kapitol knihy Memoirs of
Geisha od autora Arthura Goldena, a jeho syntaktickou analýzou. Práce je rozdělena do dvou
hlavních částí. Praktická část obsahuje samotný překlad tří a půl kapitol knihy a teoretická část
se zaměřuje na analýzu čtyř vybraných syntaktických struktur. Teoretickou část pak uzavírá
aktuální členění větné, které bylo pro překlad textu klíčové.
Klíčová slova
překlad, analýza, trpný rod, vytýkací konstrukce, AČV, román, Gejša, Arthur Golden
Annotation
Diploma thesis deals with English-Czech translation of selected chapters from Memoirs of
Geisha by Arthur Golden, and its syntactic analysis. The thesis is divided into two main parts.
The practical part consists of the translation itself and the theoretical part focuses on analysis
of four selected syntactic structures. The theoretical part ends with a subchapter on Functional
Sentence Perspective because it is the key to successful translation.
Keywords
translation, analysis, passive voice, cleft sentences, FSP, novel, Memoirs of Geisha, Arthur
Golden
Prohlášení
Prohlašuji, že jsem diplomovou práci vypracovala samostatně, s využitím pouze citovaných
pramenů, dalších informací a zdrojů v souladu s Disciplinárním řádem pro studenty
Pedagogické fakulty Masarykovy univerzity a se zákonem č. 121/2000 Sb., o právu autorském,
o právech souvisejících s právem autorským a o změně některých zákonů (autorský zákon), ve
znění pozdějších předpisů.
Declaration
I hereby declare that this diploma thesis was done independently, using only the information
provided by the sources cited in the text and included in the list of references in accordance
with the Disciplinary regulations for the students of the Faculty of Education of the Masaryk
University.
In Brno, 2022
…………………………………
Bc. Michaela Doležalová
Acknowledgment
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor, doc. Mgr. Martin Adam, Ph.D.,
for his guidance, support, and patience. I would also like to thank my loved ones, who have
always believed in me and stood by my side. And lastly, I would like to thank my sister, because
she has been my rock through this process and I would be lost without her.
Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 6
2. MEMOIRS OF GEISHA .................................................................................................... 7
3. PRACTICAL PART ........................................................................................................... 8
4. THEORETICAL PART ................................................................................................... 63
4.1 Passive voice .............................................................................................................. 64
4.1.1 Translating sentences with passive voice .................................................................. 68
4.2 Cleft sentences ........................................................................................................... 73
4.2.1 Translating cleft sentences ......................................................................................... 76
4.3 Clauses with hypothetical meaning ........................................................................... 78
4.3.1 Translating clauses with hypothetical meaning ......................................................... 80
4.4 Extraposition of clausal subject ................................................................................. 81
4.4.1 Translating sentences with extraposed clausal subject .............................................. 82
4.5 Functional Sentence Perspective ............................................................................... 83
5. CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................... 90
6. BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................... 93
6.1 Primary source ........................................................................................................... 93
6.2 Secondary sources ...................................................................................................... 93
6
1. INTRODUCTION
Translation from one language to another is a fascinating process, depending on the
knowledge of the translator. But it is not only the knowledge of languages itself; a good
translator must take under consideration the cultures behind used languages, their native
speakers etc. There is a quote that perfectly summarizes the work of a translator, saying
"Translation is a point of contact between peoples, and since it is rare that two peoples have the
same access to power, the translator is in a privileged position as mediator, to make explicit the
differences between cultures, expose injustices or contribute to diversity in the world." (Baker
and Maier, 2011, p. 100)
This thesis deals with translation and analysis of Arthur Golden’s novel Memoirs of Geisha.
Fist, in the practical part, an English to Czech translation can be seen, dealing with three and a
half chapters from the novel, which also includes footnotes explaining some commonly
unknown cultural aspects of Shōwa era (1926 – 1945) in Japan. The translated chapters describe
the young life and training of an apprentice geisha (or a maiko); it was chosen for this thesis,
because it is the most interesting and dynamic part of the story.
The second part of the thesis is focused on syntactic analysis of the translated text. This part
has eight subchapters analyzing different syntactic elements. The areas of syntax included in
the thesis are passive voice, cleft sentences, clauses with hypothetical meaning and
extraposition of clausal subject. Each area is first put in context of theoretical background,
followed by analysis based on the translated text with charts full of concrete examples.
Altogether, sixty-five sentences were analyzed and used in this thesis to illustrate the challenges
and obstacles that translators must face in this process.
The last subchapter of the theoretical part discusses Functional Sentence Perspective (or
Aktuální členění větné). The main differences between English and Czech perspective are
described from the theoretical point of view, which is then followed by a chart with specific
translating problems that happened during the translation in this thesis.
7
2. MEMOIRS OF GEISHA
Arthur Golden’s Memoirs of Geisha provides a unique look into the world of Geisha, which
has always been extremely secretive. There are many reasons for this secrecy, such as protecting
the mystery of the profession, protecting the practices which would not be allowed in modern
society or even protecting the geishas themselves. This novel was therefore one of the first
exposés of this exclusively Japanese profession. The author based the novel on series of
interviews with a real geisha, who only agreed to telling her story upon a promise that the novel
would not be published before her death. This fact only proves that the world of geisha has
always been carefully guarded as one of the biggest secrets in Japan.
One of the key elements of the story is the Japanese terminology, which even the author
himself left intact, therefore as a translator I decided to follow his lead and the specific
vocabulary remains unchanged even in my version of the Czech translation. Instead of
translating the terms I decided to include foot notes explaining the terminology, made
specifically for those unaware of the many of Japanese culture and based only on my own
knowledge as an amateur Japanologist.
The chapters chosen for this thesis take us through the process of becoming a geisha, which
is the most shocking part of the novel. Some of the practices are nowadays banned but some
still remain the standard in this profession. There are not as many geishas today as there were
in the pre-war times, but it is still an extremely prestigious occupation. Japanese are very proud
of their geishas and the job is still considered to be exclusively Japanese. Only a rare few women
from around the world have successfully entered the world of geisha without being of Japanese
nationality.
8
3. PRACTICAL PART
HAPTER THIRTEEN
During the spring of 1934, after I'd been in
training for more than two years, Hatsumomo
and Mother1 decided that the time had come for
Pumpkin to make her debut as an apprentice
geisha2.
Of course, no one told me anything about it,
since Pumpkin was on orders not to speak with
me, and Hatsumomo and Mother wouldn't
waste their time even considering such a thing.
I found out about it only when Pumpkin left the
okiya3 early one afternoon and came back at the
end of the day wearing the hairstyle of a young
geisha-the so-called momaware4, meaning
"split peach."
When I took my first look at her as she stepped
up into the entrance hall, I felt sick with
disappointment and jealousy.
Her eyes never met mine for more than a flicker
of an instant; probably she couldn't help
thinking of the effect her debut was having on
me.
With her hair swept back in an orb so
beautifully from her temples, rather than tied at
the neck as it had always been, she looked very
much like a young woman, though still with her
same babyish face.
For years she and I had envied the older girls
who wore their hair so elegantly.
KAPITOLA TŘINÁCTÁ
Na jaře roku 1934, kdy už jsem byla v učení víc
jak dva roky, se Hatsumomo s matkou
rozhodly, že nastal čas na Dýnin debut. Měla se
stát gejšou-učednicí.
Mně o tom samozřejmě nikdo nic neřekl,
protože Dýně měla zakázáno se mnou mluvit a
Hatsumomo s matkou by něčím takovým ani
neztrácely čas.
Přišla jsem na to jen díky tomu, že Dýně brzy
ráno opustila okiyu a na konci dne se vrátila s
účesem, který nosí mladé gejši. Jmenuje se
momaware, což znamená „rozpůlená broskev“.
Když jsem ji uviděla kráčet do vstupní haly,
zalil mě nepříjemný pocit zklamání a žárlivosti.
Její oči se na okamžik střetly s mými. Nejspíš
přemýšlela, jestli mě její debut trápí.
Vlasy měla sčesané dozadu do nádherného
drdolu, místo každodenního jednoduchého
copu, vypadala už jako mladá žena, i když stále
s jejích dětským obličejem.
Léta jsme obě záviděly starším dívkám jejich
elegantní účesy.
1The expression Mother is used to call the female owner of the okiya. When a young girl is sold to the okiya to
become a geisha, the owner automatically becomes her “mother” – legally speaking. 2 An apprentice geisha, in Japanese known as maiko, is a young girl in training; she is not allowed to entertain on
her own. She can only work under a supervision of her „older sister “, known as onesan. A maiko would only
become a full pledged geisha after selling her mizuage to the highest bidder, but the practice was outlawed in 1956,
so nowadays to finish their training, young geishas simply take series of exams. 3 An okiya is a house, in which geishas and apprentice geishas live during their career. It is usually owned and ran
by a Mother and maintained by live-in maids. Every okiya has a kimono collection, worn exclusively by geishas
who represent it. 4 A momoware is the first hairstyle worn by every apprentice geisha. It has a suggestive meaning, symbolizing
their purity. It is also a reference to their future mizuage.
9
Now Pumpkin would be setting out as a geisha
while I remained behind, unable even to ask
about her new life.
Then came the day Pumpkin dressed as an
apprentice geisha for the first time and went
with Hatsumomo to the Mizuki Teahouse, for
the ceremony to bind them together as sisters.
Mother and Auntie went, though I wasn't
included. But I did stand among them in the
formal entrance hall until Pumpkin came down
the stairs assisted by the maids.
She wore a magnificent black kimono with the
crest of the Nitta okiya and a plum and gold
obi5; her face was painted white for the very
first time.
You might expect that with the ornaments in
her hair and the brilliant red of her lips, she
should have looked proud and lovely; but I
thought she looked more worried than anything
else. She had great difficulty walking; the
regalia of an apprentice geisha is so
cumbersome.
Mother put a camera into Auntie's hands and
told her to go outside and photograph Pumpkin
having a flint sparked on her back for good luck 6the very first time.
The rest of us remained crowded inside the
entrance hall, out of view. The maids held
Pumpkin's arms while she slipped her feet into
the tall wooden shoes we call okobo7, which an
apprentice geisha always wears.
Then Mother went to stand behind Pumpkin
and struck a pose as though she were about to
spark a flint, even though it was always Auntie
or one of the maids who did the job.
Teď byla Dýně jednou z nich, zatímco já jsem
zůstala pozadu, bez možnosti zeptat se jí na její
nový život.
A pak přišel den, kdy se Dýně poprvé oblékla
jako gejša-učednice a odešla s Hatsumomo do
čajovny Mizuki, aby se zúčastnily obřadu,
který je měl spojit jako sestry.
I matka s tetičkou se zúčastnily, jen mě nikdo
nepozval. Já jsem s nimi jen čekala ve vstupní
hale na Dýni, která za pomoci služek sešla po
schodech dolů.
Měla na sobě nádherné černé kimono s erbem
rodiny Nitta přepásané švestkově-zlatým obi.
Poprvé měla též obličej nabarvený na bílo.
Dalo by se očekávat, že s nádhernými
ozdobami ve vlasech a rudě namalovanými rty
bude vypadat pyšně a krásně, ale podle mě, víc
než cokoliv jiného, vypadala spíš ustaraně.
Měla velmi těžký krok, protože oděv i šperky
začínající gejši jsou velmi objemné.
Matka podala tetičce fotoaparát a poslala ji ven,
aby vyfotila, jak Dýni poprvé za zády křesají
jiskru pro štěstí.
My ostatní jsme zůstali namačkaní ve vstupní
hale. Služky pomohly Dýni nazout vysoké
dřevěné boty, známé jako okobo, které běžně
nosí začínající gejši.
Za ni se postavila matka, pózující jako by se
chystala vykřesnout jiskru pro štěstí, i když
normálně to byla práce tetičky nebo jedné ze
služek.
5 An obi is an essential part of a female kimono; simply said, it could be compared to a belt (in its function, but
definitely not in its shape). It is extremely long, very beautiful and it needs a skilled person, usually a male dresser,
to tie it properly. It is usually stuffed with extra padding, especially at the back, to achieve a desired shape. 6 The life of a geisha is surrounded by many rituals and superstitions, which are closely connected to Japanese
religion (Shintoism and Buddhism). Having a flint sparked on one’s back, is one of the rituals performed regularly
as she goes to her engagements. The person doing this ritual simply stands behind the geisha with two ceremonial
pebble stones and with them draws a spark to wish her good luck. 7 Okobo are a type of Japanese shoes, worn mostly by apprentice geishas or special performers (dancers). They are
quite tall, very heavy (wooden), and poorly constructed. They are worn the same way we nowadays were flip-
flops, which means they stay on the foot only by a couple of laces/pieces of fabric.
10
When at last the photograph was taken,
Pumpkin stumbled a few steps from the door
and turned to look back.
The others were on their way out to join her,
but I was the one she looked at, with an
expression that seemed to say she was very
sorry for the way things had turned out.
By the end of that day, Pumpkin was officially
known by her new geisha name of Hatsumiyo.
The "Hatsu" came from Hatsumomo, and even
though it ought to have helped Pumpkin to have
a name derived from a geisha as well known as
Hatsumomo, in the end it didn't work that way.
Very few people ever knew her geisha name,
you see; they just called her Pumpkin as we
always had.
I was very eager to tell Mameha about
Pumpkin's debut. But she'd been much busier
than usual lately, traveling frequently to Tokyo
at the request of her danna8, with the result that
we hadn't set eyes on each other in nearly six
months.
Another few weeks passed before she finally
had time to summon me to her apartment.
When I stepped inside, the maid let out a gasp;
and then a moment later Mameha came
walking out of the back room and let out a gasp
as well.
I couldn't think what was the matter. And then
when I got on my knees to bow to Mameha and
tell her how honored I was to see her again, she
paid me no attention at all. "My goodness, has
it been so long, Tatsumi?" she said to her maid.
"I hardly recognize her."
"I'm glad to hear you say it, ma'am," Tatsumi
replied.
Když fotku konečně pořídily, Dýně klopýtla
pár kroků od dveří a ohlédla se přes rameno.
Ostatní už byli venku, ale Dýně se dívala na
mě. V očích se jí zračila lítost. Mrzelo ji, jak se
vše v poslední době vyvíjelo.
Na konci dne už byla Dýně oficiálně známá
jako Hatsumiyo, což byl její nový umělecký
pseudonym, který pocházel ze jména
Hatsumomo. To mělo Dýni pomoci v jejích
začátcích, protože Hatsumomo byla opravdu
slavná gejša. Nakonec to ale bylo naprosto
zbytečné.
Jen velmi málo lidí ji totiž znalo pod jménem
Hatsumiyo, každý jí říkal Dýně, tak jako tomu
bylo odjakživa.
Nemohla jsem se dočkat, až o Dýnině debutu
povím Mameze. Ale ona byla poslední dobou
velmi zaneprázdněná. Cestovala na žádost
jejího danna do Tokia, díky čemuž jsme se
neviděly skoro šest měsíců.
Uplynulo ještě dalších pár týdnů, než měla
konečně čas pozvat mě k sobě do bytu.
Jakmile jsem vstoupila, služka zalapala po
dechu. O chvíli později přišla ze zadního
pokoje Mameha a dostalo se mi stejné reakce.
Nechápala jsem, co se to děje. Poklekla jsem,
abych se Mameze poklonila a pověděla jí,
jakou mi je ctí ji znovu vidět, ale ona mi vůbec
nevěnovala pozornost. „Můj bože, Tatsumi, to
už je tak dávno?“ řekla své služce. „Málem
jsem ji nepoznala.“
„Ještě že jste to řekla, madam,“ odpověděla
Tatsumi.
8 A danna is a person, who acts as a sponsor to a geisha. They pay for the education, everyday life expenses,
sometimes even buy them a personal kimono collection. Every geisha can only have one danna at the time. Some
geishas sustain the same relationship for the whole career, but some have multiple danna during their time. A
danna is a man, who is very well set in the society, wealthy and powerful, usually trapped in an unhappy arranged
marriage, seeking a romantic bond elsewhere. In the past, geishas quite often took the relationship to a more
personal level, but it was never considered as prostitution. As the world of geishas is very well guarded and
surrounded by secrets, we are unable to say whether this practice is still happening or not.
11
"I thought something had gone wrong with my
eyes!" I wondered at the time what they were
talking about. But evidently in the six months
since I'd last seen them, I'd changed more than
I realized.
Mameha told me to turn my head this way and
that, and kept saying over and over,
"My goodness, she's turned into quite a young
woman!"
At one point Tatsumi even made me stand and
hold my arms out so she could measure my
waist and hips with her hands, and then said to
me, "Well, there's no doubt a kimono will fit
your body just like a sock fits a foot."
I'm sure she meant this as a compliment, for she
had a kindly look on her face when she said it.
Finally, Mameha asked Tatsumi to take me into
the back room and put me into a proper kimono.
I'd arrived in the blue and white cotton robe I'd
worn that morning to my lessons at the school,
but Tatsumi changed me into a dark blue silk
covered with a design of tiny carriage wheels
in shades of brilliant yellow and red.
It wasn't the most beautiful kimono you would
ever see, but when I looked at myself in the
full-length mirror as Tatsumi was tying a bright
green obi into place around my waist, I found
that except for my plain hairstyle, I might have
been taken for a young apprentice geisha on her
way to a party.
I felt quite proud when I walked out of the
room, and thought Mameha would gasp again,
or something of-the sort.
But she only rose to her feet, tucked a
handkerchief into her sleeve, and went directly
to the door, where she slipped her feet into a
green pair of lacquered zori9 and looked back
over her shoulder at me.
„Už jsem si myslela, že mám něco s očima!“ Já
mezitím přemýšlela, o čem ty dvě mluví.
Očividně jsem se za těch šest měsíců, co jsme
se neviděly, změnila víc, než jsem si myslela.
Mameha mi poručila otočit hlavu na jednu
stranu, pak na druhou a pořád dokola.
„Můj bože, už je z ní mladá žena!“
V jednu chvíli mě Tatsumi dokonce přinutila
stát se zvednutými pažemi, aby mi rukama
mohla změřit pas a boky, a pak mi povídá: „No,
je jasné, že kimono ti bude sedět jako ulité.“
Určitě to myslela jako kompliment, protože se
u toho mile usmívala.
Pak Mameha konečně požádala Tatsumi, aby
mě vzala do zadního pokoje a oblékla mě do
pořádného kimona.
Přišla jsem v modro-bílých šatech, které jsem
na sobě měla dnes ráno ve škole, ale Tatsumi
mě převlékla do tmavě modrého hedvábí se
vzorem malých koleček, jako od vozu,
v nádherných odstínech žluté a červené.
Nebylo to nejkrásnější kimono, jaké jste kdy
viděli, ale když jsem se podívala do zrcadla,
zatímco mi Tatsumi zavazovala okolo pasu
jasně zelené obi, zjistila jsem, že kromě mého
obyčejného účesu by mě mohli považovat za
mladou gejšu-učednici na cestě na večírek.
Když jsem vešla zpět do místnosti, cítila jsem
se docela pyšně a myslela jsem si, že Mameha
opět zalapá po dechu, nebo něco podobného.
Ale ona jen vstala, zastrčila si kapesníček do
rukávu a okamžitě zamířila ke dveřím, kde
vklouzla do páru zelených lakovaných zori a
ohlédla se na mě.
9 Zori are another type of Japanese shoes. Like most others, they take a shape of “flip-flops” with flat bottom and
just two pieces of lace/cloth holding it at one’s feet. For all these types of Asian shoes, they also have adequately
shaped socks with divided section in between the big toe and other toes.
12
"Well?" she said. "Aren't you coming?" I had
no idea where we were going, but I was thrilled
at the thought of being seen on the street with
Mameha. The maid had put out a pair of
lacquered zori for me, in a soft gray.
I put them on and followed Mameha down the
dark tunnel of the stairwell.
As we stepped out onto the street, an elderly
woman slowed to bow to Mameha and then, in
almost the same movement, turned to bow to
me. I scarcely knew what to think of this, for
hardly anyone ever took notice of me on the
street. The bright sunlight had blinded my eyes
so much, I couldn't make out whether or not I
knew her.
But I bowed back, and in a moment, she was
gone. I thought probably she was one of my
teachers, but then an instant later the same thing
happened again-this time with a young geisha
I'd often admired, but who had never so much
as glanced in my direction before.
We made our way up the street with nearly
everyone we passed saying something to
Mameha, or at the very least bowing to her, and
then afterward giving me a little nod or bow as
well. Several times stopped to bow back, with
the result that I fell a step or two behind
Mameha.
She could see the difficulty I was having and
took me to a quiet alleyway to show me the
proper way of walking. My trouble, she
explained, was that I hadn't learned to move the
upper half of my body independently of the
lower half.
When I needed to bow to someone, I stopped
my feet. "Slowing the feet is a way of showing
respect," she said. "The more you slow up, the
greater the respect. You might stop altogether
to bow to one of your teachers, but for anyone
else, don't slow more than you need to, for
heaven's sake, or you'll never get anywhere.
„Takže?“ řekla. „Ty nepůjdeš?“ Neměla jsem
tušení, kam jdeme, ale byla jsem nadšená, že
mě na veřejnosti uvidí společně s Mamehou.
Služka nachystala pár lakovaných zori i pro mě,
ve světle šedé barvě.
Obula jsem si je a následovala Mamehu po
temném schodišti.
Jak jsme vkročily na ulici, kolemjdoucí postarší
žena se zastavila, aby se Mameze poklonila a
následně složila poklonu i mě. Nevěděla jsem,
co si o tom myslet, protože si mě většinou na
ulici nikdo nevšímal. Jasné slunce mě natolik
oslepilo, že jsem nedokázala rozeznat, zda ji
znám či nikoliv.
Ale poklonu jsem opětovala a ona byla ve
vteřině pryč. Napadlo mě, jestli to nebyla jedna
z mých učitelek, ale za moment se celá situace
opakovala znovu. Tentokrát se u nás zastavila
mladá gejša, kterou jsem mockrát obdivovala,
a která o mě dřív ani očkem nezavadila.
Jak jsme šly ulicí, skoro každý, na koho jsme
narazily, se u nás zastavil, aby s Mamehou
prohodil slovo, nebo se alespoň poklonil a
následně věnoval přikývnutí či poklonu i mně.
Několikrát jsem se zastavila, abych klanění
odpověděla, čímž jsem začala o krok či o dva
za Mamehou zaostávat.
Když viděla, jak těžko se mi chodí, vzala mě do
tiché boční uličky, aby mi předvedla správnou
chůzi. Mým problémem bylo, že jsem se
nenaučila hýbat horní polovinou těla nezávisle
na té spodní.
Když bylo potřeba někomu se uklonit, musela
jsem se zastavit. „Zpomalit krok znamená
vyjádřit respekt,“ řekla. „Čím víc zpomalíš, tím
větší vyjádříš respekt. Když se klaníš svým
učitelům, můžeš zastavit úplně, ale pro všechny
ostatní, proboha, nezpomaluj víc, než je nutné,
jinak nikdy nikam nedojdeš.
13
Go along at a constant pace when you can,
taking little steps to keep the bottom of your
kimono fluttering. When a woman walks, she
should give the impression of waves rippling
over a sandbar." I practiced walking up and
down the alley as Mameha had described,
looking straight toward my feet to see if my
kimono fluttered as it should.
When Mameha was satisfied, we set out again.
Most of our greetings, I found, fell into one of
two simple patterns.
Young geisha, as we passed them, usually
slowed or even stopped completely and gave
Mameha a deep bow, to which Mameha
responded with a kind word or two and a little
nod; then the young geisha would give me
something of a puzzled look and an uncertain
bow, which I would return much more deeply-
for I was junior to every woman we
encountered.
When we passed a middle-aged or elderly
woman, however, Mameha nearly always
bowed first10; then the woman returned a
respectful bow, but not as deep as Mameha's,
and afterward looked me up and down before
giving me a little nod.
I always responded to these nods with the
deepest bows I could manage while keeping my
feet in motion. I told Mameha that afternoon
about Pumpkin's debut; and for months
afterward I hoped she would say the time had
come for my apprenticeship to begin as well.
Instead, spring passed and summer too, without
her saying anything of the sort.
In contrast with the exciting life Pumpkin was
now leading, I had only my lessons and my
chores, as well as the fifteen or twenty minutes
Mameha spent with me during the afternoons
several times a week.
Pokračuj stejným tempem, pokud můžeš, a
dělej malé krůčky, aby se ti netřepal spodní lem
kimona. Když žena kráčí, měla by vytvářet
dojem vln na klidném moři.“ Párkrát jsem
přešla uličku tam a zpět, jak mi Mameha
poradila, a po očku jsem pozorovala lem svého
kimona, jestli se hýbalo tak, jak by mělo.
Když byla Mameha konečně spokojená,
pokračovaly jsme v cestě. Zjistila jsem, že
většina pozdravů spadá do určitých vzorců.
Mladé gejši, které nás míjely, většinou
zpomalily nebo se dokonce zastavily a uctily
Mamehu hlubokou poklonou, na kterou
Mameha zareagovala milým slovem a malým
pokývnutím. Mě potom věnovaly nejasný
pohled a malou poklonu, kterou jsem opětovala
hlubší poklonou, protože jsem pracovně mladší
než ženy, které jsme potkávaly.
Když jsme ale míjely ženy starší, než byla
Mameha, skoro vždycky je pozdravila první.
Tyto ženy pak pozdrav s respektem opětovaly,
i když se neklaněly tak hluboko, pak si
prohlédly mě od hlavy k patě a jemně přikývly
hlavou.
Vždycky jsem klanění opětovala, jak hluboce
jsem jen dokázala i bez toho, abych zastavila
svůj krok. To odpoledne jsem Mameze
pověděla o Dýnině debutu. Následující měsíce
jsem pak doufala, že mi oznámí, že nastal čas,
abych se také stala učednicí.
Místo toho uběhlo jaro i léto a žádné takové
oznámení nepřišlo.
Na rozdíl od Dýnina nového vzrušujícího
života, já měla jen studium, domácí povinnosti
a k nim párkrát týdně patnáct až dvacet minut
s Mamehou.
10 The depth of one’s bow depended always on social status/rank and seniority in the field. This meant that novice
geishas had to bow extremely deep unlike their more experienced and reputable colleagues.
14
Sometimes I sat in her apartment while she
taught me about something I needed to know;
but most often she dressed me in one of her
kimonos and walked me around Gion while
running errands or calling on her fortune-teller
or wig maker. Even when it rained, and she had
no errands to run, we walked under lacquered
umbrellas, making our way from store to store
to check, when the new shipment of perfume
would arrive from Italy, or whether a certain
kimono repair was finished though it wasn't
scheduled to be completed for another week. At
first I thought perhaps Mameha took me with
her so that she could teach me things like
proper posture-for she was constantly rapping
me on the back with her closed folding fan to
make me stand straighter-and about how to
behave toward people. Mameha seemed to
know everyone, and always made a point of
smiling or saying something kind, even to the
most junior maids, because she understood well
that she owed her exalted position to the people
who thought highly of her.
But then one day as we were walking out of a
bookstore, I suddenly realized what she was
really doing.
She had no particular interest in going to the
bookstore, or the wig maker, or the stationer.
The errands weren't especially important; and
besides, she could have sent one of her maids
instead of going herself.
She ran these errands only so that people in
Gion would see us strolling the streets together.
She was delaying my debut to give everyone
time to take notice of me.
One sunny October afternoon we set out from
Mameha's apartment and headed downstream
along the banks of the Shirakawa, watching the
leaves of the cherry trees11 flutter down onto
the water.
Někdy jsme seděly v jejím bytě a ona mě učila
něco důležitého, ale většinou mě oblékla do
jednoho z jejích kimon a procházela se se mnou
Gionem, zatímco vyřizovala pochůzky nebo
navštěvovala věštce či parukáře. Procházely
jsme se, dokonce i když pršelo a neměla žádné
pochůzky k vyřízení. S lakovanými deštníky
v rukou jsme se procházely od výlohy k výloze,
abychom zjistily, kdy přijde nové zboží z Itálie
či jestli dokončili opravu jejího kimona, která
ale neměla být dokončena ještě další týden.
Nejdříve jsem si myslela, že mě Mameha bere
s sebou, aby mě naučila věci jako správné
držení těla, kvůli kterému mě neustále klepala
po zádech skládacím vějířem, aby mě přinutila
stát vzpřímeně, nebo aby mi ukázala, jak se
chovat k lidem.
Zdálo se mi, že Mameha se zná s každým, a
každému věnovala při nejmenším úsměv nebo
milé slovo, dokonce i těm nejpodřadnějším
služkám. Rozuměla, že její uznávanou pozici
ve společnosti si udržuje díky uznání místního
lidu.
Ale jednoho dne, když jsme vycházely
z knihkupectví, jsem náhle pochopila, co
doopravdy měla za lubem.
Neměla doopravdy v úmyslu chodit do
knihkupectví, k parukáři nebo do papírnictví.
Tyto pochůzky nebyly nijak důležité, a navíc
mohla místo sebe poslat služky.
Důvodem, proč tyto pochůzky vyřizovala
sama, jsem byla já. Lidé nás tak mohli vidět
procházet se společně ulicemi Gionu.
Odkládala můj debut, aby si mě stihlo všimnout
co nejvíce lidí.
Jedno slunečné říjnové odpoledne jsme se
vydaly z Mamehina bytu po nábřeží řeky
Shirakawa a pozorovaly jsme, jak lístky
okrasných třešní padají na hladinu vody.
11 There are many species of cherry trees, especially in Japan, and by using the most general term „cherry trees“,
the author avoided calling them by any specific Japanese name, like for example Sakura.
15
A great many other people were out strolling
for just the same reason, and as you would
expect, all of them greeted Mameha. In nearly
every case, at the same time they greeted
Mameha, they greeted me.
"You're getting to be rather well known, don't
you think?" she said to me. "I think most people
would greet even a sheep, if it were walking
alongside Mameha-san12." "Especially a
sheep," she said. "That would be so unusual.
But really, I hear a great many people asking
about the girl with the lovely gray eyes. They
haven't learned your name, but it makes no
difference. You won't be called Chiyo much
longer anyway."
"Does Mameha-san mean to say -" "I mean to
say that I've been speaking with Waza-san" -
this was the name of her fortune-teller - "and he
has suggested the third day in November as a
suitable time for your debut."
Mameha stopped to watch me as I stood there
still as a tree and with my eyes the size of rice
crackers. I didn't cry out or clap my hands, but
I was so delighted I couldn't speak.
Finally, I bowed to Mameha and thanked her.
"You're going to make a fine geisha," she said,
"but you'll make an even better one if you put
some thought into the sorts of statements you
make with your eyes."
"I've never been aware of making any statement
with them at all," I said. "They're the most
expressive part of a woman's body, especially
in your case. Stand here a moment, and I'll
show you."
Mameha walked around the corner, leaving me
alone in the quiet alleyway.
Ulice byly dnes plné lidí, kteří vyrazili na
procházku, jak se zdálo, za stejným účelem
jako my, a všichni zdravili Mamehu. Téměř
pokaždé, co pozdravili Mamehu, pozdravili i
mě.
„Lidé si tě začínají pamatovat, nemyslíš?“
konstatovala. „Myslím, že většina
kolemjdoucích by pozdravila i ovci, kdyby
kráčela s Mamehou.“
„Hlavně tu ovci,“ odpověděla. „Ale vážně,
slyšela jsem spoustu lidí ptát se na dívku
s krásnýma šedýma očima. Ještě sice neznají
tvé jméno, ale na tom vůbec nezáleží. Stejně už
ti nebudeme říkat Chiyo dlouho.“
„Chce tím Mameha říct –“ „Chci tím říct, že
jsem mluvila s panem Wazou,“ zmínila svého
věštce. „Ten říkal, že třetí den v listopadu by
bylo vhodné datum tvého debutu.“
Mameha se zastavila a pozorovala, jak jsem
zkoprněla šokem, neschopná jediného slova.
Neskákala jsem radostí, ani jsem netleskala, ale
byla jsem tak šťastná, že jsem oněměla. Pak
jsem se probrala, Mameze jsem se poklonila a
poděkovala jí.
„Bude z tebe skvělá gejša,“ řekla mi. „Ale
budeš ještě lepší, když se zamyslíš nad tím, co
říkáš lidem očima.“
„Netušila jsem, že očima něco povídám,“
odpověděla jsem. „Ženské oči toho jsou
nejdůležitější částí ženského tělo, hlavně u
tebe. Na chvíli se tu zastav, ukážu ti to.“
Mameha zašla za roh a nechala mě samotnou
v tiché uličce.
12 Japanese are extremely polite people. The politeness can be seen it the way they greet each other, as I have
already mentioned, or more specifically in ways they call each other. The most common honorific is -san. This
suffix is used in public, in schools and other very formal settings, expressing the highest level of respect. By
connecting this suffix to the first name, not the surname, it shows that Mameha and Chiyo are more familiar. As
Mameha’s position in their society is much higher, she does not honor Chiyo with the same honorific.
16
A moment later she strolled out and walked
right past me with her eyes to one side. I had
the impression she felt afraid of what might
happen if she looked in my direction.
"Now, if you were a man," she said, "what
would you think?" "I'd think you were
concentrating so hard on avoiding me that you
couldn't think about anything else."
"Isn't it possible I was just looking at the
rainspouts along the base of the houses?" "Even
if you were, I thought you were avoiding
looking at me."
“That’s just what I’m saying. A girl with a
stunning profile will never accidentally give a
man the wrong message with it. But men are
going to notice your eyes and imagine you’re
giving messages with them even when you
aren’t.
Now watch me once more.”
Mameha went around the corner again, and this
time came back with her eyes to the ground,
walking in a particularly dreamy manner.
Then as she neared me her eyes rose to meet
mine for just an instant, and very quickly
looked away. I must say, I felt an electric jolt;
if I’d been a man, I would have thought she’d
given herself over very briefly to strong
feelings she was struggling to hide.
“If I can say things like this with ordinary eyes
like mine,” she told me, “think how much more
you can say with yours.
It wouldn’t surprise me if you were able to
make a man faint right here on the street.”
“Mameha-san!” I said. “If I had the power to
make a man faint, I’m sure I’d be aware of it by
now.” “I’m quite surprised you aren’t. Let’s
agree, then, that you’ll be ready to make your
debut as soon as you’ve stopped a man in his
tracks just by flicking your eyes at him.”
Za moment se zase objevila a prošla okolo mě
se sklopenýma očima. Měla jsem pocit jako by
se bála, že když se na mě podívá, tak se něco
stane.
„Tak, kdybys byla muž, co by sis o tom
myslela?“ zeptala se. „Myslela bych si, že se mi
za každou cenu snažíte vyhnout a nedokážete
se tak soustředit na nic jiného.“
„A není možné, že jsem se třeba jen dívala na
kapky deště tekoucích po základech domů?“ „I
kdyby, stejně bych si myslela, že jste se mi
vyhýbala.“
„To je přesně to, o čem mluvím. Dívka s tak
nádherným pohledem nikdy neudělá na muže
špatný dojem. Muži si všimnou tvých očích a
ty si představ, co svým pohledem vyjadřuješ, ať
už si to uvědomuješ, nebo ne.
Zkusíme to ještě jednou, dávej pozor.“
Mameha opět zašla za roh a tentokrát se vrátila
s pohledem skloněným k zemi a lehkou
elegantní chůzí.
Jakmile se začala blížit ke mně, zvedla hlavu a
jen na moment se její pohled setkal s mým, než
oči opět sklopila k zemi. Musím přiznat, že její
pohled byl elektrizující. Kdybych byla muž,
myslela bych si, že na moment bezmezně
podlehla svým pocitům, které již nedokázala
skrýt.
„Když já dokážu pohledem říct tolik, pomysli,
kolik bys dokázala říct ty svým.
Nepřekvapilo by mě, kdyby kvůli tvému
pohledu na ulici nějaký muž omdlel.”
„Mameho!“ řekla jsem. „Kdybych uměla muže
odrovnat pohledem, jsem si jistá, že bych o tom
věděla.“ „Jsem docela překvapená, že to ještě
nevíš. Pojďme se domluvit, že budeš mít svůj
debut, až dokážeš zastavit muže jediným
mrknutím oka.“
17
I was so eager to make my debut that even if
Mameha had challenged me to make a tree fall
by looking at it, I’m sure I would have tried. I
asked her if she would be kind enough to walk
with me while I experimented on a few men,
and she was happy to do it.
My first encounter was with a man so old that,
really, he looked like a kimono full of bones.
He was making his way slowly up the street
with the help of a cane, and his glasses were
smeared so badly with grime that it wouldn’t
have surprised me if he had walked right into
the corner of a building.
He didn’t notice me at all; so we continued
toward Shijo Avenue. Soon I saw two
businessmen in Western suits, but I had no
better luck with them. I think they recognized
Mameha, or perhaps they simply thought she
was prettier than I was, for in any case, they
never took their eyes off her.
I was about to give up when I saw a delivery
boy of perhaps twenty, carrying a tray stacked
with lunch boxes. In those days, a number of
the restaurants around Gion made deliveries
and sent a boy around during the afternoon to
pick up the empty boxes.
Usually, they were stacked in a crate that was
either carried by hand or strapped to a bicycle;
I don’t know why this young man was using a
tray. I could see that Mameha was looking right
at him, and then she said: “Make him drop the
tray.” Before I could make up my mind whether
she was joking, she turned up a side street and
was gone. I don’t think it’s possible for a girl of
fourteen—or for a woman of any age—to make
a young man drop something just by looking at
him in a certain way; I suppose such things may
happen in movies and books.
I would have given up without even trying, if I
hadn’t noticed two things.
Byla jsem tak odhodlaná svůj debut uskutečnit,
že i kdyby mě Mameha vyzvala abych jediným
pohledem složila strom, tak bych to určitě
zkusila. Poprosila jsem ji, aby se se mnou ještě
chvíli procházela, abych mohla na pár mužích
experimentovat, a ona mi ráda vyhověla.
Můj první pokus byl muž tak starý, že vypadal
doslova jako kimono plné kostí.
O holi se pomalu ubíral ulicí. Brýle měl tak
zapatlané špínou, že kdyby narazil do rohu
nějakého domu, vůbec bych se tomu nedivila.
Vůbec si mě nevšiml. Pokračovaly jsme proto
po Shijo bulváru. O chvíli později jsem uviděla
dva obchodníky v oblecích západního střihu,
ale taky bez úspěchu. Myslím, že poznali
Mamehu, nebo si prostě jen mysleli, že je hezčí
než já, tak či tak z ní ani na vteřinu nespustili
oči.
Už jsem to chtěla vzdát, když jsem si všimla
poslíčka, okolo dvaceti, který nesl podnos plný
prázdných krabic od oběda. V té době bylo
běžné, že některé restaurace Gionu měly
roznáškový systém a odpoledne pak posílali
poslíčky vyzvednout prázdné krabičky.
Obvykle je měli naskládané v koši, který nesli
v rukou nebo jej vezli na kole, takže jsem
nechápala, proč je tento mladík nese na
podnose. Viděla jsem, že se Mameha dívá
přímo na něj, když řekla: „Přinuť ho upustit ten
podnos.“ Dřív, než jsem měla šanci se
rozhodnout, zda vtipkuje, zahnula za roh ulice
a zmizela. Nemyslím si, že čtrnáctiletá dívka,
nebo žena jakéhokoliv věku, dokáže pouhým
pohledem způsobit, aby mladý muž upustil
plný tác. Takové věci se možná dějí ve filmech
nebo knížkách.
Nejspíš bych to ani nezkusila, kdybych si
nevšimla dvou maličkostí.
18
First, the young man was already eyeing me as
a hungry cat might eye a mouse; and second,
most of the streets in Gion didn’t have curbs,
but this one did, and the delivery boy was
walking in the street not far from it.
If I could crowd him so that he had to step up
onto the sidewalk and stumble over the curb, he
might drop the tray.
I began by keeping my gaze to the ground in
front of me, and then tried to do the very thing
Mameha had done to me a few minutes earlier.
I let my eyes rise until they met the young
man’s for an instant, and then I quickly looked
away. After a few more steps I did the same
thing again.
By this time, he was watching me so intently
that probably he’d forgotten about the tray on
his arm, much less the curb at his feet.
When we were very close, I changed my course
ever so slightly to begin crowding him, so that
he wouldn’t be able to pass me without
stepping over the curb onto the sidewalk, and
then I looked him right in the eye.
He was trying to move out of my way; and just
as I had hoped, his feet tangled themselves on
the curb, and he fell to one side scattering the
lunch boxes on the sidewalk.
Well, I couldn’t help laughing!
And I’m happy to say that the young man began
to laugh too.
I helped him pick up his boxes, gave him a little
smile before he bowed to me more deeply than
any man had ever bowed to me before, and then
went on his way.
I met up with Mameha a moment later, who had
seen it all. “I think perhaps you’re as ready now
as you’ll ever need to be,” she said.
Zaprvé, ten mladík si mě prohlížel tak, jak
hladová kočka kouká na myš. A za druhé,
většina ulic Gionu neměla obrubníky, ale tato
ano, a tento poslíček šel kousek od něj.
Kdybych se k němu přiblížila dostatečně
blízko, možná by ho to přinutilo uhnout na
chodník a zakopnout tak o obrubník, a tudíž i
upustit podnos.
Začala jsem sklopeným pohledem k zemi přede
mnou, a pak jsem se pokusila o to stejné, co
předvedla Mameha mě před pár minutami. Pak
se mé oči jen na moment střetly s jeho, než
jsem opět sklopila oči k zemi. Po pár krocích
jsem to celé zopakovala.
Tentokrát mě sledoval tak upřeně, že nejspíš
zapomněl na podnos v rukách, natož pak na
obrubník.
Když už jsme se k sobě blížili, změnila jsem
svou trasu tak, abych šla po silnici blíž k němu
a on tak musel přejít na chodník a pak jsem se
mu znovu upřeně podívala do očí.
Snažil se mi vyhnout, a přesně jak jsem
doufala, nohy se mu zasekly o obrubník a on
upadl i s krabicemi, které rozsypal na chodník.
Nešlo se nesmát!
A jsem moc ráda, že se začal smát i on.
Pomohla jsem mu sesbírat krabice, věnovala
mu malý úsměv, on se mi uklonil tak hluboko,
jako nikdo předtím a pak se vydal na cestu.
O moment později jsem se opět setkala
s Mamehou, která všechno pozorovala.
„Možná že jsi již dostatečně připravená,“ řekla.
19
And with that, she led me across the main
avenue to the apartment of Wazasan, her
fortune-teller, and set him to work finding
auspicious dates for all the various events that
would lead up to my debut - such as going to
the shrine to announce my intentions to the
gods, and having my hair done for the first
time, and performing the ceremony that would
make sisters of Mameha and me.
I didn’t sleep at all that night. What I had
wanted for so long had finally come to pass,
and oh, how my stomach churned!
The idea of dressing in the exquisite clothing I
admired and presenting myself to a roomful of
men was enough to make my palms glisten with
sweat.
Every time I thought of it, I felt a most delicious
nervousness that tingled all the way from my
knees into my chest. I imagined myself inside a
teahouse, sliding open the door of a tatami
room13. The men turned their heads to look at
me; and of course, I saw the Chairman there
among them.
Sometimes I imagined him alone in the room,
wearing not a Western-style business suit, but
the Japanese dress so many men wore in the
evenings to relax.
In his fingers, as smooth as driftwood, he held
a sake cup; more than anything else in the
world, I wanted to pour it full for him and feel
his eyes upon me as I did.
I may have been no more than fourteen, but it
seemed to me I’d lived two lives already.
S těmito slovy mě vedla přes hlavní bulvár do
Wazasanova bytu, jejího věštce. Tomu dala za
úkol najít správná data pro jednotlivé události
vedoucí k mému debutu, jako návštěva chrámu
kvůli oznámení mých plánů bohům, moje první
schůzka s kadeřnicí, nebo ceremoniál spojující
mě a Mamehu se svazek sesterský.
Tu noc jsem oči nezamhouřila. To, po čem jsem
tak dlouho toužila, mám konečně na dosah, a
jak se mi z toho stáhl žaludek!
Z představy, jak jsem oblečená do jedné
z přepychových rób, které jsem vždy
obdivovala, a jak se představuji místnosti plné
mužů, se mi dlaně zalily potem.
Pokaždé, když jsem na to pomyslela, jsem
ucítila tu nejlahodnější nervozitu, která mě
šimrala od kolen až po hruď. Představovala
jsem si, jak v čajovně otevírám dveře salonku s
tatami. Všichni muži upřou pohled na mě a
mezi nimi je samozřejmě i Ředitel.
Občas si jej představím v salonu samotného,
oblečeného ne do obleku, ale do japonského
mužského šatu, který mnoho mužů nosí
k večernímu odpočinku.
Jeho prsty, hladké jako samet, držely šálek na
saké. Víc než cokoliv na světě jsem chtěla ten
šálek naplnit a ucítit opět jeho pohled, tak jako
dřív.
I když mi bylo sotva čtrnáct, přišlo mi, že už
jsem prožila dva životy.
13 In Japanese culture, the teahouses are usually filled with so-called tatami rooms, which are private or semi-
private rooms with tatami mats to sit on, in which people entertain their guests. It can be a group of business
partners, or just a group of friends, and they can entertain alone or hire geishas. Geishas usually entertain in pairs
or groups, one plays the shamisen, the traditional musical instrument, and sings, while the others dance. They all
then teach their customers funny games, they converse, perform tea ceremonies and pour sake, Japanese rice wine.
20
My new life was still beginning, though my old
life had come to an end some time ago. Several
years had passed since I’d learned the sad news
about my family, and it was amazing to me how
completely the landscape of my mind had
changed. We all know that a winter scene,
though it may be covered over one day, with
even the trees dressed in shawls of snow, will
be unrecognizable the following spring. Yet I
had never imagined such a thing could occur
within our very selves. When I first learned the
news of my family, it was as though I’d been
covered over by a blanket of snow.
But in time the terrible coldness had melted
away to reveal a landscape I’d never seen
before or even imagined.
I don’t know if this will make sense to you, but
my mind on the eve of my debut was like a
garden in which the flowers have only begun to
poke their faces up through the soil, so that it is
still impossible to tell how things will look.
I was brimming with excitement; and in this
garden of my mind stood a statue, precisely in
the centre. It was an image of the geisha I
wanted to become.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
I’ve heard it said that the week in which a
young girl prepares for her debut as an
apprentice geisha is like when a caterpillar
turns into a butterfly. It’s a charming idea; but
for the life of me I can’t imagine why anyone
ever thought up such a thing.
A caterpillar has only to spin its cocoon and
doze off for a while; whereas in my case, I’m
sure I never had a more exhausting week.
Můj nový život byl teprve na začátku, ale můj
starý život byl již nějakou dobu u konce.
Uběhlo několik let, než jsem se dozvěděla
smutné zprávy o mé rodině, ale bylo úžasné, jak
se za tu dobu změnil můj způsob myšlení.
Všichni známe tu zimní krajinu, která je chvíli
pokrytá sněhem, dokonce i stromy jsou přikryté
sněhovou peřinou, ale s příchodem jara je
krajina k nepoznání. Nikdy bych ale nevěřila,
že by se taková věc mohla stát i nám samotným.
Když jsem se prvně dozvěděla novinky o mé
rodině, bylo to jako bych byla přikryta
sněhovou pokrývkou.
Ale časem se ten hrozivý mrazík rozpustil a
odhalil tak krajinu, o které se mi nikdy dříve
nesnilo.
Nevím, jestli vám to dává smysl, ale předvečer
mého debutu byl jako zahrada, ve které poupata
teprve začínala vykukovat z hlíny, a tudíž
nebylo možné rozpoznat, jak budou později
vypadat.
Překypovala jsem nadšením. V mé snové
zahradě stála socha, přesně uprostřed.
Ztělesňovala gejšu, kterou jsem se chtěla stát.
KAPITOLA ČTRNÁCTÁ
Slyšela jsem, že týden, ve kterém se mladá
dívka připravuje na svůj debut jako gejša-
učednice, je jako když se z housenky stane
motýl. Je to kouzelná myšlenka, ale já jsem
nedokázala pochopit, proč by si někdo něco
takového vůbec myslel.
Housenka se jen musí zamotat do kokonu a na
chvíli si zdřímnout, přičemž v mém případě se
jednalo o nejvíc vyčerpávající týden mého
života.
21
The first step was to have my hair done in the
manner of an apprentice geisha, in the “split
peach” style, which I’ve mentioned.
Gion had quite a number of hairdressers in
those days; Mameha’s worked in a terribly
crowded room above an eel restaurant.
I had to spend nearly two hours waiting my turn
with six or eight geisha kneeling here and there,
even out on the landing of the stairwell.
And I’m sorry to say that the smell of dirty hair
was overpowering.
The elaborate hairstyles geisha wore in those
days required so much effort and expense that
no one went to the hairdresser more than once
a week or so; by the end of that time, even the
perfumes they put in their hair weren’t of much
help.
When at last my turn came, the first thing the
hairdresser did was put me over a large sink in
a position that made me wonder if he was going
to chop off my head.
Then he poured a bucket of warm water over
my hair and began to scrub it with soap.
Actually “scrub” isn’t a strong enough word,
because what he did to my scalp using his
fingers is more like what a workman does to a
field using a hoe.
Looking back on it, I understand why. Dandruff
is a great problem among geisha, and very few
things are more unattractive and make the hair
look more unclean.
The hairdresser may have had the best motives,
but after a while my scalp felt so raw, I was
almost in tears from the pain.
Finally he said to me, “Go ahead and cry if you
have to. Why do you think I put you over a
sink!” I suppose this was his idea of a clever
joke, because after he’d said it, he laughed out
loud.
Prvním krokem bylo nechat se učesat ve stylu
gejši-učednice, tedy již zmiňovaný účes
„rozpůlená broskev“.
Gion byl v té době plný kadeřnictví. Kadeřník
Mamehy pracoval v přeplněné místnosti nad
úhoří restaurací.
Musela jsem čekat skoro dvě hodiny, než jsem
přišla na řadu, spolu s dalšími šesti až osmi
gejšami, které klečely všude možně, dokonce i
na schodech.
A bohužel musím přiznat, že zápach špinavých
vlasů byl nesnesitelný.
Okázalé účesy nošené gejšami vyžadovaly v té
době mnoho úsilí a peněz, takže si nikdo
nemohl dovolit chodit do kadeřnictví víc jak
jednou týdně. Koncem týdne už nepomáhaly
ani parfémy, které se do vlasů aplikovaly.
Když jsem konečně přišla na řadu, kadeřník mě
ze všeho nejdřív nahnul nad velké umyvadlo, a
to tak, jako by mi chtěl useknout hlavu.
Pak mi polil vlasy kbelíkem teplé vody a začal
je drhnout mýdlem.
„Drhnout“ vlastně nebylo dostatečně silné
slovo, protože to, co prsty prováděl mé hlavě,
připomínalo spíše dělníka na poli s motykou
v ruce.
Když se ohlédnu zpět, je mi jasné, proč.
Mezi gejšami jsou lupy velkým problémem,
jsou neatraktivní a vlasy pak působí víc
špinavé.
Kadeřník to nejspíš dělal s nejlepšími úmysly,
ale po chvíli jsem měla pokožku hlavy tak
citlivou, že jsem skoro až slzela bolestí.
Pak mi konečně povídá: „Jen klidně breč,
pokud musíš. Proč myslíš, že jsem tě naklonil
nad umyvadlo!“ Předpokládám, že to měl být
pokus o chytrý vtípek, protože jakmile to
vyslovil, začal se hlasitě smát.
22
When he’d had enough of scraping his
fingernails across my scalp, he sat me on the
mats to one side and tore a wooden comb
through my hair until the muscles of my neck
were sore from pulling against him. At length
he satisfied himself that the knots were gone,
and then combed camellia oil into my hair,
which gave it a lovely sheen. I was starting to
think the worst was over; but then he took out
a bar of wax. And I must tell you that even with
camellia oil as a lubricant and a hot iron to keep
the wax soft, hair and wax were never meant to
go together.
It says a great deal about how civilized we
human beings are, that a young girl can
willingly sit and allow a grown man to comb
wax through her hair without doing anything
more than whimpering quietly to herself.
If you tried such a thing with a dog, it would
bite you so much you’d be able to see through
your hands.
When my hair was evenly waxed, the
hairdresser swept the forelock back and
brought the rest up into a large knot like a
pincushion on the top of the head.
When viewed from the back, this pincushion
has a split in it, as if it’s cut in two, which gives
the hairstyle its name of “split peach.” Even
though I wore this split-peach hairstyle for a
number of years, there’s something about it that
never occurred to me until quite some time later
when a man explained it.
The knot - what I’ve called the “pincushion” -
is formed by wrapping the hair around a piece
of fabric.
In back where the knot is split, the fabric is left
visible; it might be any design or color, but in
the case of an apprentice geisha -after a certain
point in her life, at least - it’s always red silk.
Když už mi dostatečně poškrábal pokožku
hlavy, usadil mě na jednu z rohoží a začal mi
škubat vlasy dřevěným hřebenem tak dlouho,
dokud jsem neměla namožené krční svaly
z toho, jak jsem tlačila hlavou proti němu.
Když se konečně přesvědčil, že jsou vlasy bez
uzlíků, včesal mi do nich olej z kamélií, díky
kterému se krásně leskly. Začínala jsem věřit,
že to nejhorší mám za sebou, ale pak vytáhl
tabulku vosku. A musím vám říct, že i
s olejíčkem ve vlasech a horkým železem
udržujícím vosk měkkým, jsem dospěla
k závěru, že vlasy a vosk nepatří k sobě.
To, že si mladá dívka dobrovolně sedne a nechá
dospělého muže, aby jí včesával do vlasů vosk,
zatímco ona jen tiše trpí, vypovídá dost o
vyspělosti lidské civilizace.
Kdybyste to stejné zkusili se psem, kousl by
vás tak, že byste měli v ruce díru.
Když jsem měla vlasy rovnoměrně pokryté
voskem, sčesal mi je z čela a smotal je do
velkého uzlu, podobného jehelníčku, na
vrcholku hlavy.
Z pohledu zezadu měl jehelníček mezírku
vytvářející dojem, jako by byl rozpůlený, čímž
vznikl název účesu „rozpůlená broskev.“ I když
jsem tento účes nosila několik let, jedna věc mi
nikdy nepřišla na mysl, dokud mi ji někdo
nevysvětlil.
Ten uzel, kterému jsem říkala „jehelníček,“ je
tvořen omotáváním vlasů okolo pruhu látky.
Vzadu, tam kde jsou vlasy rozpůleny, je látka
záměrně vidět. Může mít jakoukoliv barvu
nebo vzor, ale v případě gejši – učednice je to
po určité životní události vždycky červený
satén.
23
One night a man said to me: “Most of these
innocent little girls have no idea how
provocative the ‘split peach’ hairstyle really is!
Imagine that you’re walking along behind a
young geisha, thinking all sorts of naughty
thoughts about what you might like to do to her,
and then you see on her head this split-peach
shape, with a big splash of red inside the cleft .
. . And what do you think of?” Well, I didn’t
think of anything at all, and I told him so. “You
aren’t using your imagination!” he said.
After a moment I understood and turned so red
he laughed to see it.
On my way back to the okiya, it didn’t matter
to me that my poor scalp felt the way clay must
feel after the potter has scored it with a sharp
stick.
Every time I caught a glimpse of myself in the
glass of a shop, I felt I was someone to be taken
seriously; not a girl anymore, but a young
woman. When I reached the okiya, Auntie
made me model my hair for her and said all
sorts of kind things. Even Pumpkin couldn’t
resist walking once around me admiringly -
though Hatsumomo would have been angry if
she’d known.
And what do you suppose Mother’s reaction
was?
She stood on her tiptoes to see better -which did
her little good, because already I was taller than
she was - and then complained that I probably
ought to have gone to Hatsumomo’s
hairdresser rather than Mameha’s.
Every young geisha may be proud of her
hairstyle at first, but she comes to hate it within
three or four days. Because you see, if a girl
comes home exhausted from the hairdresser
and lays her head down on a pillow for a nap
just as she did the night before, her hair will be
flattened out of shape.
Jednou večer mi jeden muž povídá: “Většina
těchto nevinných mladých dívek nemá ani
ponětí, jak provokativní účes “rozpůlené
broskve” ve skutečnosti je! Představ si, že jdeš
za mladou gejšou a napadají tě různé nemravné
myšlenky o tom, co všechno bys jí chtěla
provést, a pak na její hlavě uvidíš tento účes
rozpůlené broskve s rudým středem… A na co
pomyslíš?” No, mě nenapadlo vůbec nic a taky
jsem mu to řekla. „Nepoužíváš svou
představivost!“ odvětil.
Po chvilce jsem si to uvědomila a zrudla jsem,
což jej rozesmálo.
Když jsem se vracela do okiji, moje hlava byla
jako když hrnčíř vyryje rýhy do hlíny, ale
vůbec mi to nevadilo.
Pokaždé, jsem se zahlédla ve výloze nějakého
obchodu, jsem si připadala jako někdo, koho je
třeba brát vážně. Už nejsem dívka, ale mladá
žena. Když jsem přišla domů, předvedla jsem
tetičce svůj účes a ona mě zahrnula
komplimenty. Dokonce ani Dýně nemohla
odolat a alespoň jednou prošla s obdivem
okolo, i když by tím naštvala Hatsumomo,
kdyby se to dozvěděla.
A jak myslíte, že reagovala matka?
Stoupla si na špičky, aby lépe viděla, což jí ale
moc nepomohlo, protože jsem už tehdy byla
vyšší než ona, a pak si začala stěžovat, že jsem
radši měla jít ke kadeřníkovi, co češe
Hatsumomo.
Každá mladá gejša je ze začátku na svůj účes
pyšná, ale během dvou až tří dní jej začne
nenávidět. Abyste to chápali, když dívka přijde
vyčerpaná od kadeřníka a chce si odpočinout
s hlavou na polštáři tak jako předchozí noc, její
vlasy se přeleží a ztratí ten správný tvar.
24
The moment she awakens, she’ll have to go
right back to the hairdresser again. For this
reason, a young apprentice geisha must learn a
new way of sleeping after her hair is styled for
the first time. She doesn’t use an ordinary
pillow any longer, but a takamakura14 - which
I’ve mentioned before. It’s not so much a
pillow as a cradle for the base of the neck. Most
are padded with a bag of wheat chaff, but still
they’re not much better than putting your neck
on a stone.
You lie there on your futon with your hair
suspended in the air, thinking everything is fine
until you fall asleep; but when you wake up,
you’ve shifted somehow so that your head has
settled back on the mats, and your hairstyle is
as flat as if you hadn’t bothered to use a tall
pillow in the first place.
In my case, Auntie helped me to avoid this by
putting a tray of rice flour on the mats beneath
my hair. Whenever my head drooped back
while I slept, my hair sank into the rice flour,
which stuck to the wax and ruined my hairstyle.
I’d already watched Pumpkin go through this
ordeal. Now it was my turn. For a time I woke
up every morning with my hair ruined and had
to wait in line at the hairdresser for my chance
to be tortured.
Every afternoon during the week leading up to
my debut, Auntie dressed me in the complete
regalia of an apprentice geisha and made me
walk up and down the dirt corridor of the okiya
to build up my strength.
In the beginning I could scarcely walk at all,
and worried that I might tip over backward.
Young girls dress much more ornately than
older women, you see, which means brighter
colors and showier fabrics, but also a longer
obi.
Hned jak se ráno probudí, musí se vrátit zpátky
ke kadeřníkovi. Právě kvůli tomu se mladé
gejši – učednice učí nový způsob spaní,
neprodleně po první návštěvě kadeřníka. Už
nepoužívá běžný polštář, ten nahradí
takamakura, o kterém jsem se již zmínila.
Není to vlastně tak úplně polštář, jako spíš
podstavec pod krk. Většina je polstrovaná
pytlíkem pšeničných plev, ale stejně to není o
moc lepší než si lehnout na kámen.
Takže ležíte na futonu s vlasy ve vzduchu,
myslíte si, že vše je v pořádku a usnete. Ale
když se vzbudíte, zjistíte, že jste se s sebou
v noci tak házeli, že spíte s hlavou na rohoži a
váš účes je splasknutý tak jakoby jste se ani
neobtěžovali ten speciální polštář použít.
Tetička mi ale pomohla vyhnout se tomuto
problému tak, že na rohože pod mou hlavu
umístila tác plný rýžové mouky. Pokaždé, když
jsem ztratila kontrolu nad svou hlavou, se mi
vlasy zabořily do mouky, ta se spojila s voskem
v mých vlasech a pokazila mi účes.
Pamatuji si, když toto utrpení prožívala Dýně.
Teď byla řada na mě. Nějakou dobu jsem se
budila se zničeným účesem, což vedlo
k častému mučení u kadeřníka.
Týden před mým debutem mě tetička každé
odpoledne oblékala do kompletního oděvu
gejši-učednice a nutila mě chodit ta a zpět po
zaprášené chodbě okiji abych získala kondici.
Na začátku jsem zvládla udělat sotva pár kroků,
protože jsem se bála, že přepadnu dozadu.
Mladé dívky mají oděv mnohem zdobnější než
starší ženy, což znamená jasnější barvy a
okázalejší materiály, ale také delší obi.
14 Takamakura is a type of pillow, designed specifically for the geisha community. It helps prolong the quality of
their hairstyle, but it is just a little bit padded, very uncomfortable and extremely unhealthy for the cervical spine.
25
A mature woman will wear the obi tied in back
in a manner we call the “drum knot,” because it
makes a tidy little box shape; this doesn’t
require very much fabric. But a girl younger
than around twenty or so wears her obi in a
showier fashion.
In the case of an apprentice geisha, this means
the most dramatic fashion of all, a darari-obi -
“dangling obi” - knotted almost as high as the
shoulder blades, and with the ends hanging
nearly to the ground.
No matter how brightly colored a kimono
might be, the obi is nearly always brighter.
When an apprentice geisha walks down the
street in front of you, you notice not her kimono
but rather her brilliantly colored, dangling obi -
with just a margin of kimono showing at the
shoulders and on the sides.
To achieve this effect the obi must be so long
that it stretches all the way from one end of a
room to the other. But it isn’t the length of the
obi that makes it hard to wear; it’s the weight,
for it’s nearly always made of heavy silk
brocade. Just to carry it up the stairs is
exhausting, so you can imagine how it feels to
wear it—the thick band of it squeezing your
middle like one of those awful snakes, and the
heavy fabric hanging behind, making you feel
as if someone has strapped a traveling trunk to
your back. To make matters worse, the kimono
itself is also heavy, with long, swinging
sleeves. I don’t mean sleeves that drape over
the hand onto the ground.
You may have noticed that when a woman is
wearing kimono and stretches out her arms, the
fabric below the sleeve hangs down to form
something like a pocket.
This baggy pocket, which we call the furi, is the
part that’s so long on the kimono of an
apprentice geisha.
Dospělé ženy nosí obi svázané na zádech do
„bubnového uzlu,“ který vytváří úhledný uzel
podobný malé krabičce. Tento uzel nevyžaduje
moc materiálu. Ale dívka mladší dvaceti let
nosí obi okázalejším způsobem.
V případě gejši-učednice to znamená
nejdramatičtější způsob ze všech, a to darari-
obi neboli „visící obi,“ svázané hned pod
lopatkami a visící téměř k zemi.
Nezáleží na tom, jak je kimono jasné a barevné,
obi je skoro vždycky jasnější.
Když jde gejša-učednice před vámi po ulici,
nevšimnete si jejího kimona, ale spíš jejího
okázalého visícího obi a možná okraj kimona
vykukujícího po stranách na ramenou.
Pro dosáhnutí tohoto efektu je potřeba, aby se
obi, kvůli své délce, táhlo přes celou místnost.
Délka obi ale není důvodem, proč je tak těžké
jej nosit. Problémy působí jeho váha, protože
se většinou vyrábí z těžkého hedvábného
brokátu. Už jen vynést jej do patra je
vyčerpávající, takže si jistě dokážete představit,
jaké to je mít ho na sobě – těsně stažené v pase,
jako by vás objímal jeden z těch příšerných
hadů, a těžká látka visící vzadu, díky které se
cítíte, jako by vám někdo na záda přivázal plný
kufr. A aby toho nebylo málo, i samotné
kimono je dost těžké, a navíc má dlouhé
plandavé rukávy. Tím nemyslím rukávy, které
by visely přes ruku až na zem.
Možná jste si všimli, že když má žena na sobě
kimono a roztáhne ruce, látka pod rukávy visí
dolů a vytváří tak dojem kapsy.
Tato kapsa, které říkáme furi, je na kimonu
gejši-učednice ta nejdelší část.
26
It can easily drag along the ground if a girl isn’t
careful; and when she dances, she will certainly
trip over her sleeves if she doesn’t wrap them
many times around the forearm to keep them
out of the way.
Years later a famous scientist from Kyoto
University, when he was very drunk one night,
said something about the costume of an
apprentice geisha that I’ve never forgotten.
“The mandrill of central Africa is often
considered the showiest of primates,” he said.
“But I believe the apprentice geisha of Gion is
perhaps the most brilliantly colored primate of
all!”
Finally the day came when Mameha and I were
to perform the ceremony binding us as sisters.
I bathed early and spent the rest of the morning
dressing.
Auntie helped me with the finishing touches on
my makeup and hair. Because of the wax and
makeup covering my skin, I had the strange
sensation of having lost all feeling in my face;
every time I touched my cheek, I could feel
only a vague sense of pressure from my finger.
I did it so many times Auntie had to redo my
makeup. Afterward as I studied myself in the
mirror, a most peculiar thing happened.
I knew that the person kneeling before the
makeup stand was me, but so was the
unfamiliar girl gazing back.
She wore the magnificent makeup of a geisha.
Her lips were flowering red on a stark white
face, with her cheeks tinted a soft pink.
Her hair was ornamented with silk flowers and
sprigs of unhusked rice. She wore a formal
kimono of black, with the crest of the Nitta
okiya. When at last I could bring myself to
stand, I went into the hall and looked in
astonishment at myself in the full-length
mirror.
Pokud je dívka nepozorná, může je táhnout za
sebou po zemi. A pokud si je pořádně neomotá
kolem předloktí, je snadné o ně zakopnout
během tance.
O mnoho let později mi vědec z univerzity
v Kyotu řekl o kostýmu gejši-učednice něco, co
mi navždy utkvělo v paměti.
„Mandril, žijící v centrální Africe, je
považován za nejokázalejšího primáta ze
všech,“ řekl mi. „Ale věřím, že gejša-učednice
z Gionu je nejspíš nejdokonaleji zbarvený
primát ze všech!“
Konečně nastal ten den, kdy jsme s Mamehou
měly provést ceremoniál svazující nás ve
svazek sesterský. Brzo ráno jsem se vykoupala
a většinu dopoledne jsem strávila přípravami.
Tetička mi pomohla s posledními úpravami
mého líčení a účesu. Díky všemu tomu vosku a
líčidlům jsem si připadala, jako bych ztratila
všechen cit v obličeji.
Pokaždé, když jsem dotkla tváře, jsem skoro
ani necítila tlak prstu.
Udělala jsem to tolikrát, že mi tetička musela
líčení poupravit. Když jsem se pak prohlížela
v zrcadle, stala se velmi podivná věc.
Věděla jsem, že ta osoba, klečící před skříňkou
na líčidla, jsem já, ale stejně zmateně na mě
koukala ta neznámá dívka v zrcadle.
Měla na sobě dokonalé líčení opravdové gejši.
Její rty rozkvétaly na jasně bílém obličeji
s tvářemi lehce do růžova.
Její vlasy byly zdobeny hedvábnými květinami
a snítkami neloupané rýže. Oděna byla do
slavnostního černého kimona se znakem rodu
Nitta. Když jsem se konečně odhodlala
postavit, sešla jsem do haly a udiveně jsem se
prohlížela ve velkém zrcadle.
27
Beginning at the hem of my gown, an
embroidered dragon circled up the bottom of
the robe to the middle of my thigh.
His mane was woven in threads lacquered with
a beautiful reddish tint. His claws and teeth
were silver, his eyes gold—real gold.
I couldn’t stop tears from welling up in my eyes
and had to look straight up at the ceiling to keep
them from rolling onto my cheeks.
Before leaving the okiya, I took the
handkerchief the Chairman had given me and
tucked it into my obi for good luck. Auntie
accompanied me to Mameha’s apartment,
where I expressed my gratitude to Mameha and
pledged to honor and respect her.
Then the three of us walked to the Gion Shrine,
where Mameha and I clapped our hands and
announced to the gods that we would soon be
bound as sisters15. I prayed for their favor in the
years ahead, and then closed my eyes and
thanked them for having granted me the wish
I’d pleaded for three and a half years earlier,
that I should become a geisha.
The ceremony was to take place at the Ichiriki
Teahouse, which is certainly the best-known
teahouse in all of Japan.
It has quite a history, partly because of a
famous samurai who hid himself there in the
early 1700s. If you’ve ever heard the story of
the Forty-seven Ronin - who avenged their
master’s death and afterward killed themselves
by seppuku16 - well, it was their leader who hid
himself in the Ichiriki Teahouse while plotting
revenge.
Spodní část róby, od lemu až ke stehnům, byla
zdobena výšivkou draka.
Jeho hříva byla utkaná z načervenalých
lakovaných nití. Drápy a zuby měl stříbrné a
oči ze zlata – opravdového zlata.
Nedokázala jsem potlačit slzy, tak jsem musela
pozvednout hlavu ke stropu, aby se mi
nekutálely po tvářích.
Před odchodem z okiji jsem si vzala kapesníček
od Ředitele a zastrčila jsem si ho za obi jako
talisman pro štěstí.
Tetička mě doprovodila do Mamehina bytu,
kde jsem jí vyjádřila své díky a slíbila, že ji
budu ctít a respektovat.
Pak jsme všechny tři šly do Gionského chámu,
kde jsme s Mamehou zatleskaly a oznámily
bohům, že již brzy budeme spojeny jako sestry.
Modlila jsem se za jejich podporu v budoucích
letech, a pak jsem zavřela oči a děkovala jim za
splněné přání, když jsem si před třemi a půl lety
přála stát se gejšou.
Ceremoniál se měl odehrát v čajovně Ichiriki,
nejznámější čajovně v celém Japonsku.
Má bohatou historii, částečně díky slavnému
samuraji, který se tam schovával na počátku
osmnáctého století. Pokud jste někdy slyšeli
příběh Čtyřiceti sedmi Roninů, kteří pomstili
smrt svého pána a pak spáchali sebevraždu
seppukou, tak právě jejich vůdce byl ten, který
se schovával v čajovně Ichiriki, zatímco
spřádal plány k pomstě.
15 In Japanese religions, especially Buddhism and Shintoism, everything is closely connected to superstitions, luck,
and spirits. So naturally, the world of geisha revolves around many ceremonies and trips to fortune tellers, just like
this ceremony, bonding together an experienced geisha with her novice trainee. A familiar name is used again, the
two geishas become “sisters” and their professional lives are connected forever. The older sister is responsible for
the younger one’s training. The younger geisha carries a great responsibility not to destroy the good name of her
older sister. 16 Seppuku is one of the darker Japanese practices forever remembered in their history. To attempt a suicide is
considered a disgraceful practice, seppuku being the exception. Japanese samurai believed the highest honour was
to die in a battle. If a samurai was in danger of dying dishonourably, they often committed seppuku, a suicide by
their own sword. The sword was aimed at one’s stomach, pushed inside and then twisted, ensuring the biggest
damage to internal organs, and thus ensuring the success of one’s death.
28
Most of the first-class teahouses in Gion are
invisible from the street, except for their simple
entrances, but the Ichiriki is as obvious as an
apple on a tree.
It sits at a prominent corner of Shijo Avenue,
surrounded by a smooth, apricot-colored wall
with its own tiled roof.
It seemed like a palace to me. We were joined
there by two of Mameha’s younger sisters, as
well as by Mother.
When we had all assembled in the exterior
garden, a maid led us through the entrance hall
and down a beautiful meandering corridor to a
small tatami room in the back. I’d never been
in such elegant surroundings before. Every
piece of wood trim gleamed; every plaster wall
was perfect in its smoothness.
I smelled the sweet, dusty fragrance of
kuroyaki - “char black” - a sort of perfume
made by charring wood and grinding it into a
soft gray dust.
It’s very old-fashioned, and even Mameha,
who was as traditional a geisha as you would
find, preferred something more Western. But
all the kuroyaki worn by generations of geisha
still haunted the Ichiriki.
I have some even now, which I keep in a
wooden vial; and when I smell it, I see myself
back there once again.
The ceremony, which was attended by the
mistress of the Ichiriki, lasted only about ten
minutes.
A maid brought a tray with several sake cups,
and Mameha and I drank together.
I took three sips from a cup, and then passed it
to her and she took three sips.
We did this with three different cups, and then
it was over. From that moment on, I was no
longer known as Chiyo. I was the novice geisha
Sayuri.
Většina prvotřídních čajoven je na Gionských
ulicích neviditelná, kromě jejich jednoduchých
vstupních dveří, ale Ichiriki je
nepřehlédnutelná, jako slunce za jasného dne.
Nachází se na prominentním rohu bulváru
Shijo, obklopená hladkou, broskvově
zbarvenou zdí a taškovou střechou.
Připadala mi jako palác. Čekaly nás tam dvě
další Mamehiny mladší sestry a také matka.
Když jsme se všechny shromáždily ve
venkovní zahradě, služka nás uvedla vstupní
halou a dál krásnou klikatou chodbou až na
konec do malého pokoje s tatami. Nikdy dřív
jsem nebyla v tak elegantním pokoji.
Každý kus dřevěného obložení se leskl a každá
stěna byla dokonale hladká.
Ucítila jsem sladkou, prašnou vůni kuroyaki,
též známou jako uhelná čerň, což je druh
parfému vyráběný z opáleného dřeva
namletého na jemný šedý prášek.
Je to velmi staromódní, a dokonce i Mameha,
která byla tak tradiční gejša, jak jen to bylo
možné, preferovala něco více západního. Ale
vůně kuroyaki, nošená generacemi gejš, stále
obývala Ichiriki.
Dokonce ještě trochu mám, ve dřevěné
lahvičce a pokaždé když si přičichnu, je to jako
bych byla zpět na začátku.
Samotný ceremoniál, kterého se zúčastnily i
majitelky Ichiriki, trval sotva deset minut.
Služka přinesla na podnose několik hrnečků na
saké a já s Mamehou jsme si připily.
Vypila jsem tři doušky a pak jsem hrníček
podala Mameze, která též vypila tři doušky.
Toto jsme zopakovaly ještě dvakrát a pak byl
ceremoniál u konce. Od toho momentu jsem již
nebyla Chiyo. Stala jsem se začínající gejšou,
jménem Sayuri.
29
During the first month of apprenticeship, a
young geisha is known as a “novice” and
cannot perform dances or entertain on her own
without her older sister, and in fact does little
besides watching and learning.
As for my name of Sayuri, Mameha had
worked with her fortune-teller a long while to
choose it. The sound of a name isn’t all that
matters, you see; the meaning of the characters
is very important as well, and so is the number
of strokes used to write them - for there are
lucky and unlucky stroke counts.
My new name came from “sa,” meaning
“together,” “yu,” from the zodiac sign for the
Hen - in order to balance other elements in my
personality - and “ri,” meaning
“understanding.”
All the combinations involving an element
from Mameha’s name, unfortunately, had been
pronounced inauspicious by the fortune-teller.
I thought Sayuri was a lovely name, but it felt
strange not to be known as Chiyo any longer.
After the ceremony we went into another room
for a lunch of “red rice,” made of rice mixed
with red beans.
I picked at it, feeling strangely unsettled and
not at all like celebrating.
The mistress of the teahouse asked me a
question, and when I heard her call me
“Sayuri,” I realized what was bothering me.
It was as if the little girl named Chiyo, running
barefoot from the pond to her tipsy house, no
longer existed. I felt that this new girl, Sayuri,
with her gleaming white face and her red lips,
had destroyed her.
Mameha planned to spend the early afternoon
taking me around Gion to introduce me to the
mistresses of the various teahouses and okiya
with which she had relationships.
But we didn’t head out the moment lunch was
done.
První měsíc výcviku se mladé gejši říká
„novicka,“ nemůže předvádět tance nebo bavit
klienty bez přítomnosti své starší sestry, vlastně
nedělá skoro nic kromě pozorování a učení se.
Co se týče mého nového jména, Sayuri,
Mameha na něm dlouhou dobu pracovala se
svým věštcem. To, jak jméno zní, není to
hlavní, na čem záleží. Význam jednotlivých
písmen je též velmi důležitý, stejně tak jako
počet tahů potřebných k jejich napsání, protože
existují počty, co přináší štěstí ale i neštěstí.
Moje nové jméno vzniklo ze „sa“, což znamená
„společně,“ „yu“ symbolizuje znamení
zvěrokruhu Slepice, pro vyvážení jiných
elementů mé osobnosti, a „ri“ znamenající
„pochopení.“
Všechny kombinace obsahující prvek z
Mamehina jména byly bohužel věštcem
prohlášeny za nepříznivé.
Myslím, že Sayuri je krásné jméno, ale bylo
zvláštní nebýt nadále oslovována jako Chiyo.
Po ceremoniálu jsme se odebraly do jiného
pokoje poobědvat „rudou rýži,“ složenou
z rýže a červených fazolí.
Jídlem jsem se jen prohrabovala, cítila jsem se
zvláštně, a bez chuti slavit.
Majitelka čajovny mi položila otázku a když
vyslovila jméno „Sayuri,“ zjistila jsem, jak moc
mě to obtěžovalo.
Bylo to, jako by to malé děvčátko jménem
Chiyo, běhající bosé okolo jezera i jejich domu,
přestalo existovat. Cítila jsem, že tato nová
dívka, Sayuri, se zářivě bílým obličejem a
rudými rty, ji zničila.
Mameha plánovala strávit větší část odpoledne
pochůzkami po Gionu, aby mě představila
majitelkám čajoven a taky ve všech okijích, se
kterými měla utvořený nějaký vztah.
Nevyrazily jsme ale hned po obědě.
30
Instead, she took me into a room at the Ichiriki
and asked me to sit.
Of course, a geisha never really “sits” while
wearing kimono; what we call sitting is
probably what other people would call
kneeling. In any case, after I’d done it, she
made a face at me and told me to do it again.
The robes were so awkward it took me several
tries to manage it properly.
Mameha gave me a little ornament in the shape
of a gourd and showed me how to wear it
dangling on my obi.
The gourd, being hollow and light, is thought
to offset the heaviness of the body, you see, and
many a clumsy young apprentice has relied
upon one to help keep her from falling down.
Mameha talked with me a while, and then just
when we were ready to leave, asked me to pour
her a cup of tea. The pot was empty, but she
told me to pretend to pour it anyway. She
wanted to see how I held my sleeve out of the
way when I did it.
I thought I knew exactly what she was looking
for and tried my best, but Mameha was
unhappy with me. “First of all,” she said,
“whose cup are you filling?” “Yours!” I said.
“Well, for heaven’s sake, you don’t need to
impress me. Pretend I’m someone else. Am I a
man or a woman?”
“A man,” I said. “All right, then. Pour me a cup
again.” I did so, and Mameha practically broke
her neck trying to peer up my sleeve as I held
my arm out.
“How do you like that?” she asked me.
“Because that’s exactly what’s going to happen
if you hold your arm so high.”
I tried pouring again with my arm a bit lower.
Místo toho mě zavedla do dalšího pokoje v
Ichiriki a požádala mě, abych se posadila.
Gejša samozřejmě nikdy opravdu nesedí, když
má na sobě kimono. To, čemu mi říkáme sedění
je pro většinu lidí spíše klečení. Jakmile jsem
tak učinila, zamračila se na mě a řekla mi,
abych to zkusila znovu.
Díky róbě jsem byla tak těžkopádná, že mi to
trvalo několik pokusů, než jsem to zvládla
pořádně.
Mameha mi věnovala malou ozdobu ve tvaru
tykve a ukázala mi, jak ji pověsit na mé obi.
Tahle tykev, která je uvnitř dutá a lehká, má
pomoct s těžkostí těla, takže pomáhá mladým
nehrabaným gejšám vyvážit tělo a chránit je
před upadnutím.
Mameha si se mnou chvíli povídala, a když
nastal čas odchodu, požádala mě ještě, abych jí
nalila šálek čaje. Konvička byla prázdná, přesto
jsem ale měla předstírat, že nalévám. Chtěla se
podívat, jak během toho držím rukáv v bezpečí
před politím.
Myslela jsem, že přesně vím, oč jí jde a snažila
jsem se tak splnit úkol co nejlépe, ale Mameha
nebyla spokojená. „Takže zaprvé, čí šálek
naléváš?“ zeptala se nejprve. „Váš!“
odpověděla jsem. „Proboha, mě ale přece
nepotřebuješ oslnit. Předstírej, že jsem někdo
jiný. Jsem muž nebo žena?“
„Muž,“ odpověděla jsem. „Dobře, tak to zkus
znovu.“ A tak jsem taky učinila, a Mameha si u
toho málem zlomila krk, jak moc se snažila
pozorovat můj rukáv, zatímco jsem nalévala.
„Jak se ti to líbilo?“ zeptala se. „Protože takhle
přesně to bude vypadat, když budeš ruce držet
tak vysoko.
Zkusila jsem to tedy ještě jednou, tentokrát
s paží o něco níž.
31
This time, she pretended to yawn and then
turned and began a conversation with an
imaginary geisha sitting on the other side of
her.
“I think you’re trying to tell me that I bored
you,” I said. “But how can I bore you just
pouring a cup of tea?” “You may not want me
looking up your sleeve, but that doesn’t mean
you have to act prissy!
A man is interested in only one thing.
Believe me, you’ll understand all too soon what
I’m talking about. In the meantime, you can
keep him happy by letting him think he’s
permitted to see parts of your body no one else
can see. If an apprentice geisha acts the way
you did just then -pouring tea just like a maid
would - the poor man will lose all hope. Try it
again, but first show me your arm.”
So I drew my sleeve up above my elbow and
held my arm out for her to see. She took it and
turned it in her hands to look at the top and the
bottom.
“You have a lovely arm; and beautiful skin.
You should make sure every man who sits near
you sees it at least once.”
So I went on, pouring tea again and again, until
Mameha felt satisfied that I drew my sleeve out
of the way enough to show my arm without
being too obvious what I was doing.
I looked laughable if I hiked my sleeve up to
my elbow; the trick was to act like I was merely
pulling it out of the way, while at the same time
drawing it a few finger-widths above my wrist
to give a view of my forearm.
Mameha said the prettiest part of the arm was
the underside, so I must always be sure to hold
the teapot in such a way that the man saw the
bottom of my arm rather than the top.
She asked me to do it again, this time
pretending I was pouring tea for the mistress of
the Ichiriki.
Tentokrát předstírala, že zívá a otočila svoji
pozornost k imaginární gejši sedící z druhé
strany.
„Myslím, že se mi snažíte naznačit, že se
nudíte,“ navrhla jsem. „Ale jak vás můžu nudit
pouhým nalitím čaje?“ „Možná že nechceš,
abych se ti podívala do rukávu, ale to
neznamená, že se musíš chovat tak cudně!
Muže zajímá jen jedna jediná věc.
Věř mi, že tomu budeš rozumět, možná až moc
brzy. Mezitím ho můžeš potěšit tak, že mu
dovolíš vidět část tvého těla, o kterém si myslí,
že ho nemůže vidět nikdo jiný. Pokud by se
gejša-učednice chovala tak, jako před chvíli ty,
tedy nalévala by čaj jako služka, tak by ten
chudák myslel, že nemá šanci. Zkus to znovu,
ale nejdřív mi ukaž svou paži.“
Vyhrnula jsem si rukáv až po loket a obrátila
paži k Mameze. Vzala mě za ni a otočila jí na
všechny strany.
„Máš rozkošnou paži a nádhernou pokožku.
Měla bys každého muže, který sedí ve tvé
blízkosti, spatřit ji alespoň jednou.“
A tak jsem pokračovala, nalévala čaj znovu a
znovu, dokud nebyla Mameha spokojená se
způsobem, jakým jsem odhalovala jen kousek
své kůže bez toho, aby to vypadalo moc
podezřele.
Vypadala bych směšně, kdybych si rukáv
vyhrnula až k lokti. Trik byl v tom odhrnout ho
jen trochu z cesty a odhalit tak jen kousek
předloktí k nahlédnutí.
Mameha tvrdila, že nejkrásnější kousek paže je
její spodní strana, takže musím vždy držet
konvičku tak, abych odhalila spíše spodek paže
než její hodní stranu.
Pak mi řekla, ať to zkusím ještě jednou a
tentokrát ať nalévám pro majitelku čajovny
Ichiriki.
32
I showed my arm in just the same way, and
Mameha made a face at once. “For heaven’s
sake, I’m a woman. Why are you showing me
your arm that way? Probably you’re just trying
to make me angry.” “Angry?” “What else am I
supposed to think?
You’re showing me how youthful and beautiful
you are, while I’m already old and decrepit.
Unless you were doing it just to be vulgar…”
“How is it vulgar?” “Why else have you made
such a point of letting me see the underside of
your arm?
You may as well show me the bottom of your
foot or the inside of your thigh.
If I happen to catch a glimpse of something
here or there, well, that’s all right. But to make
such a point of showing it to me!”
So I poured a few more times, until I’d learned
a more demure and suitable method.
Whereupon Mameha announced that we were
ready to go out into Gion together.
Already by this time, I’d been wearing the
complete ensemble of an apprentice geisha for
several hours.
Now I had to try walking all around Gion in the
shoes we call okobo.
They’re quite tall and made of wood, with
lovely, lacquered thongs to hold the foot in
place. Most people think it very elegant the way
they taper down like a wedge, so that the
footprint at the bottom is about half the size of
the top. But I found it hard to walk delicately in
them. I felt as if I had roof tiles strapped to the
bottoms of my feet.
Mameha and I made perhaps twenty stops at
various okiya and teahouses, though we spent
no more than a few minutes at most of them.
Ukázala jsem ruku tak jako pokaždé a Mameha
se na mě zamračila. „Proboha, vždyť jsem
žena. Proč mi ukazuješ ruku tímto způsobem?
Nejspíš se mě jen snažíš naštvat.“ „Naštvat?“
„Co jiného si mám myslet?
Ukazuješ mi, jaká jsi mladá a krásná, zatímco
já už jsem jen stará a vrásčitá.
Nebo ses snad snažila být vulgární…“ „Jak to
může být vulgární?“ „Proč ses mi jinak snažila
ukázat vnitřní stranu zápěstí?
To už mi rovnou můžeš ukázat spodní stranu
chodidla nebo vnitřní stranu stehen. Pokud sem
tam něco zahlédnu, tak je to ještě v pořádku.
Ale ukazovat mi to takhle záměrně!“
Takže jsem pokračovala v kolotoči nalévání,
než jsem se naučila uctivější a vhodnější
metodu. Nakonec Mameha zavelela, že jsme
připravené vyrazit spolu do ulic Gionu.
Tou dobou jsem měla kompletní róbu gejši-
učednice na sobě už několik hodin.
Teď přišla na řadu procházka po celém Gionu
v botách, kterým říkáme okobo.
Jsou dost vysoké a vyrobené ze dřeva,
s krásnými lakovanými pásky, které je drží na
místě. Většina lidí je považuje za velmi
elegantní, jak se zužují směrem dolů a tvoří tak
stopu o dost užší, než jak jsou široké nahoře.
Pro mě ale bylo velmi těžké dělat v nich malé
krůčky. Jako bych měla k nohám přivázané
střešní tašky.
Zastavily jsme se přibližně ve dvaceti různých
okijích a čajovnách, ale většinou jsme se
nezdržely déle než pár minut.
33
Usually a maid answered the door, and
Mameha asked politely to speak with the
mistress; then when the mistress came,
Mameha said to her, “I’d like to introduce my
new younger sister, Sayuri,” and then I bowed
very low and said, “I beg your favor, please,
Mistress.” The mistress and Mameha would
chat for a moment, and then we left.
At a few of the places we were asked in for tea
and spent perhaps five minutes. But I was very
reluctant to drink tea and only wet my lips
instead.
Using the toilet while wearing kimono is one of
the most difficult things to learn, and I wasn’t
at all sure I’d learned it adequately just yet.
In those days, I suppose there were probably
thirty or forty first-class teahouses in Gion and
another hundred or so of a somewhat lower
grade.
Of course we couldn’t visit them all.
We went to the fifteen or sixteen where
Mameha was accustomed to entertaining.
As for okiya, there must have been hundreds of
those, but we went only to the few with which
Mameha had some sort of relationship.
Soon after three o’clock we were finished. I
would have liked nothing better than to go back
to the okiya to fall asleep for a long while.
But Mameha had plans for me that very
evening. I was to attend my first engagement as
a novice geisha. “Go take a bath,” she said to
me. “You’ve been perspiring a good deal, and
your makeup hasn’t held up.”
It was a warm fall day, you see, and I’d been
working very hard. Back at the okiya, Auntie
helped me undress and then took pity on me by
letting me nap for a half hour.
I was back in her good graces again, now that
my foolish mistakes were behind me, and my
future seemed even brighter than Pumpkin’s.
Obvykle nám otevřela služebná a Mameha ji
požádala, zda bychom mohly mluvit s
majitelkou. Ta když přišla, Mameha jí
pověděla: „Ráda bych vám představila svoji
novou mladší sestru Sayuri,” načež já jsem se
hluboce poklonila a pronesla: „Prosím vás o
vaši přízeň.“ Majitelka a Mameha spolu pak
pronesly pár slov a vzápětí jsme odešly.
Na některých místech nás pozvali na čaj, takže
jsme se zdržely třeba pět minut. Já jsem ale byla
velmi obezřetná ohledně pití čaje, vždy jsem
jen smočila rty.
Použít toaletu, oděna v kimonu, je jedna
z nejtěžších věcí, které se musíme naučit, a já
jsem si nebyla úplně jistá, zda jsem se to již
naučila dostatečně.
V té době bylo v Gionu přibližně třicet až
čtyřicet prvotřídních čajoven a okolo stovky
těch trochu podřadnějších.
Samozřejmě jsme je nemohly navštívit
všechny.
Zašly jsme do patnácti či šestnácti z těch, kde
Mameha obyčejně pracovala.
Co se okijí týče, těch muselo být v Gionu
stovky, ale my jsme zašly pouze do těch, se
kterými měla Mameha navázaný nějaký vztah.
Lehce po třetí hodině jsme měly hotovo. Měla
jsem chuť pouze na to vrátit se do okiji a usnout
dlouhým spánkem.
Ale Mameha pro mě měla plány na ten stejný
večer. Měla jsem se zúčastnit své první zakázky
v roli gejši novicky. „Zajdi si dát koupel,“
poradila mi. „Dost ses potila a nevydrželo ti
líčení.“
Není se čemu divit, byl teplý podzimní den a já
jsem velmi tvrdě pracovala. Když jsem se
vrátila domů, tetička mi pomohla se svlékáním
a pak se nade mnou slitovala a nechala mě půl
hodinky si odpočinout.
Už to mezi námi bylo zase v pořádku, na mou
hloupou chybu si nikdo nevzpomněl a má
budoucnost vypadala zářnější než Dýnina.
34
She woke me after my nap, and I rushed to the
bathhouse as quickly as I could. By five, I had
finished dressing and applying my makeup.
I felt terribly excited, as you can imagine,
because for years I’d watched Hatsumomo, and
lately Pumpkin, go off in the afternoons and
evenings looking beautiful, and now at last my
turn had come. The event that evening, the first
I would ever attend, was to be a banquet at the
Kansai International Hotel.
Banquets are stiffly formal affairs, with all the
guests arranged shoulder to shoulder in a sort
of U-shape around the outside of a big tatami
room, and trays of food sitting on little stands
in front of them. The geisha, who are there to
entertain, move around the center of the room -
inside the U-shape made by all the trays, I mean
- and spend only a few minutes kneeling before
each guest to pour sake and chat.
It isn’t what you’d call an exciting affair; and
as a novice, my role was less exciting even than
Mameha’s. I stayed to one side of her like a
shadow. Whenever she introduced herself, I did
the same, bowing very low and saying, “My
name is Sayuri. I’m a novice and beg your
indulgence.”
After that I said nothing more, and no one said
anything to me. Toward the end of the banquet,
the doors at one side of the room were slid
open, and Mameha and another geisha
performed a dance together, known as Chi-yo
no Tomo - “Friends Everlasting.”
It’s a lovely piece about two devoted women
meeting again after a long absence.
Most of the men sat picking their teeth through
it; they were executives of a large company that
made rubber valves, or some such thing, and
had gathered in Kyoto for their annual banquet.
I don’t think a single one of them would have
known the difference between dancing and
sleepwalking.
But for my part, I was entranced.
Po půl hodině mě vzbudila a já jsem se
urychleně vydala do veřejných lázní. O pěti
jsem už byla oblečená a měla jsem hotové
líčení.
Byla jsem velmi natěšená, jak si jistě dokážete
představit, protože jsem léta pozorovala
Hatsumomo, a teď i Dýni, jak odpoledne či
večer odchází nastrojená ven, a teď konečně
přišla řada i na mě. Událostí večera, první v mé
kariéře, měl být banket v Mezinárodním Hotelu
Kansai.
Bankety jsou upjatá formální setkání, na
kterých jsou hosté usazeni jeden vedle druhého
na tatami uspořádaných do tvaru písmene U
s malými stolky s občerstvením před každým
z nich. Gejši, které na banketu pracují, se volně
pohybují středem toho posezení, s každým
hostem chvíli konverzují a nalévají mu saké.
Není to zrovna vzrušující událost. Navíc já,
jako začínající gejša, mám ještě nudnější roli
než Mameha. Celou dobu jsem byla po jejím
boku jako její stín. Kdykoliv se někomu
představila, já udělala to samé s hlubokou
poklonou a řekla jsem: „Mé jméno je Sayuri.
Jsem začínající gejša, prosím o shovívavost.“
Potom už jsem nic neříkala a nikdo neříkal nic
mně. Ke konci banketu otevřeli boční dveře
místnosti dokořán a Mameha s dalšími gejšami
zatančily tanec zvaný Chi-yo Tomo, tedy
„Přátelé navždy“.
Je to krásný tanec o dvou oddaných ženách,
které se potkají po dlouhém odloučení. Většina
mužského osazenstva se během tance vrtala
v zubech. Šlo o vysoce postavené pracovníky
velké firmy, vyrábějící gumové ventily nebo
něco podobného, kteří se každoročně scházeli
v Kjótu na tento banket.
Myslím, že žádný z nich by nepoznal rozdíl
mezi tancem a náměsíčnou chůzí.
Ale já jsem byla uchvácená.
35
Geisha in Gion always use a folding fan as a
prop when dancing, and Mameha in particular
was masterful in her movements. At first she
closed the fan and, while turning her body in a
circle, waved it delicately with her wrist to
suggest a stream of water flowing past.
Then she opened it, and it became a cup into
which her companion poured sake for her to
drink. As I say, the dance was lovely, and so
was the music, which was played on the
shamisen by a terribly thin geisha with small,
watery eyes. A formal banquet generally lasts
no more than two hours; so by eight o’clock we
were out on the street again.
I was just turning to thank Mameha and bid her
good night, when she said to me, “Well, I’d
thought of sending you back to bed now, but
you seem to be so full of energy. I’m heading
to the Komoriya Teahouse. Come along with
me and have your first taste of an informal
party. We may as well start showing you
around as quickly as we can.” I couldn’t very
well tell her I felt too tired to go; so I swallowed
my real feelings and followed her up the street.
The party, as she explained to me along the
way, was to be given by the man who ran the
National Theater in Tokyo.
He knew all the important geisha in nearly
every geisha district in Japan; and although he
would probably be very cordial when Mameha
introduced me, I shouldn’t expect him to say
much. My only responsibility was to be sure I
always looked pretty and alert. “Just be sure
you don’t let anything happen to make you look
bad,” she warned. We entered the teahouse and
were shown by a maid to a room on the second
floor. I hardly dared to look inside when
Mameha knelt and slid open the door, but I
could see seven or eight men seated on
cushions around a table, with perhaps four
geisha. We bowed and went inside, and
afterward knelt on the mats to close the door
behind us - for this is the way a geisha enters a
room.
Gionské gejši vždy používají ve svých
choreografiích skládací vějíře a Mameha byla
v této disciplíně naprosto dokonalá. Nejprve
vějíř zavřela a jak se otáčela, vytvářela jím
okolo sebe iluzi tekoucího pramene.
Následně jej otevřela a předstírala, že je to
šálek saké, který jí naplnila její společnice, aby
se mohla napít. Jak jsem zmínila, ten tanec byl
krásný a stejně tak i hudba, kterou na shamisen
hrála neskutečně pohublá gejša s malýma
světle modrýma očima. Formální banket
většinou netrvá déle než dvě hodiny, takže
kolem osmé jsme se opět ocitly na ulici.
Chystala jsem se Mameze poděkovat a popřát
jí dobrou noc, když vtom mi řekla: „No,
myslela jsem, že tě pošlu domů do postele, ale
vypadáš plná energie. Chystám se teď do
čajovny Komoriya. Pojď se mnou, abys
konečně poznala, jak vypadá taková neformální
akce. Stejně je potřeba tě začít co nejdřív
ukazovat kde to jen jde.“ Nemohla jsem jí
přiznat, že jsem na to moc unavená, takže jsem
zahnala únavu a následovala ji ulicí. Ta oslava,
jak mi vysvětlila po cestě, měla být pořádána
mužem, který vedl Národní Divadlo v Tokiu.
Znal všechny důležité gejši skoro v každé čtvrti
gejš v Japonsku. I když jsem očekávala vlídné
přijetí, až mě Mameha bude představovat,
nejspíš se mnou moc mluvit nebude. Mou
jedinou povinností bylo vypadat krásně a
pozorně. „Hlavně se měj na pozoru, aby se ti
nestalo něco, kvůli čemu bys mohla vypadat
špatně,“ varovala mě. Vstoupily jsme do
čajovny a služka nás uvedla do místnosti ve
druhém patře. Jen na okamžik jsem se odvážila
nahlédnout dovnitř, zatímco Mameha
v pokleku otevřela dveře, ale zahlédla jsem
sedm nebo osm mužů usazených na polštářích
okolo stolku, a možná čtyři gejši. Uklonily
jsme se, vešly jsme dovnitř a opět jsme
poklekly vedle dveří, abychom je zavřely – tak
totiž gejši vchází do místnosti.
36
We greeted the other geisha first, as Mameha
had told me to do, then the host, at one corner
of the table, and afterward the other guests.
“Mameha-san!” said one of the geisha.
“You’ve come just in time to tell us the story
about Konda-san the wig maker.” “Oh,
heavens, I can’t remember it at all,” Mameha
said, and everyone laughed; I had no idea what
the joke was. Mameha led me around the table
and knelt beside the host. I followed and
positioned myself to one side. “Mr. Director,
please permit me to introduce my new younger
sister,” she said to him. This was my cue to bow
and say my name, and beg the director’s
indulgence, and so on. He was a very nervous
man, with bulging eyes and a kind of chicken-
bone frailty. He didn’t even look at me, but
only flicked his cigarette in the nearly full
ashtray before him and said: “What is all the
talk about Konda-san the wig maker? All
evening the girls keep referring to it, and not a
one of them will tell the story.”
“Honestly, I wouldn’t know!” Mameha said.
“Which means,” said another geisha, “that
she’s too embarrassed to tell it. If she won’t, I
suppose I’ll have to.” The men seemed to like
this idea, but Mameha only sighed. “In the
meantime, I’ll give Mameha a cup of sake to
calm her nerves,” the director said, and washed
out his own sake cup in a bowl of water on the
center of the table - which was there for that
very reason - before offering it to her.
“Well,” the other geisha began, “this fellow
Konda-san is the best wig maker in Gion, or at
least everyone says so. And for years Mameha-
san went to him. She always has the best of
everything, you know. Just look at her and you
can tell.”
Mameha made a mock-angry face.
“She certainly has the best sneer,” said one of
the men.
Nejdřív jsme podle pokynů Mamehy
pozdravily ostatní gejši, potom hostitele
večírku na jednom konci stolu, a nakonec
ostatní hosty.
„Mameho!“ zvolala jedna gejša. „Přišla jsi tak
akorát, abys nám pověděla historku o parukáři
Kondovi.“ „Proboha, ale já už si to vůbec
nepamatuji,“ odvětila Mameha a všechny tím
rozesmála. Neměla jsem tušení, v čem byl ten
vtip. Mameha mě vedla okolo stolu a klekla si
vedle hostitele. Následovala jsem si a klekla si
vedle ní. „Pane řediteli, dovolte mi představit
vám moji novou mladší sestru,“ řekla mu. To
byl moment, kdy jsem se měla uklonit,
představit se, požádat o ředitelovu
schovívavost a tak dále. Byl to velmi nervózní
muž s vypoulenýma očima a velmi křehkou
postavou. Ani se na mě nepodíval, jen odklepal
cigaretu do téměř plného popelníku a zeptal se:
„O čem je ten povyk okolo parukáře Konda?
Děvčata o něm mluví celý večer, ale žádná mi
nechce povědět, o co se jedná.“
„Upřímně opravdu netuším!“ řekla Mameha.
Další gejša odvětila: „To znamená, že je jí příliš
trapně na to, aby vám o něm pověděla. Pokud
to nepoví ona, asi budu muset já.“ Mužům se ta
myšlenka zalíbila, ale Mameha pouze
povzdychla. „Mezitím Mameze naleju šálek
saké, aby si uklidnila nervy,“ řekl ředitel a
vymyl svůj vlastní šálek ve speciální míse
uprostřed stolu, určené právě k mytí, než jí ho
nabídl k pití.
„Takže,“ začala ta druhá gejša, „tento Konda je
nejlepší parukář v Gionu, nebo to o něm
alespoň všichni tvrdí. A Mameha k němu léta
chodila. Víte, ona má vždy jen to nejlepší. Stačí
se na ni podívat, a je to všem jasné.“
Mameha na ni vrhla předstíraně naštvaný
pohled.
„Rozhodně se nejlíp ušklíbá,“ poznamenal
jeden z mužů.
37
“During a performance,” the geisha went on, “a
wig maker is always backstage to help with
changes of costume. Often while a geisha is
taking off a certain robe and putting on another
one, something will slip here or there, and then
suddenly . . . a naked breast!
Or . . . a little bit of hair! You know, these
things happen. And anyway -” “All these years
I’ve been working in a bank,” said one of the
men. “I want to be a wig maker!” “There’s
more to it than just gawking at naked women.
Anyway, Mameha-san always acts very prim
and goes behind a screen to
change-” “Let me tell the story,” Mameha
interrupted. “You’re going to give me a bad
name. I wasn’t being prim. Konda-san was
always staring at me like he couldn’t wait for
the next costume change, so I had a screen
brought in. It’s a wonder Konda-san didn’t burn
a hole in it with his eyes, trying to see through
it the way he did.” “Why couldn’t you just give
him a little glimpse now and then,” the director
interrupted. “How can it hurt you to be nice?”
“I’ve never thought of it that way,” Mameha
said.
“You’re quite right, Mr. Director. What harm
can a little glimpse do? Perhaps you want to
give us one right now?” Everyone in the room
burst out laughing at this. Just when things
were starting to calm down, the director started
it all over by rising to his feet and beginning to
untie the sash of his robe.
“I’m only going to do this,” he said to Mameha,
“if you’ll give me a glimpse in return . . .”
“I never made such an offer,” Mameha said.
“That isn’t very generous of you.” “Generous
people don’t become geisha,” Mameha said.
“They become the patrons of geisha.”
“Never mind, then,” the director said, and sat
back down.
„Parukář je během představení vždy v zákulisí,
aby pomohl se změnou kostýmu,“ pokračovala
gejša. „Když si gejša svléká jednu róbu a
obléká druhou, sem tam něco vykoukne a pak
najednou… nahé ňadro!
Nebo… pár chloupků! Víte, takové věci se
prostě občas stávají. No každopádně…“ „A já
celé ty roky pracuji v bance,“ odvětil jeden
z mužů. „Chci se stát parukářem!“
„Není v tom nic víc než zírání na nahé ženy.
Nicméně, Mameha se vždycky chová velmi
důležitě a převléká se za oponou…“
„Nech mě dokončit ten příběh,“ přerušila ji
Mameha. „Zkazíš mi mé dobré jméno. Nejsem
žádná primadona. Pan Konda se na mě vždycky
díval, jako by se nemohl dočkat dalšího
převlékání, tak jsem je poprosila o zástěnu. Je
pozoruhodné, že se Kondovi nepodařilo
propálit do ní pohledem díru, jak moc se snažil
dívat skrz.“ „Proč jste mu nemohla sem tam
dovolit letmý pohled,“ přerušil ji ředitel. „Jak
vám to může ublížit, zachovat se občas hezky?“
„Takhle jsem nad tím nikdy nepřemýšlela,“
odpověděla Mameha.
„Máte úplnou pravdu, pane řediteli. Jak by
mohl letmý pohled uškodit? Třeba byste nám
mohl jeden věnovat hned teď?“ Všichni
v pokoji vybuchli smíchy. Když se smích začal
konečně uklidňovat, ředitel jej přivodil znovu,
když si stoupl a začal si rozvazovat opasek na
svém šatu.
„Udělám to pouze tehdy, pokud mě na oplátku
taky necháte nahlédnout,“ otočil se na
Mamehu.
„To jsem ale nenabízela,“ namítla.
„To od vás není moc štědré.“ „Štědří lidé se
nestávají gejšami,“ odvětila Mameha.
„Ti se stanou jejich patrony.“
„Tak nic,“ řekl ředitel a posadil se zpátky na
zem.
38
I have to say, I was very relieved he’d given up;
because although all the others seemed to be
enjoying themselves enormously, I felt
embarrassed.
“Where was I?” Mameha said.
“Well, I had the screen brought in one day, and
I thought this was enough to keep me safe from
Konda-san. But when I hurried back from the
toilet at one point, I couldn’t find him
anywhere. I began to panic, because I needed a
wig for my next entrance; but soon we found
him sitting on a chest against the wall, looking
very weak and sweating.
I wondered if there was something wrong with
his heart! He had my wig beside him, and when
he saw me, he apologized and helped put it on
me. Then later that afternoon, he handed me a
note he’d written . . .” Here Mameha’s voice
trailed off. At last one of the men said, “Well?
What did it say?” Mameha covered her eyes
with her hand. She was too embarrassed to
continue, and everyone in the room broke into
laughter. “All right, I’ll tell you what he wrote,”
said the geisha who’d begun the story.
“It was something like this: ‘Dearest Mameha.
You are the very loveliest geisha in all of Gion,’
and so forth. ‘After you have worn a wig, I
always cherish it, and keep it in my workshop
to put my face into it and smell the scent of your
hair many times a day. But today when you
rushed to the toilet, you gave me the greatest
moment of my life. While you were inside, I
hid myself at the door, and the beautiful
tinkling sound, more lovely than a waterfall-’”
The men laughed so hard that the geisha had to
wait before going on. “‘-and the beautiful
tinkling sound, more lovely than a waterfall,
made me hard and stiff where I myself tinkle-
’”
Musím přiznat, že se mi dost ulevilo, že to
vzdal. I když ostatní vypadali, jako že se
náramně baví, mě bylo trapně.
„Kde jsem to byla?“ pokračovala Mameha.
„No, jednoho dne mi tedy přinesli tu zástěnu a
já jsem uvěřila, že to bude jako ochrana před
panem Kondou stačit. Když jsem ale v jeden
moment přiběhla z toalety, nikde jsem ho
nemohla najít. Začala jsem panikařit, protože
jsem potřebovala další paruku do představení.
O chvíli později jsme ho našli, jak sedí na
truhle, opřený o zeď. Vypadal velmi slabě a
potil se.
Bála jsem se, jestli třeba nemá něco se srdcem!
Vedle něj ležela moje paruka. Jakmile mě
spatřil, omluvil se a hned mi ji pomohl nasadit.
Později toho odpoledne mi předal krátké
psaní…“ V ten moment se její hlas vytratil.
Nakonec to jeden z mužů nevydržel a zeptal se:
„No? A co v něm stálo?“ Mameha si rukama
zakryla oči. Bylo jí moc trapně na to, aby
pokračovala a všichni opět vybuchli smíchy.
„Dobrá, povím vám, co napsal,“ řekla gejša,
která příběh začala.
„Bylo to něco jako: „Nejmilejší Mameho.
Jsi ta nejkrásnější gejša v celém Gionu,“ a tak
dále. „Po tom, co donosíš nějako mou paruku,
ji láskyplně opečovávám ve své dílně,
mnohokrát za den si ji tisknu k obličeji a
nasávám vůni tvých vlasů. Ale dnes, když jsi
odběhla na toaletu, jsi mi dala nejkrásnější
zážitek mého života. Když jsi byla uvnitř,
schoval jsem se za dveřmi, a ten nádherný zvuk
močení, krásnější než vodopád…“‘ Muži se
začali smát tak, že gejša musela počkat, než
bylo možné pokračovat. „, a ten nádherný zvuk
močení, krásnější než vodopád, mě učinil
zduřelým tam, kde já sám močím…“
39
“He didn’t say it that way,” Mameha said.
“He wrote, ‘the beautiful tinkling sound, more
lovely than a waterfall, caused me to swell and
bulge at the knowledge that your body was bare
. . .’”
“Then he told her,” the other geisha said, “that
he was unable to stand afterward because of the
excitement. And he hoped that one day he
would experience such a moment again.” Of
course, everyone laughed, and I pretended to
laugh too. But the truth is, I was finding it
difficult to believe that these men - who had
paid so considerably to be there, among women
wrapped in beautiful, expensive robes - really
wanted to hear the same sorts of stories children
back in the pond in Yoroido might have told.
I’d imagined feeling out of my depth in a
conversation about literature, or Kabuki17, or
something of that sort.
And of course, there were such parties in Gion;
it just happened that my first was of the more
childish kind. All through Mameha’s story, the
man beside me had sat rubbing his splotchy
face with his hands and paying little attention.
Now he looked at me a long while and then
asked, “What’s the matter with your eyes? Or
have I just drunk too much?” He certainly had
drunk too much - though I didn’t think it would
be proper to tell him. But before I could answer,
his eyebrows began to twitch, and a moment
later he reached up and scratched his head so
much that a little cloud of snow spilled onto his
shoulders.
As it turned out, he was known in Gion as “Mr.
Snowshowers” because of his terrible dandruff.
He seemed to have forgotten the question he’d
asked me - or maybe he never expected me to
answer it - because now he asked my age. I told
him I was fourteen.
„Takhle to neřekl,“ ohradila se Mameha.
„Napsal: „ten nádherný zvuk močení, krásnější
než vodopád, způsobil mé ztopoření při
myšlence, že tvé tělo bylo nahé…“‘
„A pak jí řekl, že z toho vzrušení nebyl schopný
udržet se na nohou,“ řekla ta druhá gejša. „A
taky že doufá, že jednoho dne bude mít
příležitost to zažít znovu.“ Samozřejmě že se
všichni smáli, tak jsem předstírala, že se směji
taky. Pravdou ale bylo, že jsem nechápala, jak
tito muži, kteří zaplatili velkou sumu za to, aby
tu mohli být s nádhernými ženami ve drahých
hedvábných róbách, vážně chtěli slyšet
historky, jaké si vyprávějí i děti od našeho
jezera Yoroido.
Představovala jsem si hluboké konverzace o
literatuře, o Kabuki nebo o něčem podobném.
I takové akce samozřejmě v Gionu probíhaly,
byla to náhoda, že mou první událostí byla
spíše ta nedospělá. Po celou dobu Mamehina
vyprávění vedle mě seděl muž, který si rukama
mnul svůj skvrnitý obličej a nevěnoval příběhu
pozornost. Najednou se na mě zadíval a zeptal
se: „Co to máš s očima? Nebo jsem toho vypil
až moc?“ Rozhodně toho vypil víc, než bylo
zdrávo, ale myslím, že by nebylo slušné mu to
povědět. Ale dřív, než jsem mohla odpovědět,
ho začalo svědit obočí a on si hlavu poškrábal
tak, až se mu na ramena snesl malý obláček
sněhu.
Jak jsem pak zjistila, v Gionu byl známý pod
přezdívkou „pan Sněhosprcha“, kvůli jeho
extrémním lupům. Vypadalo to, že zapomněl,
na co se mě ptal, nebo ani neočekával odpověď,
protože pokračoval a zeptal se na můj věk.
Řekla jsem mu, že mi je čtrnáct.
17 Kabuki is one of the three basic types of Japanese theater (the others are Nó and Bunraku). It is typically
characterized by a dramatic story, very strong make-up of the actors and over the top costumes. Kabuki is
exclusively male branch of theater, even the female characters are portrayed by men.
40
“You’re the oldest fourteen-year-old I’ve ever
seen. Here, take this,” he said, and handed me
his empty sake cup. “Oh, no, thank you, sir,” I
replied, “for I’m only a novice . . .” This was
what Mameha had taught me to say, but Mr.
Snowshowers didn’t listen. He just held the cup
in the air until I took it, and then lifted up a vial
of sake to pour for me. I wasn’t supposed to
drink sake, because an apprentice geisha -
particularly one still in her novitiate - should
appear childlike. But I couldn’t very well
disobey him. I held the sake cup out; but he
scratched his head again before he poured, and
I was horrified to see a few flecks settle into the
cup. Mr. Snowshowers filled it with sake and
said to me, “Now drink up. Go on. First of
many.” I gave him a smile and had just begun
to raise the cup slowly to my lips - not knowing
what else I could do - when, thank heavens,
Mameha rescued me.
“It’s your first day in Gion, Sayuri. It won’t do
for you to get drunk,” she said, though she was
speaking for the benefit of Mr. Snowshowers.
“Just wet your lips and be done with it.” So I
obeyed her and wet my lips with the sake. And
when I say that I wet my lips, I mean I pinched
them shut so tightly I nearly sprained my
mouth, and then tipped the sake cup until I felt
the liquid against my skin. Then I put the cup
down on the table hurriedly and said, “Mmm!
Delicious!” while reaching for the
handkerchief in my obi.
I felt very relieved when I patted my lips with
it, and I’m happy to say that Mr. Snowshowers
didn’t even notice, for he was busy eyeing the
cup as it sat there full on the table before him.
After a moment he picked it up in two fingers
and poured it right down his throat, before
standing and excusing himself to use the toilet.
„Jsi ta nejstarší čtrnáctka, jakou jsem kdy viděl.
Tady, dej si,“ řekl a podal mi jeho prázdný
hrníček na saké. „Ne, děkuji, pane,“ odmítla
jsem. „Jsem jenom novicka…“ Tohle mě
naučila říkat Mameha, ale pan Sněhosprcha mě
neposlouchal. Držel šálek ve vzduchu tak
dlouho, dokud jsem si ho nevzala a pak zvedl
láhev saké, aby mi nalil. Neměla bych pít saké,
protože začínající gejša, obzvlášť tak nová,
jako já, by měla působit až dětsky. Ale na
druhou stranu jsem mu nemohla odporovat.
Zatímco jsem držela hrníček, poškrábal se na
hlavě a já jsem zděšeně pozorovala, jak se do
něj sneslo pár vloček.
Pan Sněhosprcha mi nalil saké a poručil: „Tak,
napij se. Poprvé ale rozhodně ne naposledy.“
Usmála jsem se na něj a pozvedla šálek ke
rtům, protože jsem neměla na výběr, když
v tom mě Mameha zachránila.
„Sayuri, nebylo by dobré se opít hned během
tvého prvního dne v Gionu,“ řekla mi, ale
mířila tím na pana Sněhosprchu.
„Jen si smoč rty a stačí.“ Poslechla jsem a
namočila rty do saké. A když říkám, že jsem si
namočila rty, myslím tím, že jsem sevřela rty,
jak pevně jsem jen dokázala a pak jsem nahnula
šálek ke rtům, až jsem na nich ucítila tekutinu.
Pak jsem urychleně položila šálek na stůl a
řekla: „Hm, výborné!“ a sáhla jsem po
kapesníčku, zastrčeném za mým obi.
Když jsem si jím rty utřela, moc se mi ulevilo a
s potěšením můžu říct, že pak Sněhosprcha si
toho ani nevšiml, protože věnoval veškerou
pozornost plnému šálku stojícímu na stole
přímo před ním.
Po chvilce jej dvěma prsty zvedl a nalil si ho
přímo do krku, načež se postavil a s omluvou
se vydal na toaletu.
41
An apprentice geisha is expected to walk a man
to the toilet and back, but no one expects a
novice to do it. When there isn’t an apprentice
in the room, a man will usually walk himself to
the toilet, or sometimes one of the geisha will
accompany him.
But Mr. Snowshowers stood there gazing down
at me until I realized he was waiting for me to
stand. I didn’t know my way around the
Komoriya Teahouse, but Mr. Snowshowers
certainly did.
I followed him down the hall and around a
corner.
He stepped aside while I rolled open the door
to the toilet for him. After I had closed it behind
him and was waiting there in the hallway, I
heard the sound of someone coming up the
stairs, but I thought nothing of it. Soon Mr.
Snowshowers was done, and we made our way
back. When I entered the room, I saw that
another geisha had joined the party, along with
an apprentice. They had their backs to the door,
so that I didn’t see their faces until I’d followed
Mr. Snowshowers around the table and taken
up my place once again. You can imagine how
shocked I felt when I saw them; for there, on
the other side of the table, was the one woman
I would have given anything to avoid.
It was Hatsumomo, smiling at me, and beside
her sat Pumpkin.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Hatsumomo smiled when she was happy, like
everybody else; and she was never happier than
when she was about to make someone suffer.
This is why she wore such a beautiful smile on
her face when she said: “Oh, my goodness!
What a peculiar coincidence. Why, it’s a
novice!
Od gejši učednice se očekává, že doprovodí
muže na toaletu i zpět, ale novicky se tohle
netýká. Když není gejša učednice přítomná,
muž obvykle odchází na toaletu sám, nebo jej
doprovodí jedna z ostatních gejš.
Pan Sněhosprcha ale stál na místě a zíral na mě
tak dlouho, než mi došlo, že čekal, až se
postavím. Čajovnu Komoriya jsem neznala, ale
pan Sněhosprcha se tam rozhodně vyznal.
Následovala jsem ho chodbou a dál za roh.
Ustoupil stranou, abych pro něj mohla otevřít
dveře od toalet. Potom, co jsem je za ním
zavřela, jsem čekala na chodbě, když vtom
jsem uslyšela kroky na schodech, které mě ale
moc nezajímaly. Po chvíli byl pan Sněhosprcha
hotový, a tak jsme se vydali zpátky. Když jsem
vstoupila do místnosti, uviděla jsem, že se
k nám připojila další gejša a s ní i gejša
učednice. Byly otočené zády ke dveřím, takže
jsem je nepoznala, dokud jsem se neusadila
zpět ke stolu vedle pana Sněhosprchy. Asi si
dokážete představit ten šok, když jsem je
poznala.
Na druhém konci stolu byla usazená žena, které
jsem se snažila vyhnout za každou cenu.
Byla to Hatsumomo, s úsměvem od ucha
k uchu, a po jejím boku seděla Dýně.
KAPITOLA PATNÁCTÁ
Hatsumomo se usmívala, když byla šťastná, tak
jako každý jiný. Ale nikdy nebyla šťastnější,
než když měla příležitost někomu způsobit
utrpení. To byl ten důvod, proč se tak krásně
usmívala právě teď, když řekla: „Ach můj
bože! To je podivná náhoda. Vždyť to je
novicka!
42
I really shouldn’t tell the rest of this story,
because I might embarrass the poor thing.” I
hoped Mameha would excuse herself and take
me with her. But she only gave me an anxious
glance. She must have felt that leaving
Hatsumomo alone with these men would be
like running away from a house on fire; we’d
be better off to stay and control the damage.
“Really, I don’t think there’s anything more
difficult than being a novice,” Hatsumomo was
saying.
“Don’t you think so, Pumpkin?” Pumpkin was
a full-fledged apprentice now; she’d been a
novice six months earlier. I glanced at her for
sympathy, but she just stared at the table with
her hands in her lap.
Knowing her as I did, I understood that the little
wrinkle at the top of her nose meant she felt
upset. “Yes, ma’am,” she said.
“Such a difficult time of life,” Hatsumomo
went on. “I can still remember how hard I found
it . . . What is your name, little novice?”
Happily, I didn’t have to respond, because
Mameha spoke up. “You’re certainly right
about it being a difficult time of life for you,
Hatsumomo-san. Though of course, you were
more awkward than most.”
“I want to hear the rest of the story,” said one
of the men. “And embarrass the poor novice
who’s just joined us?” Hatsumomo said.
“I’ll tell it only if you promise that you won’t
think about this poor girl as you listen.
Be sure to picture some other girl in your
mind.”
Hatsumomo could be ingenious in her
devilishness. The men might not have pictured
the story happening to me earlier, but they
certainly would now.
“Let’s see, where was I?” Hatsumomo began.
Asi bych neměla ten příběh dokončit, ještě
bych ji chudinku mohla ztrapnit.“ Doufala
jsem, že se Mameha rozloučí a vezme mě
sebou. Ale ona mi pouze věnovala znepokojený
pohled. Nejspíš věřila, že nechat tyto muže
samotné s Hatsumomo by bylo jako utéct od
domu v plamenech. Bude lepší zůstat a mít
škody pod kontrolou.
„Vážně si myslím, že není nic těžšího než být
novickou,“ poznamenala Hatsumomo.
„Dýně, co myslíš?“ Ta už teď byla
plnohodnotnou učednicí, protože se stala
novickou o šest měsíců dřív. Podívala jsem se
na ni v naději o trochu soucitu, ale ona jen
zírala na stůl s rukama založenýma v klíně.
Protože jsem ji dobře znala, věděla jsem, že ta
malá vráska u kořene jejího nosu vyjadřovala,
jak moc je rozrušená. „Ano, madam,“
odpověděla.
„Tak těžké životní období,“ pokračovala
Hatsumomo. „Stále si ještě pamatuji, jak to pro
mě bylo těžké… Jak se jmenuješ, maličká
novicko?“
K mému potěšení jsem nemusela odpovědět,
protože se ozvala Mameha. „To máte naprostou
pravdu, Hatsumomo, že to bylo nejtěžší období
vašeho života. Obzvlášť protože jste byla více
neohrabaná než většina.“
„Chci slyšet zbytek toto příběhu,“ řekl jeden
z přítomných mužů. „A ztrapnit tak tu
chudinku novicku, která se k nám připojila?“
odvětila Hatsumomo.
„Povím to pouze, pokud slíbíte, že si během
poslechu nebudete představovat tu chudinku.
Snažte se představit si jinou dívku.“
Hatsumomo uměla být naprosto geniálně
ďábelská. Předtím si mě v tom příběhu nejspíš
nepředstavovali, ale rozhodně tak učiní nyní.
„Dobrá, takže, kde jsem to skončila?“ začala
Hatsumomo.
43
“Oh, yes. Well, this novice I mentioned . . . I
can’t remember her name, but I ought to give
her one to keep you from confusing her with
this poor girl. Tell me, little novice . . . what is
your name?” “Sayuri, ma’am,” I said.
And my face felt so hot from nervousness that
I wouldn’t have been surprised if my makeup
had simply melted and begun to drip onto my
lap.
“Sayuri. How lovely! Somehow it doesn’t suit
you. Well, let’s call this novice in the story
‘Mayuri.’ Now then, one day I was walking
along Shijo Avenue with Mayuri, on our way
to her older sister’s okiya. There was a terrible
wind, the sort that rattles the windows, and poor
Mayuri had so little experience with kimono.
She was no heavier than a leaf, and those big
sleeves can be just like sails, you know. As we
were about to cross the street, she disappeared,
and I heard a little sound from behind me, like
‘Ah . . . ah,’ but very faint.” Here Hatsumomo
turned to look at me. “My voice isn’t high
enough,” she said. “Let me hear you say it. ‘Ah
. . . ah . . .’”
Well, what could I do? I tried my best to make
the noise. “No, no, much higher . . . oh, never
mind!” Hatsumomo turned to the man beside
her and said under her breath, “She isn’t very
bright, is she?” She shook her head for a
moment and then went on.
“Anyway, when I turned around, poor Mayuri
was being blown backward up the street a full
block behind me, with her arms and legs
flailing so much she looked like a bug on its
back.
I nearly tore my obi laughing, but then all of a
sudden, she stumbled right off the curb into a
busy intersection just as a car came zooming
along. Thank heavens she was blown onto the
hood!
„Ach ano. Takže, ta novicka, o které jsem
mluvila… Nevzpomínám si na jméno, ale
musíme jí nějaké dát, abychom si ji nepletli
s touhle chudinkou. Pověz ni, malá novicko,
jak se jmenuješ?“ „Sayuri, madam,“
odpověděla jsem.
Tváře mi žhnuly nervozitou tak, že bych se
nedivila, kdyby se moje líčení rozpustilo a
začalo mi kapat do klína.
„Sayuri. Roztomilé! Nějak mi připadá, že
k tobě nesedí. No, pojďme tedy říkat novicce
v mém příběhu „Mayuri“. Takže, jednoho dne
jsme se s Mayuri procházely po bulváru Shijo,
mířily jsme do okiji k její starší sestře. Foukal
silný vítr, takový, co otřásá okny, a chudák
Mayuri neměla moc zkušeností s kimonem.
Byla lehčí než peříčko a ty velké rukávy jsou
jako plachty, však to znáte. Když jsme se
chystaly přejít ulici, najednou zmizela, a já
jsem za mnou uslyšela tichý hlásek, něco jako
„Ach… ach“ ale opravdu slabě.“ Hatsumomo
se otočila na mě. „Můj hlas není dost vysoký,“
řekla. „Zkus to říct ty. „Ach…ach.“‘
Co jsem měla dělat? Pokusila jsem se co nejlíp
předvést ten zvuk. „Ne, ne, mnohem výš… no,
co už!“ Hatsumomo se obrátila na muže po
jejím boku a zamumlala: „Není moc bystrá,
co?“ Zakroutila hlavou a pak pokračovala.
„Každopádně, když jsem se otočila, chudáka
Mayuri vítr odvál kus cesty zpátky, a navíc
máchala rukama a nohama tak, že vypadala
jako brouček ležící na zádech.
Málem jsem si smíchy roztrhla obi, ale v tom
se zapotácela z chodníku přímo do
frekventované silnice a přímo na ni se vyřítilo
auto. Díky bohu že ji to odválo na kapotu!
44
Her legs flew up . . . and then if you can picture
this, the wind blew right up her kimono, and . .
. well, I don’t need to tell you what happened.”
“You certainly do!” one of the men said.
“Don’t you have any imagination?” she replied.
“The wind blew her kimono right up over her
hips.
She didn’t want everyone to see her naked; so
to preserve her modesty, she flipped herself
around and ended up with her legs pointing in
two different directions, and her private parts
pressed against the windshield, right in the
driver’s face . . .”
Of course, the men were in hysterics by now,
including the director, who tapped his sake cup
on the tabletop like a machine gun, and said,
“Why doesn’t anything like this ever happen to
me?”
“Really, Mr. Director,” Hatsumomo said. “The
girl was only a novice! It’s not as if the driver
got to see anything. I mean, can you imagine
looking at the private parts of this girl across
the table?” She was talking about me, of course.
“Probably she’s no different from a baby!”
“Girls sometimes start getting hair when
they’re only eleven,” said one of the men.
“How old are you, little Sayuri-san?”
Hatsumomo asked me. “I’m fourteen, ma’am,”
I told her, just as politely as I could.
“But I’m an old fourteen.” Already the men
liked this, and Hatsumomo’s smile hardened a
bit. “Fourteen?” she said. “How perfect! And
of course, you don’t have any hair . . .” “Oh,
but I do. A good deal of it!” And I reached up
and patted one hand against the hair on my
head.
I guess this must have been a clever thing to do,
although it didn’t seem particularly clever to
me.
Nohy jí vyletěly do vzduchu…a jak si jistě
dokážete představit, vítr jí zavál pod kimono
a… asi vám nemusím říkat, co se dělo dál.“
„To teda musíte!“ odpověděl jeden z mužů.
„To umíte použít fantazii?“ odvětila.
„Vítr jí kimono nadzvedl až do pasu.
Nechtěla, aby ji někdo viděl nahou, tak aby
zachovala svou nevinnost, otočila se a skončila
s nohama roztaženýma do stran a s intimními
místy přitisknutými na čelním skle, přímo před
zraky řidiče…“
Všichni muži už byli naprosto hysteričtí, včetně
ředitele, který klepal šálkem na saké o stůl jako
kulomet a povídá: „Proč se takové věci nikdy
nestanou mně?“
„Vážně, pane řediteli,“ odvětila Hatsumomo.
„Ta dívka byla sotva novicka! Ten řidič
v podstatě neměl na co koukat. Dokážete si
třeba představit pohled na intimní místa této
dívky naproti vám?“ Samozřejmě že mluvila o
mně. „Pravděpodobně je stejná jako
miminko!“ Dívkám někdy začíná růst
ochlupení už kolem jedenáctého roku,“
zareagoval jeden z mužů. „Sayuri, kolik vám je
let?“ zeptala se Hatsumomo. „Je mi čtrnáct,
madam,“ odpověděla jsem tak slušně, jak jsem
dovedla.
„Ale jsem starší čtrnáctka.“ Mužům se tahle
reakce líbila a úsměv Hatsumomo se začal
malinko vytrácet. „Čtrnáct?“ řekla. „Skvělé. A
samozřejmě nemáš žádný porost…“ „To teda
mám. A hodně!“ Pozvedla jsem ruku a
poplácala jsem se po vlasech.
Asi to byla velmi chytrá reakce, i když mě to
tak vůbec nepřišlo.
45
The men laughed harder than they’d laughed
even at Hatsumomo’s story. Hatsumomo
laughed too, I suppose because she didn’t want
to seem as if the joke had been on her.
As the laughter died down, Mameha and I left.
We hadn’t even closed the door behind us
before we heard Hatsumomo excusing herself
as well.
She and Pumpkin followed us down the
stairway.
“Why, Mameha-san,” Hatsumomo said, “this
has simply been too much fun! I don’t know
why we haven’t entertained together more
often!”
“Yes, it has been fun,” said Mameha. “I just
relish the thought of what the future holds!”
After this, Mameha gave me a very satisfied
look.
She was relishing the thought of seeing
Hatsumomo destroyed.
That night after bathing and removing my
makeup, I was standing in the formal entrance
hall answering Auntie’s questions about my
day, when Hatsumomo came in from the street
and stood before me.
Normally she wasn’t back so early, but I knew
the moment I saw her face that she’d come back
only for the purpose of confronting me. She
wasn’t even wearing her cruel smile, but had
her lips pressed together in a way that looked
almost unattractive.
She stood before me only a moment, and then
drew back her hand and slapped me across the
face.
The last thing I saw before her hand struck me
was a glimpse of her clenched teeth like two
strings of pearls. I was so stunned, I can’t recall
what happened immediately afterward.
Mužský smích byl teď ještě silnější, než když
jim Hatsumomo vyprávěla svůj příběh. Ta se
smála taky, nejspíš aby to nevyznělo, jakože je
pro smích ona.
Potom co smích pomalu utichl, Mameha a já
jsme odešly.
Ještě jsme nebyly ani u dveří, když jsme
uslyšely, jak se loučí i Hatsumomo.
Ona a Dýně nás následovaly chodbou.
„Mameho! Tohle byla skvělá zábava,“ řekla
Hatsumomo. „Nechápu, proč spolu
nepracujeme častěji!“
„Ano, užily jsme si to,“ odpověděla Mameha.
„Hřeje je myšlenka, co si pro nás osud
přichystá!“
Pak se na mě spokojeně podívala.
Hřála ji myšlenka zničené pověsti Hatsumomo.
Večer, po tom, co jsem se vykoupala a odlíčila,
jsem v hale zrovna odpovídala na tetiččiny
dotazy týkající se mého dne, když dovnitř vešla
Hatsumomo a postavila se přede mě.
Normálně nebývala doma tak brzy, ale z jejího
výrazu bylo jasné, že přišla dřív jen proto, aby
mě napadla.
Místo jejího krutého úsměvu měla rty sevřeny
tak, až to vypadalo nepěkně.
Stála přede mnou sotva vteřinu, když v tom se
natáhla a vlepila mi facku.
Poslední, co jsem viděla, než mě udeřila, byl
pohled na její zaťaté zuby, které vypadaly jako
šňůra perel. Byla jsem tak v šoku, že nedokážu
s jistotou říct, co následovalo.
46
But Auntie and Hatsumomo must have begun
to argue, because the next thing I heard was
Hatsumomo saying, “If this girl embarrasses
me in public again, I’ll be happy to slap the
other side of her face!” “How did I embarrass
you?” I asked her.
“You knew perfectly well what I meant when
I wondered if you had hair, but you made me
look like a fool. I owe you a favor, little Chiyo.
I’ll return it soon, I promise.” Hatsumomo’s
anger seemed to close itself up, and she walked
back out of the okiya, where Pumpkin was
waiting on the street to bow to her.
I reported this to Mameha the following
afternoon, but she hardly paid any attention.
“What’s the problem?” she said. “Hatsumomo
didn’t leave a mark on your face, thank
heavens.
You didn’t expect she’d be pleased at your
comment, did you?” “I’m only concerned about
what might happen the next time we run into
her,” I said. “I’ll tell you what will happen.
We’ll turn around and leave. The host may be
surprised to see us walk out of a party we’ve
just walked into, but it’s better than giving
Hatsumomo another chance to humiliate you.
Anyway, if we run into her, it will be a
blessing.” “Really, Mameha-san, I can’t see
how it could be a blessing.” “If Hatsumomo
forces us to leave a few teahouses, we’ll drop
in on more parties, that’s all.
You’ll be known around Gion much faster that
way.” I felt reassured by Mameha’s confidence.
In fact, when we set out into Gion later, I
expected that at the end of the night I would
take off my makeup and find my skin glowing
with the satisfaction of a long evening.
Tetička a Hatsumomo se pak musely začít
hádat, protože další věc, kterou jsem uslyšela,
byla slova Hatsumomo: „Jestli mě ta holka
ještě jednou ztrapní na veřejnosti, tak jí dám
facku i na druhou tvář!“ „Jak jsem tě mohla
ztrapnit?“ zeptala jsem se.
„Moc dobře jsi věděla, co myslím tím, když
jsem se tě zeptala na porost, ale ty jsi ze mě
udělala blázna. Dlužím ti laskavost, malá
Chiyo.
A brzy ti ji vrátím, to ti slibuji.“ Její vztek se
nejspíš začal vytrácet, když vyšla ven z okiji,
kde na ni čekala Dýně a uklonila se jí.
Druhý den jsem to pověděla Mameze, ale ona
tomu skoro nevěnovala pozornost.
„V čem je problém?“ zeptala se. „Díky bohu,
že ti Hatsumomo na obličeji nenechala otisk.
Snad jsi nečekala, že bude mít z tvého
komentáře radost?“ „Jen se obávám, co by se
mohlo stát, když na ni příště zase narazíme,“
odpověděla jsem. „Povím ti, co se stane.
Otočíme se a odejdeme. Hostitel bude možná
překvapený, proč odcházíme z oslavy, na
kterou jsme zrovna přišly, ale to je lepší než dát
Hatsumomo další šanci ke tvému ponižování.
Pokud na ni ovšem znovu narazíme, bude to
požehnání.“ „Mameho, opravdu nechápu, jak
to může být požehnání.“ „Pokud nás
Hatsumomo donutí odejít z pár čajoven,
znamená to, že budeme mít šanci navštívit více
akcí, to je vše.
Tímto způsobem tě bude znát celý Gion
mnohem dřív.“ Mamehino sebevědomí mě
uklidnilo. Když jsme ten večer vyrazily do ulic
Gionu, očekávala jsem, že až se na konci večera
odlíčím, moje pleť bude zářit uspokojením toho
večera.
47
Our first stop was a party for a young film
actor, who looked no older than eighteen but
had not a single hair on his head, not even
eyelashes or eyebrows.
He went on to become very famous a few years
later, but only because of the manner of his
death.
He killed himself with a sword after murdering
a young waitress in Tokyo. In any case, I
thought him very strange until I noticed that he
kept glancing at me; I’d lived so much of my
life in the isolation of the okiya that I must
admit I relished the attention. We stayed more
than an hour, and Hatsumomo never showed
up.
It seemed to me that my fantasies of success
might indeed come to pass. Next we stopped at
a party given by the chancellor of Kyoto
University. Mameha at once began talking with
a man she hadn’t seen in some time and left me
on my own. The only space I could find at the
table was beside an old man in a stained white
shirt, who must have been very thirsty because
he was drinking continually from a glass of
beer, except when he moved it away from his
mouth to burp. I knelt beside him and was about
to introduce myself when I heard the door slide
open. I expected to see a maid delivering
another round of sake, but there in the hallway
knelt Hatsumomo and Pumpkin.
“Oh, good heavens!” I heard Mameha say to
the man she was entertaining. “Is your
wristwatch accurate?” “Very accurate,” he
said. “I set it every afternoon by the clock at the
train station.” “I’m afraid Sayuri and I have no
choice but to be rude and excuse ourselves. We
were expected elsewhere a half hour ago!”
And with that, we stood and slipped out of the
party the very moment after Hatsumomo and
Pumpkin entered it. As we were leaving the
teahouse, Mameha pulled me into an empty
tatami room.
Naší první zastávkou byla oslava mladého
filmového herce, který nevypadal na víc jak
osmnáct, ale při tom na hlavě neměl ani vlásek,
dokonce ani obočí nebo řasy.
O pár let později se stal velice slavným, to ale
pouze kvůli tomu, jak umřel.
Zabil se mečem po tom, co zabil mladou
servírku v Tokiu. Každopádně mi připadal
velmi zvláštní, dokud jsem si nevšimla, že se
po mě dívá. Tak dlouho jsem žila izolovaná
v naší okiji, že jsem si opravdu užívala každou
pozornost. Strávily jsme tam víc jak hodinu a
Hatsumomo se neobjevila.
Vypadalo to, že moje představy o úspěchu se
nakonec opravdu mohly naplnit. Pak jsme se
zastavily na oslavě pořádané děkanem
univerzity v Kjótu. Mameha se zapovídala
s nějakým mužem, kterého dlouho neviděla, a
nechala mě samotnou. Jediné volné místo u
stolu k mání, bylo vedle starého muže
v poskvrněné bílé košili. Musel mít velkou
žízeň, protože nepřetržitě pil ze sklenice na
pivo, kterou odtrhl od úst jen na okamžik, aby
si mohl říhnout. Poklekla jsem vedle něj a
chystala se mu představit, když v tom se
otevřely dveře. Očekávala jsem, že se v nich
objeví služka s tácem saké, ale místo ní tam
klečely Hatsumomo a Dýně.
„Můj bože!“ zaslechla jsem říct Mamehu muži,
se kterým si povídala. „Jdou vám ty hodinky
správně?“ „Velmi přesně,“ odpověděl.
„Nastavuji si je každé odpoledne podle hodin
na vlakovém nádraží.“ „Obávám se, že já a
Sayuri se s vámi musíme rozloučit, protože nás
již půl hodiny čekají jinde!“
S těmito slovy jsme se postavily a vyklouzly
jsme z oslavy ve stejnou chvíli co Hatsumomo
a Dýně přišly. Když jsme opouštěly čajovnu,
Mameha mě vtáhla do prázdného pokoje
s tatami.
48
In the hazy darkness I couldn’t make out her
features, but only the beautiful oval shape of
her face with its elaborate crown of hair.
If I couldn’t see her, then she couldn’t see me;
I let my jaw sag with frustration and despair,
for it seemed I would never escape
Hatsumomo.
“What did you say to that horrid woman earlier
today?” Mameha said to me. “Nothing at all,
ma’am!”
“Then how did she find us here?” “I didn’t
know we would be here myself,” I said.
“I couldn’t possibly have told her.” “My maid
knows about my engagements, but I can’t
imagine . . . Well, we’ll go to a party hardly
anyone knows about. Naga Teruomi was just
appointed the new conductor of the Tokyo
Philharmonic last week. He’s come into town
this afternoon to give everyone a chance to
idolize him. I don’t much want to go, but . . . at
least Hatsumomo won’t be there.” We crossed
Shijo Avenue and turned down a narrow alley
that smelled of sake and roasted yams. A
sprinkle of laughter fell down onto us from the
second-story windows brightly lit overhead.
Inside the teahouse, a young maid showed us to
a room on the second floor, where we found the
conductor sitting with his thin hair oiled back
and his fingers stroking a sake cup in anger.
The other men in the room were in the midst of
a drinking game with two geisha, but the
conductor refused to join. He talked with
Mameha for a while, and soon asked her to put
on a dance.
I don’t think he cared about the dance, really; it
was just a way to end the drinking games and
encourage his guests to begin paying attention
to him again.
Just as the maid brought a shamisen to hand to
one of the geisha - even before Mameha had
taken up her pose - the door slid open and . . .
I’m sure you know what I’m going to say. They
were like dogs that wouldn’t stop following us.
V té tmě jsem nedokázala rozeznat, jak se
Mameha tvářila, pouze jsem viděla její
nádherný oválný tvar obličeje a dokonalou
korunu vlasů.
Když jsem nemohla já vidět ji, nemohla ani ona
vidět mě, dovolila jsem si nasadit výraz plný
frustrace a zoufalství, protože to vypadalo, že
Hatsumomo nikdy neuniknu. „Co jsi té příšerné
ženské dnes řekla?“ zeptala se mě Mameha.
„Vůbec nic, madam!“
„Tak jak to, že nás tu našla?“ „Já sama jsem
nevěděla, že tu budeme,“ odpověděla jsem.
„Nemohla jsem jí to tedy říct.“ „Moje služka ví
o mých schůzkách, ale nedovedu si
představit… No, půjdeme na párty, o které
skoro nikdo neví. Naga Teruomi se minulý
týden stal novým dirigentem Tokijské
Filharmonie. Přijel dnes odpoledne k nám do
města, aby měli všichni šanci mu gratulovat a
tiše závidět. Moc se mi tam nechce, ale…
alespoň tam nebude Hatsumomo.“ Přešly jsme
bulvár Shijo a zahnuly jsme do uličky, která
voněla po saké a pečených sladkých
bramborách. Dolehl k nám smích z jasně
osvětleného okna ve druhém patře.
V čajovně nás mladá služka uvedla do pokoje
ve druhém patře, kde jsme našli dirigenta, jak
tam sedí se svými řídkými naolejovanými vlasy
a naštvaně prsty hladí šálek saké.
Ostatní muži v místnosti hráli picí hru se dvěma
gejšami, ale pan dirigent se odmítl přidat.
Chvíli si povídal s Mamehou a pak ji požádal o
tanec.
Nemyslím si, že by o ten tanec stál, jen to byl
pokus o ukončení picích her a utržení
pozornosti zpět na něj.
Jakmile přinesla služka jedné z gejš shamisen,
ještě dřív, než Mameha vůbec zaujala svou
pózu, se otevřely dveře a …
Asi víte, co se vám chystám říct. Byly jako psi,
kteří nás nepřestávali pronásledovat.
49
It was Hatsumomo and Pumpkin once again.
You should have seen the way Mameha and
Hatsumomo smiled at each other.
You’d almost have thought they were sharing a
private joke - whereas in fact, I’m sure
Hatsumomo was relishing her victory in
finding us, and as for Mameha . . . well, I think
her smile was just a way of hiding her anger.
During her dance, I could see her jaw jutting
out and her nostrils flared. She didn’t even
come back to the table afterward, but just said
to the conductor: “Thank you so much for
permitting us to drop in!
I’m afraid it’s so late…Sayuri and I must
excuse ourselves now...”
I can’t tell you how pleased Hatsumomo looked
as we closed the door behind us.
I followed Mameha down the stairs.
On the bottom step she came to a halt and
waited.
At last a young maid rushed into the formal
entrance hall to see us out - the very same maid
who’d shown us up the stairs earlier. “What a
difficult life you must have as a maid!”
Mameha said to her. “Probably you want so
many things and have so little money to spend.
But tell me, what will you do with the funds
you’ve just earned?” “I haven’t earned any
funds, ma’am,” she said. But to see her
swallowing so nervously, I could tell she was
lying. “How much money did Hatsumomo
promise you?”
The maid’s gaze fell at once to the floor. It
wasn’t until this moment that I understood what
Mameha was thinking.
As we learned some time afterward,
Hatsumomo had indeed bribed at least one of
the maids in every first-class teahouse in Gion.
Opět se objevila Hatsumomo s Dýní. Měli jste
vidět, jak se Mameha a Hatsumomo na sebe
usmály.
Člověk by skoro uvěřil, že sdílely nějaký
soukromý vtípek, i když ve skutečnosti si
Hatsumomo nejspíš užívala malé vítězství a
Mameha… myslím, že její úsměv jen skrýval
vztek.
Když tančila, všimla jsem si, jak zatíná čelist a
její nosní dírky se rozšířily. Pak se ani nevrátila
ke stolu, jen řekla dirigentovi: „Děkujeme, že
jste nám dovolil se tu zastavit!
Obávám se, že už je pozdě, Sayuri a já se
musíme rozloučit.“
Nedokážu popsat, jak spokojeně Hatsumomo
vypadala, když jsme za sebou zavíraly dveře.
Následovala jsem Mamehu dolů po schodech.
Na posledním schodu se zastavila a čekala.
V tom se z přijímací haly vyřítila ta stejná
mladá služka, která nás dříve uvedla nahoru.
„Jak těžký je asi život služky!“ řekla jí
Mameha. „Asi chcete tolik věcí, na které
nemáte peníze.
Povězte mi ale, co uděláte s penězi, které jste si
právě vydělala?“ „Žádné peníze jsem si
nevydělala, madam,“ odpověděla. Ale podle
toho, jak nervózně polkla, jsem poznala, že lže.
„Kolik peněz vám Hatsumomo slíbila?“
Služka sklopila pohled k zemi. Až do této
chvíle jsem nevěděla, kam tím Mameha míří.
Jak jsme se později dozvěděly, Hatsumomo
podplatila alespoň jednu služku v každé
prvotřídní čajovně v Gionu.
50
They were asked to call Yoko - the girl who
answered the telephone in our okiya -whenever
Mameha and I arrived at a party. Of course, we
didn’t know about Yoko’s involvement at the
time; but Mameha was quite right in assuming
that the maid in this teahouse had passed a
message to Hatsumomo somehow or other.
The maid couldn’t bring herself to look at
Mameha.
Even when Mameha lifted her chin, the girl still
pointed her eyes downward just as if they
weighed as much as two lead balls. When we
left the teahouse, we could hear Hatsumomo’s
voice coming from the window above - for it
was such a narrow alleyway that everything
echoed.
“Yes, what was her name?” Hatsumomo was
saying. “Sayuko,” said one of the men.
“Not Sayuko. Sayuri,” said another. “I think
that’s the one,” Hatsumomo said. “But really,
it’s too embarrassing for her . . . I mustn’t tell
you! She seems like a nice girl . . .” “I didn’t
get much of an impression,” one man said. “But
she’s very pretty.” “Such unusual eyes!” said
one of the geisha. “You know what I heard a
man say about her eyes the other day?”
Hatsumomo said. “He told me they were the
color of smashed worms.” “Smashed worms . .
. I’ve certainly never heard a color described
that way before.” “Well, I’ll tell you what I was
going to say about her,” Hatsumomo went on,
“but you must promise not to repeat it. She has
some sort of disease, and her bosoms look just
like an old lady’s - all droopy and wrinkled -
really, it’s dreadful!
I saw her in a bathhouse once . . .” Mameha and
I had stopped to listen, but when we heard this,
she gave me a little push and we walked out of
the alley together.
Bylo jim řečeno, že mají volat Yoko, která u
nás v okiji brala telefony, pokaždé když jsme
s Mamehou přišly na nějakou oslavu. V té
chvíli jsme nevěděly, že v tom měla prsty i
Yoko, ale Mameha měla pravdu, že služka
z této čajovny nějakým způsobem Hatsumomo
kontaktovala.
Služka se nedokázala Mameze podívat do očí.
I když jí Mameha pozvedla bradu, dívka se dál
dívala dolů, jako by její oči vážily víc než
olověné koule. Když jsme čajovnu opustily,
slyšely jsme hlas Hatsumomo linoucí se z oken,
protože v úzké uličce se všechno ozývalo.
„Jak že se jmenovala?“ ptala se Hatsumomo.
„Sayuko,“ odpověděl jeden z mužů.
„Ne Sayuko. Sayuri,“ řekl další. „Myslím, že je
to ona,“ odvětila Hatsumomo. „Ale teď vážně,
je to pro ni moc trapné… nemůžu vám to říct!
Vypadá jako milá dívka…“ „Nestihl jsem si
udělat obrázek,“ namítl jeden z mužů. „Ale je
velmi krásná.“ „Má tak neobvyklé oči!“ řekla
jedna z gejš. „Víte, jak jednou jeden muž
popsal její oči?“ zeptala se Hatsumomo. „Řekl
mi, že mají barvu rozmačkaných červů.“
„Rozmačkaných červů… takové přirovnání
jsem nikdy dřív neslyšel.“ „Povím vám, co
jsem o ní chtěla povyprávět, ale nesmíte to
nikomu říct,“ pokračovala Hatsumomo. „Trpí
nějakou chorobou, a její pozadí vypadá jako
pozadí staré babky, celé povislé a vrásčité,
vážně, je to odporné!
Jednou jsem ji viděla v lázních…“ Mameha a
já jsme se zastavily, abychom poslouchaly, ale
jakmile jsme to slyšely, tak mě popostrčila a
společně jsme se vydaly uličkou.
51
Mameha stood for a while looking up and down
the street and then said: “I’m trying to think
where we can go, but . . . I can’t think of a single
place. If that woman has found us here, I
suppose she can find us anywhere in Gion. You
may as well go back to your okiya, Sayuri, until
we come up with a new plan.”
One afternoon during World War II, some
years after these events I’m telling you about
now, an officer took his pistol out of its holster
during a party beneath the boughs of a maple
tree and laid it on the straw mat to impress me.
I remember being struck by its beauty.
The metal had a dull gray sheen; its curves were
perfect and smooth. The oiled wood handle was
richly grained. But when I thought of its real
purpose as I listened to his stories, it ceased to
be beautiful at all and became something
monstrous instead. This is exactly what
happened to Hatsumomo in my eyes after she
brought my debut to a standstill. That isn’t to
say I’d never considered her monstrous before.
But I’d always envied her loveliness, and now
I no longer did. While I ought to have been
attending banquets every night, and ten or
fifteen parties besides, I was forced instead to
sit in the okiya practicing dance and shamisen
just as though nothing in my life had changed
from the year before.
When Hatsumomo walked past me down the
corridor in her full regalia, with her white
makeup glowing above her dark robe just like
the moon in a hazy night sky, I’m sure that even
a blind man would have found her beautiful.
And yet I felt nothing but hatred and heard my
pulse hissing in my ears. I was summoned to
Mameha’s apartment several times in the next
few days.
Mameha chvíli stála a rozhlížela se na všechny
strany, když řekla: „Snažím se přijít na to, kam
můžeme zajít, ale… nenapadá mě žádné místo.
Když nás našla tady, předpokládám, že nás
může najít kdekoliv v celém Gionu. Takže se
klidně můžeš vrátit do okiji, než přijdeme na
nový plán.“
Jednoho odpoledne během druhé světové
války, pár let po událostech, o kterých vám teď
vyprávím, vytáhl důstojník během večírku pod
korunami javoru z pouzdra svou pistoli a
položil ji na slaměnou rohož, aby na mě udělal
dojem.
Vzpomínám si, že mě šokovalo, jak byla
krásná.
Kovová část měla matně šedý lesk a perfektně
hladké křivky. Naolejovaná dřevěná rukojeť
byla bohatě zdobená. Ale když jsem pomyslela
na její účel a poslouchala důstojníkovy
historky, přestala být krásná a stala se něčím
monstrózním. Přesně to samé se stalo
Hatsumomo v mých očích po tom, co
pozastavila můj debut. To neznamená, že bych
si o ní dřív nic takového nemyslela.
Vždy jsem jí ale záviděla její krásu, ale od toho
momentu už nikoliv. Místo každovečerního
navštěvování banketů, a k tomu deseti až
patnácti večírků, jsem byla donucena sedět
v okiji a cvičit tanec a hru na shamisen, jako by
se za ten rok můj život nijak nezměnil.
Když mě Hatsumomo na chodbě míjela
v kompletním oděvu gejši, s bílým obličejem
zářícím nad tmavým kimonem jako měsíc na
mlhavé noční obloze, bylo mi jasné, že i slepec
by ji považoval za krásnou.
Já jsem ale cítila jen nenávist a slyšela svůj tep
pulzovat až v uších. Dalších pár dní jsem byla
několikrát navštívit Mamehu v jejím bytě.
52
Each time I hoped she was going to say she’d
found a way around Hatsumomo; but she only
wanted me to run errands she couldn’t entrust
to her maid. One afternoon I asked if she had
any idea what would become of me.
“I’m afraid you’re an exile, Sayuri-san, for the
moment,” she replied. “I hope you feel more
determined than ever to destroy that wicked
woman!
But until I’ve thought of a plan, it will do you
no good to follow me around Gion.”
Of course I was disappointed to hear it, but
Mameha was quite right. Hatsumomo’s
ridicule would do me such harm in the eyes of
men, and even in the eyes of women in Gion,
that I would be better off staying home.
Happily, Mameha was very resourceful and did
manage to find engagements from time to time
that were safe for me to attend.
Hatsumomo may have closed off Gion from
me, but she couldn’t close off the entire world
beyond it.
When Mameha left Gion for an engagement,
she often invited me along. I went on a day trip
by train to Kobe, where Mameha cut the ribbon
for a new factory.
On another occasion I joined her to accompany
the former president of Nippon Telephone &
Telegraph on a tour of Kyoto by limousine.
This tour made quite an impression on me, for
it was my first time seeing the vast city of
Kyoto that lay beyond the bounds of our little
Gion, not to mention my first-time riding in a
car. I’d never really understood how
desperately some people lived during these
years, until we drove along the river south of
the city and saw dirty women nursing their
babies under the trees along the railroad tracks,
and men squatting in tattered straw sandals
among the weeds.
Pokaždé jsem doufala, že mi poví, že našla
nový způsob jak obejít Hatsumomo. Ona ale
jen chtěla, abych jí obešla pochůzky, které by
nesvěřila své služce. Jednou odpoledne jsem se
jí zeptala, jestli má představu, co se mnou bude.
„Obávám se Sayuri, že jsi prozatím mimo hru,“
odpověděla. „Doufám, že jsi odhodlaná tu
příšernou ženskou nadobro zničit!
Ale než vymyslím jak, nebylo by dobré, abys
mě doprovázela všude po Gionu.“
Samozřejmě, že jsem byla zklamaná, když to
Mameha řekla, ale měla pravdu. Vtípky, které
Hatsumomo vyprávěla na mou adresu, by mi
v očích mužů akorát ublížily, a stejně tak i u
žen v Gionu, takže bylo lepší zůstat doma.
Mameha ale byla velmi vynalézavá a k mému
potěšení se jí občas podařilo najít akci, která
pro mou reputaci byla bezpečná.
Hatsumomo mi sice zavřela dveře Gionu, ale
nemohla přede mnou uzavřít celý svět.
Když Mameha opustila kvůli nějaké akci Gion,
často mě brala s sebou. Jela jsem na celodenní
výlet vlakem do Kobe, kde se Mameha
zúčastnila otevření nové továrny.
Při další příležitosti jsem se k ní připojila na
prohlídku Kjóta limuzínou, s bývalým
prezidentem Japonské Telefonní & Telegrafní
společnosti. Projížďka ve mně zanechala
hluboký dojem, protože jsem poprvé viděla
celé velké Kjóto, za hranicemi našeho malého
Gionu, a to nemluvím o mé první projížďce
autem. Nikdy jsem opravdu nerozuměla, jak
chudě lidé v té době žili, dokud jsme
neprojížděli okolo řeky v jižní části města, kde
jsem pod stromy u kolejí viděla špinavé ženy
kojit své miminka a muže dřepící v roztrhaných
slaměných sandálech mezi plevelem.
53
I won’t pretend poor people never came to
Gion, but we rarely saw anyone like these
starving peasants too poor even to bathe.
I could never have imagined that I - a slave
terrorized by Hatsumomo’s wickedness - had
lived a relatively fortunate life through the
Great Depression. But that day I realized it was
true.
Late one morning I returned from the school to
find a note telling me to bring my makeup and
rush to Mameha’s apartment. When I arrived,
Mr. Itchoda, who was a dresser just like Mr.
Bekku, was in the back room tying Mameha’s
obi before a full-length mirror. “Hurry up and
put on your makeup,” Mameha said to me.
“I’ve laid a kimono out for you in the other
room.” Mameha’s apartment was enormous by
the standards of Gion. In addition to her main
room, which measured six tatami mats in area,
she had two other smaller rooms - a dressing
area that doubled as a maids’ room, and a room
in which she slept.
There in her bedroom was a freshly made-up
futon, with a complete kimono ensemble on top
of it that her maid had laid out for me.
I was puzzled by the futon. The sheets certainly
weren’t the ones Mameha had slept in the night
before, for they were as smooth as fresh snow.
I wondered about it while changing into the
cotton dressing robe I’d brought.
When I went to begin applying my makeup,
Mameha told me why she had summoned me.
“The Baron is back in town,” she said. “He’ll
be coming here for lunch. I want him to meet
you.”
I haven’t had occasion to mention the Baron,
but Mameha was referring to Baron Matsunaga
Tsuneyoshi - her danna.
Nebudu vám lhát, chudí lidé přicházeli i do
Gionu, ale jen velmi zřídka jsme mohli vidět
hladovějící venkovany chudé tak, že neměli ani
na koupel.
Nikdy bych nevěřila, že já, otrok terorizovaný
zákeřnou Hatsumomo, jsem během Velké
hospodářské krize žila relativně šťastným
životem. Toho dne jsem si ale uvědomila, jak
moc to bylo pravdou.
Jedno pozdní ráno jsem se vrátila ze školy a
našla jsem vzkaz, že mám pobrat svoje líčidla a
utíkat do Mamehina bytu. Když jsem se
dostavila, už tam byl pan Itchoda, který byl
garderobiér stejně jako pan Bekku, a před
velkým zrcadlem zavazoval Mameze obi.
„Rychle se namaluj,“ řekla mi.
„Ve vedlejším pokoji máš nachystané
kimono.“ Mamehin byt byl na Gionské
standardy obrovský. Kromě hlavního pokoje
s šesti tatami měla dva další, oblékací místnost
sloužící zároveň jako pokoj pro služku a ještě
pokoj, ve kterém sama spala.
V jejím pokoji, na čerstvě ustlaném futonu,
leželo kompletní kimono, které mi nachystala
její služka.
Z jejího futonu jsem byla zmatená. Povlečení
nemohlo být to, ve kterém tu noc Mameha
spala, protože bylo hladké jako padlý sníh.
Honilo se mi to hlavou, zatímco jsem se
převlékala do bavlněného spodního prádla,
které jsem si s sebou přinesla.
Když jsem se začala líčit, Mameha mi
pověděla, proč pro mě poslala.
„Baron je zpátky ve městě,“ řekla. „Přijde sem
na oběd. Chci, aby tě poznal.“
Ještě jsem neměla možnost se o něm zmínit, ale
Mameha myslela Barona Matsunaga
Tsuneyoshi, jejího danna.
54
We don’t have barons and counts in Japan any
longer, but we did before World War II, and
Baron Matsunaga was certainly among the
wealthiest.
His family controlled one of Japan’s large
banks and was very influential in finance.
Originally his older brother had inherited the
title of baron, but he had been assassinated
while serving as finance minister in the cabinet
of Prime Minister Inukai.
Mameha’s danna, already in his thirties at that
time, had not only inherited the title of baron
but all of his brother’s holdings, including a
grand estate in Kyoto not too far from Gion.
His business interests kept him in Tokyo much
of the time; and something else kept him there
as well - for I learned many years later that he
had another mistress, in the geisha district of
Akasaka in Tokyo. Few men are wealthy
enough to afford one geisha mistress, but Baron
Matsunaga Tsuneyoshi had two. Now that I
knew Mameha would be spending the
afternoon with her danna, I had a much better
idea why the futon in her bedroom had been
made up with fresh sheets. I changed quickly
into the clothing Mameha had set out for me -
an underrobe of light green, and a kimono in
russet and yellow with a design of pine trees at
the hem. By this time one of Mameha’s maids
was just returning from a nearby restaurant
with a big lacquer box holding the Baron’s
lunch. The foods inside it, on plates and bowls,
were ready to be served just as in a restaurant.
The largest was a flat lacquer dish with two
grilled, salted ayu18 poised on their bellies as
though they were swimming down the river
together. To one side stood two tiny, steamed
crabs of the sort that are eaten whole.
V Japonsku už nemáme barony ani hrabata, ale
před Druhou světovou válkou jsme je měli a
Baron Matsunaga patřil mezi ty nejbohatší.
Jeho rodina měla na starosti jednu z největších
japonských bank, a měla velký vliv v oblasti
financí.
Titul barona původně zdědil jeho starší bratr,
ale ten byl zavražděn, když působil jako ministr
financí v kabinetu premiéra Inukai.
Mamehin danna, který měl v té době už přes
třicet let, nezdědil jenom titul barona, ale taky
všechen bratrův majetek, včetně velkého
panství v Kjótu, nedaleko Gionu.
Jeho obchodní záležitosti ho většinu času
držely v Tokiu, ale drželo ho tam i něco jiného.
O mnoho let později jsem se dozvěděla, že měl
další milenku ve čtvrti gejš Akasaka v Tokiu.
Jen pár mužů má na to, aby si mohli dovolit
jednu gejšu jako milenku, ale Baron Matsunaga
Tsuneyoshi měl dvě. Když jsem zjistila, že
Mameha bude trávit odpoledne se svým danna,
pochopila jsem, proč byl její futon čistě ustlán
s čerstvým povlečením. Rychle jsem se
převlékla do oblečení, které mi Mameha
nachystala, do světle zelené spodničky a
kimona v barvách červenohnědé a žluté,
lemované vzorem borovic. Tou dobou se jedna
ze služebných vracela z nedaleké restaurace
s krabicí z lakovaného dřeva, ve které byl
Baronův oběd. Jídlo v ní bylo nachystáno na
talířích a miskách tak, aby mohlo být hned
podáváno stejně jako v restauraci. Největší
z nich byl plytký lakovaný talíř, na kterém byli
dva grilovaní nasolení aju, naaranžovaní na
talíři tak, jako by spolu plavali v řece. Po jedné
straně stáli dva malí dušení krabi, takoví, co se
jedí vcelku.
18 Ayu is a type of fish, mostly used in Asian cuisine. Grilled and salted ayu has been popular dish in all of Japan
and is nowadays regularly prepared as one of many Japanese street foods, quite often on a stick.
55
A trail of streaked salt curved along the black
lacquer to suggest the sand they had crossed.
A few minutes later the Baron arrived. I peeked
out through a crack at the edge of the sliding
door and saw him standing just outside on the
landing while Mameha untied his shoes.
My first impression was of an almond or some
other kind of nut, because he was small and
very round, with a certain kind of heaviness,
particularly around his eyes.
“Oh, Mameha . . . I’m exhausted,” I heard him
say. “How I hate these long train rides!”
Finally he stepped out of his shoes and crossed
the room with brisk little steps. Earlier in the
morning, Mameha’s dresser had brought an
overstuffed chair and a Persian rug from a
storage closet across the hall and arranged them
near the window.
The Baron seated himself there; but as for what
happened afterward, I can’t say, because
Mameha’s maid came over to me and bowed in
apology before giving the door a gentle push to
slide it the rest of the way closed.
I stayed in Mameha’s little dressing room for
an hour or more while the maid went in and out
serving the Baron’s lunch. I heard the murmur
of Mameha’s voice occasionally, but mainly
the Baron did the talking. At one point I thought
he was angry with Mameha, but finally I
overheard enough to understand that he was
only complaining about a man he’d met the day
before, who’d asked him personal questions
that made him angry.
At last when the meal was over, the maid
carried out cups of tea, and Mameha asked for
me. I went out to kneel before the Baron,
feeling very nervous - for I’d never met an
aristocrat before.
I bowed and begged his favor and thought
perhaps he would say something to me.
Cestička soli se táhla po černém laku,
představovala písek, přes který přešli.
Po pár minutách dorazil Baron. Nahlížela jsem
skrz prasklinku v posuvných dveřích, viděla
jsem ho stát na prahu, zatímco mu Mameha
rozvazovala boty.
Na první pohled mi připomínal mandli, nebo
podobný ořech, protože byl malý a velmi
zaoblený, a s tíhou okolo očí.
„Ach Mameho, jsem tak vyčerpaný,“ zaslechla
jsem. „Jak já nesnáším ty dlouhé cesty
vlakem!“
Pak se konečně zul a přešel místnost rychlými
malými kroky. Ráno přinesl Mamehin
garderobiér z úložné skříně vycpané křeslo a
perský kobereček, který naaranžoval poblíž
okna.
Tam se teď posadil Baron. Co se ale stalo pak
nevím, protože Mamehina služka přišla ke mně
a omluvně se poklonila, než dveře tahem
zavřela úplně.
Byla jsem v Mamehině malém převlékacím
pokoji další hodinu, zatímco služka servírovala
Baronovi oběd. Občas jsem zaslechla šelest
Mamehina hlasu, ale většinou povídal spíš
Baron. V jednu chvíli jsem si myslela, že se na
Mamehu zlobí, ale pak jsem zaslechla dost,
abych pochopila, že si jen stěžuje na muže,
kterého ten den potkal, protože se ho zeptal na
osobní otázku, a to ho rozčílilo.
Když byl po jídle, služka přinesla dva šálky
čaje a Mameha konečně poslala pro mě. Když
jsem šla pokleknout před Barona, byla jsem
velmi nervózní, protože jsem nikdy dřív
žádného aristokrata nepotkala.
Poklonila jsem se a pořádala o jeho náklonost,
a myslela jsem, že mi třeba nějak odpoví.
56
But he seemed to be looking around the
apartment, hardly taking notice of me at all.
“Mameha,” he said, “what happened to that
scroll you used to have in the alcove? It was an
ink painting of something or other - much better
than the thing you have there now.”
“The scroll there now, Baron, is a poem in
Matsudaira Koichi’s own hand. It has hung in
that alcove nearly four years.” “Four years?
Wasn’t the ink painting there when I came last
month?” “It wasn’t . . . but in any case, the
Baron hasn’t honored me with a visit in nearly
three months.”
“No wonder I’m feeling so exhausted. I’m
always saying I ought to spend more time in
Kyoto, but . . . well, one thing leads to another.
Let’s have a look at that scroll I’m talking
about. I can’t believe it’s been four years since
I’ve seen it.”
Mameha summoned her maid and asked her to
bring the scroll from the closet. I was given the
job of unrolling it. My hands were trembling so
much that it slipped from my grasp when I held
it up for the Baron to have a look.
“Careful, girl!” he said. I was so embarrassed
that even after I’d bowed and apologized, I
couldn’t help glancing at the Baron again and
again to see if he seemed angry with me.
While I held the scroll up, he seemed to look at
me more than at it. But it wasn’t a reproachful
stare. After a while I realized it was curiosity,
which only made me feel more self-conscious.
“This scroll is much more attractive than the
one you have in the alcove now, Mameha,” he
said.
But he still seemed to be looking at me and
made no effort to look away when I glanced at
him. “Calligraphy is so old-fashioned anyway,”
he went on. “You ought to take that thing in the
alcove down and put up this landscape painting
again.”
Ale on se spíš rozhlížel po bytě, a mě si skoro
ani nevšiml.
„Mameho, co se stalo s tím svitkem, který jsi
měla ve výklenku?“ zeptal se. „Byla to nějaká
inkoustová malba, mnohem lepší než to, co tam
máš teď.“
„Barone, svitek, který tam je teď, je báseň
psaná rukou Matsudaira Koichi. Visí v tom
výklenku skoro čtyři roky.“ „Čtyři roky?
Nebyla tam ta inkoustová malba před měsícem,
když jsem tu byl naposled?“ „Nebyla…
každopádně Baron mě nepotěšil svou
přítomností skoro tři měsíce.“
„Tak už není divu, že jsem tak vyčerpaný.
Pořád říkám, že bych měl trávit víc času
v Kjótu, ale… věci se prostě kupí jedna na
druhou. Podívejme se na ten svitek, který mám
na mysli. Nemůžu uvěřit, že už je to čtyři roky,
co jsem ho viděl.
Mameha přivolala služku a požádala ji, aby ten
svitek přinesla ze skříně. Já jsem dostala za
úkol jej rozvinout. Ruce se mi klepaly tak, že
když jsem svitek držela před Baronem,
z ničeho nic mi vyklouzl.
„Opatrně děvče!“ zareagoval. Bylo mi tak
trapně, že po tom, co jsem se mu uklonila a
omluvila, jsem se očima k němu stále vracela,
abych viděla, jestli se na mě zlobí.
Když jsem ten svitek držela, přišlo mi, že se víc
dívá na mě než na něj. Nebyl to ale vyčítavý
pohled. Po chvíli mi došlo, že to byla spíš
zvědavost, z čehož jsem byla akorát víc
nervózní.
„Tento svitek je mnohem zajímavější než ten,
co máš ve výklenku teď, Mameho,“ řekl.
Stále se u toho ale díval na mě a nijak se to
nepokoušel skrýt, když jsem se podívala já na
něj. „Kaligrafie je stejně tak staromódní,“
pokračoval. „Musíš tu věc sundat a vrátit tam
tuhle krajinomalbu.“
57
Mameha had no choice but to do as the Baron
suggested; she even managed to look as if she
thought it was a fine idea. When the maid and I
had finished hanging the painting and rolling
up the other scroll, Mameha called me over to
pour tea for the Baron.
To look at us from above, we formed a little
triangle - Mameha, the Baron, and me.
But of course, Mameha and the Baron did all
the talking; as for me, I did nothing more useful
than to kneel there, feeling as much out of my
element as a pigeon in a nest of falcons.
To think I’d ever imagined myself worthy of
entertaining the sorts of men Mameha
entertained - not only grand aristocrats like the
Baron, but the Chairman as well.
Now I couldn’t help realizing once again that I
was nothing more than an ignorant girl from a
fishing village.
Hatsumomo, if she had her way, would keep
me down so low, every man who visited Gion
would remain forever out of my reach.
For all I knew I might never see Baron
Matsunaga again, and never come upon the
Chairman.
Wasn’t it possible Mameha would realize the
hopelessness of my cause and leave me to
languish in the okiya like a little-worn kimono
that had seemed so lovely in the shop?
The Baron - who I was beginning to realize was
something of a nervous man - leaned over to
scratch at a mark on the surface of Mameha’s
table and made me think of my father on the
last day I’d seen him, digging grime out of ruts
in the wood with his fingernails.
I wondered what he would think if he could see
me kneeling here in Mameha’s apartment,
wearing a robe more expensive than anything
he’d ever laid eyes on, with a baron across from
me and one of the most famous geisha in all of
Japan at my side. I was hardly worthy of these
surroundings.
Mameha neměla na výběr, musela učinit tak,
jak Baron nakázal. Dokonce se dokázala tvářit
tak, jako by věřila, že je to dobrý nápad. Po
tom, co jsme se služkou malbu pověsily a
srolovaly druhý svitek, mě Mameha přivolala,
abych Baronovi nalila čaj.
Kdyby se na nás někdo díval se shora, všiml by
si, že Mameha, Baron a já jsme vytvořili malý
trojúhelník.
Mluvili samozřejmě pouze Mameha a Baron.
Co se mě týče, já jsem tam pouze klečela
s pocity jako bych byla v jámě lvové.
Nevěřila jsem, že bych někdy byla hodna bavit
takové muže, jaké bavila Mameha. Ne jenom
velké aristokraty, jako byl Baron, ale taky
Ředitele.
Teď si ale znovu uvědomuji, že jsem byla jen
hloupá holka z rybářské vesnice.
Co se týče Hatsumomo, kdyby bylo po jejím,
tak by mě držela tak nízko, že by každý muž
navštěvující Gion zůstal daleko z mého dosahu.
Nemohla jsem vědět, jestli Barona Matsunagu
nebo dokonce Ředitele ještě někdy uvidím.
Bylo by možné, že by si Mameha uvědomila
beznadějnost mé situace a nechala mě
chřadnout v okiji jako málo nošené kimono,
které se v obchodě zdálo tak krásné?
Baron, který mi začínal připadat jako velmi
nervózní muž, se naklonil a poškrábal
nerovnost na povrchu Mamehina stolku.
Připomněl mi tím poslední den, kdy jsem viděla
svého otce, jak tenkrát nehty vyhrabával špínu
z vyjetých kolejí ve dřevě.
Přemýšlela jsem, co by si asi myslel, kdyby mě
viděl takto klečet v Mamehině bytě, s šatem
dražším než cokoliv, co kdy spatřil, s baronem
naproti mně a s jednou z nejznámějších gejš
v celém Japonsku po mém boku. Nebyla jsem
hodna těch, kteří mě obklopovali.
58
And then I became aware of all the magnificent
silk wrapped about my body and had the feeling
I might drown in beauty. At that moment,
beauty itself struck me as a kind of painful
melancholy.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
One afternoon as Mameha and I were strolling
across the Shijo Avenue Bridge to pick up some
new hair ornaments in the Pontocho district -
for Mameha never liked the shops selling hair
ornaments in Gion - she came to a stop
suddenly.
An old tugboat was puffing its way beneath the
bridge; I thought Mameha was just concerned
about the black fumes, but after a moment she
turned to me with an expression I couldn’t quite
understand.
“What is it, Mameha-san?” I asked. “I may as
well tell you, because you’ll only hear it from
someone else,” she said.
“Your little friend Pumpkin has just won the
apprentice’s award. It’s expected she’ll win it a
second time as well.” Mameha was referring to
an award for the apprentice who’d earned the
most during the previous month.
It may seem strange that such an award existed,
but there’s a very good reason. Encouraging
apprentices to earn as much as possible helps
shape them into the sort of geisha who will be
most appreciated in Gion - that is to say, the
ones who will earn a lot not only for themselves
but for everyone else too. Several times
Mameha had predicted that Pumpkin would
struggle along for a few years and end up the
sort of geisha with a few loyal customers - none
of them wealthy - and little else.
It was a sad picture, and I was pleased to learn
that Pumpkin was doing better than that.
Pak jsem si uvědomila, že je mé tělo zahaleno
do nádherného hedvábí a naplnil mě pocit, jako
bych se topila v kráse. V té chvíli mě sama
krása zasáhla jako vlna bolestné melancholie.
KAPITOLA ŠESTNÁCTÁ
Jednou odpoledne jsme se s Mamehou
procházely po mostě bulváru Shijo. Šly jsme
vyzvednout nějaké nové ozdoby do vlasů ve
čtvrti Pontocho, protože Mameha neměla ráda
ozdoby, jaké se prodávaly v obchodech
v Gionu, když vtom se najednou zastavila.
Pod mostem zrovna proplouval starý remorkér,
tak jsem si myslela, že se Mameha obává
oblaků sazí, ale po chvíli se ke mně otočila s
výrazem, jakému jsem nerozuměla.
„Co je děje, Mameho?“ zeptala jsem se. „Asi
mi nezbývá než ti to říct, protože se to jinak
stejně dozvíš od někoho jiného,“ odpověděla.
„Tvoje přítelkyně, Dýně, zrovna vyhrála cenu
nejlepší učednice. A očekává se, že ji vyhraje
znovu.“ Mameha tím myslela cenu, která se
dává nejvíce výdělečné učednici měsíce.
Možná vám přijde zvláštní, že taková cena
vůbec existovala, ale byl pro to dobrý důvod.
Povzbuzování učednic k co největšímu
výdělku je pomáhalo vychovávat v takové
gejši, které by byly v Gionu nejvíc ceněny, tedy
v takové gejši, které vydělávají spoustu peněz
nejen pro sebe, ale i pro ostatní.
Mameha dřív předpovídala, že se Dýni moc
dařit nebude a po pár letech skončí jako gejša
s pár stálými, a ne zrovna bohatými, zákazníky
a nic jiného.
Byla to smutná představa a já jsem byla ráda,
že se Dýni daří víc, než jak Mameha
předpověděla.
59
But at the same time I felt anxiety prickling at
my stomach. Pumpkin now seemed to be one
of the most popular apprentices in Gion, while
I remained one of the most obscure. When I
began to wonder what it might mean for my
future, the world around me honestly seemed to
grow dark. The most astonishing thing about
Pumpkin’s success, as I stood there on the
bridge thinking about it, was that she’d
managed to surpass an exquisite young girl
named Raiha, who’d won the award the past
several months. Raiha’s mother had been a
renowned geisha, and her father was a member
of one of Japan’s most illustrious families, with
almost limitless wealth.
Whenever Raiha strolled past me, I felt as a
simple smelt must feel when a silver salmon
glides by. How had Pumpkin managed to outdo
her? Hatsumomo had certainly pushed her from
the very day of her debut, so much that she’d
begun to lose weight lately and hardly looked
herself.
But regardless of how hard Pumpkin may have
worked, could she really have grown more
popular than Raiha?
“Oh, now, really,” said Mameha, “don’t look so
sad. You ought to be rejoicing!” “Yes, it’s very
selfish of me,” I said. “That isn’t what I mean.
Hatsumomo and Pumpkin will both pay dearly
for this apprentice’s award. In five years, no
one will remember who Pumpkin is.”
“It seems to me,” I said, “that everyone will
remember her as the girl who surpassed Raiha.”
“No one has surpassed Raiha. Pumpkin may
have earned the most money last month, but
Raiha is still the most popular apprentice in
Gion.
Come, I’ll explain.” Mameha led me to a
tearoom in the Pontocho district and sat me
down.
Zároveň jsem ale pociťovala, jak mi žaludek
svírá úzkost. Dýně se teď zdála být jednou
z nejoblíbenějších učednic v Gionu, zatímco
můj osud byl stále nejasný. Když jsem se
zamyslela, co to znamená pro mou budoucnost,
zdálo se mi, jako by svět kolem mě potemněl.
Když jsem tam stála a přemýšlela o Dýnině
úspěchu, tak ta nejúžasnější věc byla, že se jí
podařilo překonat znamenitou mladou dívku
jménem Raiha, která vyhrála cenu několik
měsíců po sobě. Její matka byla věhlasná gejša
a její otec byl členem jedné z nejproslulejších
japonských rodin, s téměř nekonečným
bohatstvím.
Kdykoliv okolo mě Raiha prošla, cítila jsem se
jako obyčejná ryba, okolo které právě proplul
stříbrný pstruh. Jak se Dýni mohlo podařit ji
překonat? Hatsumomo ji dřela každý den od
jejího debutu, a to tolik, že začala hubnout a už
nevypadá jako ta Dýně, kterou jsem znala.
Ale ať dřela Dýně sebevíc, mohla vážně nabít
větší obliby než Raiha?
„Ale no tak, netvař se tak nešťastně!“ řekla
Mameha. „Měla by ses radovat!“ „Já vím, je to
ode mě sobecké,“ odpověděla jsem. „To ale
nemyslím. Hatsumomo i Dýně za tuto cenu
tvrdě zaplatí. Za pět let po Dýni ani pes
neštěkne.“
„Mně se zdá, že si ji všichni budou pamatovat
jako tu dívku, která překonala Raihu,“ namítla
jsem. „Raihu nikdo nepřekonal. Dýně sice
vydělala minulý měsíc víc peněz, ale Raiha je
stále neoblíbenější učednicí v Gionu.
Pojď, vysvětlím ti to.“ Mameha mě odvedla do
čtvrti Pontocho a usadila mě do čajovny.
60
In Gion, Mameha said, a very popular geisha
can always make sure her younger sister earns
more than anyone else - if she is willing to risk
hurting her own reputation.
The reason has to do with the way ohana,
“flower fees,” are billed.
In the old days, a hundred years or more ago,
every time a geisha arrived at a party to
entertain, the mistress of the teahouse lit a stick
of one-hour incense - called one ohana, or
“flower.” The geisha’s fees were based on how
many sticks of incense had burned by the time
she left.
The cost of one ohana has always been fixed by
the Gion Registry Office. While I was an
apprentice, it was ¥3, which was about the cost
of two bottles of liquor, perhaps. It may sound
like a lot, but an unpopular geisha earning one
ohana per hour has a grim life.
Probably she spends most evenings sitting
around the charcoal brazier waiting for an
engagement; even when she’s busy, she may
earn no more than ¥10 in a night, which won’t
be enough even to pay back her debts.
Considering all the wealth that flows into Gion,
she’s nothing more than an insect picking at the
carcass - compared with Hatsumomo or
Mameha, who are magnificent lionesses
feasting at the kill, not only because they have
engagements all night long every night, but
because they charge a good deal more as well.
In Hatsumomo’s case, she charged one ohana
every fifteen minutes, rather than one every
hour.
And in the case of Mameha . . . well, there was
no one else in Gion quite like her: she charged
one ohana every five minutes.
Of course, no geisha keeps all her earnings, not
even Mameha.
Mameha mi pověděla, že v Gionu mohla
opravdu populární gejša dosáhnout toho, že její
mladší sestra vydělávala víc, než která jiná,
pokud byla ochotná riskovat svou reputaci.
Záleželo to na tom, jakým způsobem se
proplácela ohana, v překladu „květinový
poplatek“.
Za starých časů, tak sto let zpátky, zapalovala
pokaždé majitelka čajovny, když na večírek
přišla gejša, jednohodinovou vonnou tyčinku,
zvanou ohana, tedy „květina“. Gejšin plat byl
založen na tom, kolik vonných tyčinek
vyhořelo před tím, než gejša večírek opustila.
Cenu jedné ohany stanovuje fixně Gionská
registrační kancelář. Když jsem byla učednicí,
bylo to 3 jeny, což bylo přibližně jako cena
dvou lahví likéru. Možná to zní jako hodně, ale
nepopulární gejša, která vydělává jednu ohanu
za hodinu má smutný život.
Pravděpodobně většinu večerů tráví sezením
kolem krbu a čeká na pracovní příležitosti, a i
když je náhodou zaneprázdněná, nevydělá víc
než 10 jenů na noc, což není dost, aby splatila
své dluhy.
Uvážíme-li všechno bohatství, které se valí do
Gionu, není taková gejša víc než hmyz
uždibující z mršiny, obzvlášť v porovnání
s Hatsumomo nebo Mamehou, které jsou jako
velkolepé lvice hodující po úspěšném lovu.
Nejen protože mají závazky na každou noc po
celou noc, ale taky protože si účtují mnohem
víc. V případě Hatsumomo šlo o jednu ohanu
za patnáct minut, ne za hodinu.
A co se Mamehy týče, tak té se nevyrovnal
nikdo v Gionu. Účtovala si totiž jednu ohanu za
pět minut.
Žádná gejša si samozřejmě nenechává všechen
svůj výdělek, dokonce ani Mameha.
61
The teahouse where she earned the fees takes a
portion; then a much smaller portion goes to the
geisha association; and a portion to her dresser;
and right on down the line, including a fee she
might pay to an okiya in exchange for keeping
her account books and tracking her
engagements.
She probably keeps only a little more than half
of what she earns. Still, it’s an enormous sum
when compared with the livelihood of an
unpopular geisha, who every day sinks deeper
and deeper into a pit. Here’s how a geisha like
Hatsumomo could make her younger sister
seem more successful than she really was.
To begin with, a popular geisha in Gion is
welcome at nearly any party and will drop in on
many of them for only five minutes. Her
customers will be happy to pay the fees, even
though she’s only saying hello.
They know that the next time they visit Gion,
she’ll probably join them at the table for a while
to give them the pleasure of her company.
An apprentice, on the other hand, can’t possibly
get away with such behaviour. Her role is to
build relationships. Until she becomes a full-
fledged geisha at the age of eighteen, she
doesn’t consider flitting from party to party.
Instead she stays for an hour or more, and only
then telephones her okiya to ask her older
sister’s whereabouts, so she can go to another
teahouse and be introduced to a new round of
guests. While her popular older sister might
drop in on as many as twenty parties during an
evening, an apprentice probably attends no
more than five. But this isn’t what Hatsumomo
was doing.
She was taking Pumpkin with her everywhere
she went.
Until the age of sixteen, an apprentice geisha
bills one-half ohana per hour.
Část si bere čajovna, ve které peníze vydělala,
menší část pak jde pro sdružení gejš, část
jejímu garderobiérovi, a pak třeba taky
poplatky okiji za to, že mají na starosti
účetnictví a organizování jejího pracovního
harmonogramu.
Zůstane jí možná něco málo přes polovinu
jejího výdělku. Pořád je to ale enormní suma ve
srovnání s živobytím neoblíbené gejši, která se
den co den noří hlouběji a hlouběji do prázdna.
Takhle mohla gejša jako Hatsumomo dokázat,
aby její mladší sestra vypadala víc úspěšně, než
jak tomu doopravdy bylo.
Pro začátek, populární gejša je v Gionu vítaná
na téměř každém večírku a každý navštíví jen
na pět minut. Její zákazníci jí rádi zaplatí její
poplatek jen za to, že je přijde pozdravit.
Vědí, že až se příště objeví v Gionu,
pravděpodobně se k nim přidá a alespoň na
chvíli je u stolu obšťastní svou přítomností.
Na druhou stranu, učednice si takové chování
dovolit nemůže. Jejím údělem je vytvářet nové
vztahy. Než se z ní v osmnácti stane
plnohodnotná gejša, nesmí ani pomyslet na
přelétávání z večírku na večírek.
Místo toho zůstává alespoň na hodinku a teprve
potom zavolá domů, aby jí pověděli, kde se její
starší sestra právě nachází, aby se k ní mohla
připojit v další čajovně, a nechá se představit
dalším hostům. Zatímco její starší sestra stihne
během večera navštívit až dvacet večírků,
učednice většinou navštíví maximálně pět.
Hatsumomo to ale takhle nedělá.
Ta sebou brala Dýni všude tam, kam šla.
Gejša-učednice až do věku šestnácti let účtuje
půl ohany za hodinu.
62
If Pumpkin stayed at a party only five minutes,
the host was billed the same as if she’d stayed
a full hour. On the other hand, no one expected
Pumpkin to stay only five minutes.
Probably the men didn’t mind that Hatsumomo
brought her younger sister for only a brief visit
one night, or even two. But after a while they
must have begun to wonder why she was too
busy to stay longer; and why her younger sister
didn’t remain behind as she was expected to do.
Pumpkin’s earnings may have been high, you
see - perhaps as high as three or four ohana
every hour. But she was certain to pay for it
with her reputation, and so was Hatsumomo.
Pokud Dýně na každé oslavě nezůstala déle než
pět minut, dostala zaplaceno stejně, jako by tam
byla hodinu. Nikdo ale neočekával, že se Dýně
nezdrží déle jak pět minut.
Mužům zřejmě nevadilo, že jednou či dvakrát
přivedla Hatsumomo svou mladší sestru jen na
letmou návštěvu. Ale po nějaké době nejspíš
museli začít přemýšlet, proč byla tak
zaneprázdněná, že se nemohla zdržet déle, a
proč její mladší sestra nezůstala pozadu tak, jak
se od ní očekávalo. Takže jak vidíte, Dýnin
příjem mohl dosáhnout tří až čtyř ohan každou
hodinu. Ale bylo jisté, že za to zaplatí svou
pověstí, a stejně tak Hatsumomo.
63
4. THEORETICAL PART
Translating from one language to another always faces many obstacles. The translator must
take under consideration grammatical rules from two different languages as well as other
factors, such as cultural background, dialects, etc.
In case of this translation, the theoretical part includes chapters dealing with specific
syntactic problems I had to face, closing with a chapter focusing of Functional Sentence
Perspective based primarily on teachings of Jan Firbas.
The first syntactic element described in this thesis is passive, as it is the most frequent one
and commonly misused and misinterpreted. Passive voice is still very popular sentence
structure in English language, unlike in Czech; according to Štícha (2013, p. 618-648) this
structure is nowadays considered mostly literary and even impersonal. This thesis describes a
number of different approaches towards translating passive, like omission, changing passive
voice into active voice or even keeping the sentence structure in passive voice.
Another element analyzed in this paper are cleft sentences. Even though they are not as
frequent in the translated chapters, the problem of translating them was worth the research,
because cleft sentences are not very common in Czech nowadays, as they are considered old
fashioned and not exactly natural. The chapter investigates both basic types of cleft sentences,
cleft sentences proper and pseudo-cleft sentences, also known as it-clefts and wh-clefts.
Translating these sentences falls into two categories, as will be shown in more detail later in
this paper.
The third analysis is dealing with clauses with hypothetical meaning. This chapter, though
not very lengthy, describes the difference in approach to hypothetical meaning in English and
Czech, which is also shown in the chosen examples.
The last part dealing with syntactic analysis is about extraposition of clausal subject. This
chapter is an interesting example of how language is like a living organism, full of surprises
and hidden clues, that cannot always be detected at the first sight.
Closing chapter on FSP then deals with some typical problems which may come up during
the process of translating from one language to another, how to solve them or even how to avoid
certain cases.
64
4.1 Passive voice
The term passive is used to describe the type of verb phrase which contains the construction
be + past participle, or the type of clause in which a passive verb phrase occurs. The opposite
of passive is active (Leech & Svartvik, 2008, p. 237).
In sentences where there is a choice between active and passive, the active is the norm.
According to Greenbaum & Quirk (1990, p. 45-46), speakers or writers use the passive for the
following reasons:
(A) They want to avoid identifying the agent because they do not want to assign or accept
responsibility.
My letter has not yet been answered.
A mistake has been made in calculating your change.
(B) They feel that there is no reason for mention of the agent because the identification is
unimportant or obvious from the context.
The small thin pieces of metal at the sides are to protect the appliance during
handling and may be discarded.
Nowadays sleeping sickness can usually be cured if it is detected early enough.
(C) In scientific and technical writing, writers often use the passive to avoid the constant
repetition of the subject I or we and to put the emphasis on processes and experimental
procedures. This use of the passive helps to give the writing the objective tone that the
writers wish to convey.
The subject was blindfolded and a pencil was placed in the left hand.
(D) To put emphasis on the agent of the action.
(E) To avoid what would otherwise be a long active subject.
(F) To retain the same subject in later parts of the sentence.
The passive involves a restructuring of the clause, and thus it is not a simple order variation.
It takes two forms: the long passive where the agent is expressed in a by-phrase, and the short
passive where the agent is left unexpressed (Biber et al., 2000, p. 935). According to Biber et
al. (2000, p. 935) the passive agent is often agent if the verbal action in the semantic sense,
though it may fulfil other semantic roles such as experiencer. The availability of the passive
option is subject to a number of constrains, chiefly connected with the nature of the verb.
To better understand the formation of passive voice, we can turn to Gethin (1996, p. 154),
where the formation of the passive sentence as a whole and in particular relationship between
its grammatical subject and the grammatical object or objects in the active voice is discussed.
An understanding of this relationship is the best way of knowing when and how to use the
65
passive, since there is a connection between grammatical subject and the subjects we like to
talk or write about. Gethin (1996, p. 154) also explains that there are four ways of creating a
sentence in passive voice.
The first one deals with formation of passive from a single object. The subject of passive
sentence can be formed from a single object of almost any verb. The single object may be not
only a noun or a pronoun; it may be an infinitive phrase or a that clause, which can become the
subject of a passive sentence by the use of introductory it (Gethin, 1996, p. 155).
(1) Peter was arrested two days ago.
(2) It had clearly been decided by the authorities to make an example of him.
(3) It has been announced (that) he’ll be tried.
(4) The law is not being complied with.
The object of a verb used with a preposition can usually become the subject in the passive.
Exceptions occur with prepositional verbs of movement. When movement is not expressed, that
is to say when these are phrasal verbs and do not have their literal meaning, they can be also
used in the passive (Gethin, 1996, p. 155).
(1) The matter has been gone into very thoroughly.
(2) No conclusion has yet been arrived at.
The second formation described by Gethin (1996, p. 156-157) is the formation from two
objects, where it is briefly explained that some verbs can have two objects, one usually a
concrete or abstract thing, the other usually a person. Out of the two, what usually happens is
that any can become the subject.
(1) The information was given (to) me by a friend.
(2) I was given the information by a friend.
(3) Access to a lawyer has been refused Peter.
(4) Peter has been refused access to a lawyer.
This is followed by the third formation dealing with the auxiliary passive. This type of
formation is achieved by the use of have. Sentences using have can be passive or active in sense
according to context (Gethin, 1996, p. 157-158).
(1) A friend gave me the information. -> I had the information given (to) me by a friend.
(2) They’ve refused Peter access to a lawyer. -> Peter has had access to a lawyer refused
him.
(3) They never explain a citizen’s rights to prisoners. -> Prisoners never have a citizen’s
rights explained to them.
66
(4) And they’ll carefully examine the photos he took, including that one of you. -> And he’ll
have the photos he took, including that one of you, carefully examined.
The last viable option in this category described by Gethin (1996, p. 158-159) is non-
formation of the passive from two objects. Passives cannot be formed from either object of all
double-object verbs. One of the examples can be the verb wish, neither object of which can
normally become the subject of a passive. There are also verbs like win, where the first object
but not the second object can become the subject of a passive. This requires the use of the
preposition for, optional in the active. Thirdly, there are a few verbs like save, where the passive
can be formed from the second object but not from the first one.
(1) His fearless stand has won (for) him a lot of sympathy. -> A lot of sympathy has been
won for him by his fearless stand.
(2) Freeing Peter now would save the authorities a lot of trouble. -> The authorities would
be saved a lot of trouble by freeing Peter now.
Independent from this grouping of formations, Gethin (1996, p. 161) also mentioned passive
constructions with the infinitive. Instead of an active construction we may sometimes use a
more formal passive construction with the full infinitive. In these constructions the infinitive
itself may or may not be in the passive. There is also a particular type of construction, using
it/was etc. to correspond with can/could in the active, where the passive infinitive is always
used.
According to Dontcheva-Navratilova (2016, p. 129) passive voice is one of the possible ways
to achieve postponement. Passive may be used for postponing the agentive subject to end-
position when end-focus for emphasis is required. When the subject is a finite clause, the
passive may be chosen for end-weight.
With ditransitive verbs, the passive may be used to put the indirect object in thematic
(subject) position, thus reserving the highlighted focus position for the direct object. It is also
possible to highlight the verb provided that the agent can be ignored as given (Dušková, 2003,
p. 258-266).
Dušková (2003, p. 249) describes that Czech formal equivalent of English passive voice is
descriptive passive.
(1) the picture is finished/sold /obraz je dokončen/prodán
It is not the only passive in Czech language, though, as there is also a reversible passive. A
reversible passive is a passive construction in which the subject can be exchanged with the
agent in the by-phrase and still leave a correct logical sentence, albeit with the opposite
meaning.
67
Czech and English passive voice sentences considerably differ in the way they are
constructed; these differences result from different natures of transitivity of English and Czech
verbs as well as from the existence of subjectless passive in Czech language (Dušková, 2003,
p. 250).
As stated by Dušková (2003, p. 250-251) a similar way of creating passive in both English
and Czech can be only done with the use of monotransitive verbs. A subject of a passive
construction is an object of an active construction.
(1) this aspect is often neglected /toto hledisko se často zanedbává
(2) some details have been omitted /některé podrobnosti byly vynechány
(3) the risk should not be underestimated /riziko by se nemělo podceňovat
However, there are differences in the reaction of individual verbs; an English verb with a
direct subject often corresponds to a Czech verb in genitive, dative or with prepositional case.
Dušková (2003, p. 251) also explains that passive formed from verbs with prepositional case
is made the same way as passive formed from monotransitive verbs. The subject is again the
object of the active voice, and the preposition stays with the verb. This case of passive is not
possible in Czech language; prepositional object in passive stays without any change and the
verb forms subjectless passive.
(1) this possibility has been reckoned with /s touto možností se počítalo
(2) the doctor should be sent for at once /mělo by se ihned poslat pro lékaře
(3) their help cannot be relied on /na jejich pomoc se nelze spolehnout
(4) those children will be seen to all right /o ty děti bude patřičně postaráno
Ditransitive verbs have in English two passive constructions, because both objects can
become a subject of the passive. In Czech, on the other hand, the only possible object that can
become a subject is the direct object. Choosing a subject for a passive construction with a
ditransitive verb is closely connected with functional sentence perspective, which means that
an object with lower degree of narrative dynamics becomes the subject (Dušková, 2003, p. 252).
According to Dušková (2003, p. 261) passive with the expressed agent is significantly
thinner compared to passive without the expressed agent, which results from the main function
of the passive. In English the passive with expressed agent can be used as a carrier of functional
sentence perspective, unlike in Czech, in which we can achieve the same result with only
changing the word order of the sentence, without changing the syntactic construction. Active
construction with this word order is the opposite of English passive with expressed agent, under
the condition that the agent is animate. In both languages, the basic distribution of narrative
dynamics is achieved, with the theme in the beginning and the rheme in the end position.
68
(1) In some animals the protection of the young is carried out by the males. /U některých
živočichů ochranu mláďat obstarávají samečkové.
(2) The first marketable typewriter was produced (though not invented) by E. Remington &
Sons. /První prodejný psací stroj byl vyroben (i když ne vynalezen) E. Remingtonem a
syny.
In Czech, an inanimate agent can also be constructed as a subject following an active verb.
But most often the Czech passive stays the same as in English.
Dušková (2003, p. 263) states that passive allows different linear arrangement of participants
in the verbal process than active, which can be used as a tool of FSP. The choice of voice can
also result from a complete sentence structure, type of modifications of clauses, etc.
English passive always includes a subject. Czech passive without a subject is not possible in
English. Unlike Czech subjectless sentences English has sentences with expressed subjects that
correspond with different Czech cases (except nominative and accusative).
(1) the command was obeyed /rozkazu bylo uposlechnuto
(2) our warning was not heeded /naší výstrahy se nedbalo
(3) your request will be complied with /vaší žádosti bude vyhoveno
(4) a scandal must be prevented /musí být zabráněno skandálu
(5) he was threatened with dismissal /bylo mu pohrozeno propuštěním
If the Czech sentence does not include an object, the choice of an English subject depends
on the nature of the action. For transitive verbs, a specific material subject can be added. If this
subject is not present, an English sentence can be in an active form with an agentive subject,
either general or specific, or the subject includes there (Dušková, 2003, p. 265).
4.1.1 Translating sentences with passive voice
Translating passive sentences from English into Czech language can be rather challenging.
In the original text there are 37 sentences containing passive voice. Different angles have to be
considered while translating sentences in passive. Generally speaking, the easiest way would
be simply taking an English sentence in passive voice and translate it as a Czech sentence in
passive voice. A problem with this strategy is the fact that passive voice in Czech is not as
common and not as popular as it is in English. It is commonly known that passive voice in
Czech language is considered to be rather outdated; something that can be seen mostly in
literature or in the vocabulary of older generations. With this knowledge, despite the common
dislike of the passive among users of Czech language, a decision was made to keep some of the
69
sentences in passive, because it simply worked better for the narration. Some of these sentences
can be seen in the following chart.
Arthur Golden My translation
… or whether a certain kimono repair was
finished though it wasn’t scheduled to be
completed for another week. (p. 14)
… či jestli je hotová oprava jejího kimona,
která ale neměla být dokončena ještě další
týden.
…her face was painted white for the very
first time. (p.8)
Poprvé měla též obličej nabarvený na bílo.
Most are padded with a bag of wheat
chaff, but still they’re not much better than
putting your neck on a stone. (p. 24)
Většina je polstrovaná pytlíkem
pšeničných plev, ale stejně to není o moc
lepší než si lehnout na kámen.
“The mandrill of central Africa is often
considered the showiest of primates,” he
said. (p. 26)
„Mandril, žijící v centrální Africe, je
považován za nejokázalejšího primáta ze
všech,“ řekl mi.
Her hair was ornamented with silk
flowers and springs of unhusked rice. (p.
26)
Její vlasy byly zdobeny hedvábnými
květinami a snítkami neloupané rýže.
His mane was woven in threads
lacquered with a beautiful reddish tint.
(p. 27)
Jeho hříva byla utkaná z načervenalých
lakovaných nití.
All the combinations involving an
element from Mameha’s name,
unfortunately, had been pronounced
inauspicious by the fortune-teller. (p. 29)
Všechny kombinace obsahující prvek
z Mamehina jména byly bohužel věštcem
prohlášeny za nepříznivé.
The party, she explained to me along the
way, was to be given by the man who ran
the National Theater in Tokyo. (p. 35)
Ta oslava, jak mi vysvětlila po cestě, měla
být pořádána mužem, který vedl Národní
Divadlo v Tokiu.
Originally his older brother had inherited
the title of baron, but he had been
assassinated while serving as a finance
minister in the cabinet of Prime Minister
Inukai. (p.54)
Titul barona původně zdědil jeho starší bratr,
ale ten byl zavražděn, když působil jako
ministr financí v kabinetu premiéra Inukai.
70
What is certain from this chart is that English passive voice indeed works similarly in Czech.
Translating these sentences was only a matter of maintaining a similar word order, following
the rules of Czech passive voice.
The second most natural translation method that came to mind was to turn the passive voice
into the active voice, because the process is simple and, in the narration, it seems very natural,
and it is pleasant to read. As it was already mentioned before, to change the passive voice into
active, it is needed to find the agent in each passive sentence and turn it into a subject of the
new active sentence, and to change the verb according to the basic sentence transformation
rules. Examples of this method can be seen in the chart below.
Arthur Golden My translation
When at last the photograph was taken,
Pumpkin stumbled a few steps from the
door and turned to look back. (p. 10)
Když fotku konečně pořídily, Dýně
klopýtla pár kroků od dveří a ohlédla se přes
rameno.
…I found that except for my plain hairstyle,
I might have been taken for a young
apprentice geisha on her way to a party.
(p. 11)
… zjistila jsem, že kromě mého obyčejného
účesu by mě mohli považovat za mladou
gejšu-učednici na cestě na večírek.
… or whether a certain kimono repair
was finished though it wasn’t scheduled to
be completed for another week. (p. 14)
… či jestli dokončili opravu jejího kimona,
která ale neměla být dokončena ještě další
týden.
And I must tell you that even with camellia
oil as a lubricant and a hot iron to keep the
wax soft, hair and wax were never meant
to go together. (p. 21)
A musím vám říct, že i s olejíčkem ve
vlasech a horkým železem udržujícím vosk
měkkým, jsem dospěla k závěru, že vlasy a
vosk nepatří k sobě.
We were joined there by two of
Mameha’s younger sisters, as well as by
Mother. (p. 27)
Čekaly nás tam dvě další Mamehiny
mladší sestry a také matka.
The ceremony, which was attended by the
mistress of the Ichiriki, lasted only about
ten minutes. (p. 27)
Samotný ceremoniál, kterého se zúčastnily
i majitelky Ichiriki, trval sotva deset minut.
As I say, the dance was lovely, and so was
the music, which was played on the
Jak jsem zmínila, ten tanec byl krásný a
stejně tak i hudba, kterou na shamisen
71
shamisen by a terribly thin geisha with
small, watery eyes. (p. 34)
hrála neskutečně pohublá gejša s malýma
světle modrýma očima.
Thank heavens she was blown onto the
hood! (p. 42)
Díky bohu že ji to odválo na kapotu!
In some these cases, of course, could have been used passive again, just like in the previous
section. Turning them into active voice was solely a decision I made as the translator. To
compare some of the sentences, I have created another chart, containing both active and passive
form of the Czech translations.
The original text My choice of translation
(active voice)
Another possible translation
(passive voice)
… or whether a certain
kimono repair was finished
though it wasn’t scheduled to
be completed for another
week. (p. 14)
… či jestli dokončili opravu
jejího kimona, která ale
neměla být dokončena ještě
další týden.
… či jestli byla dokončena
oprava jejího kimono, která
ale neměla být dokončena
ještě další týden.
When at last the
photograph was taken,
Pumpkin stumbled a few
steps from the door and
turned to look back. (p. 10)
Když fotku konečně
pořídily, Dýně klopýtla pár
kroků od dveří a ohlédla se
přes rameno.
Když byla fotka konečně
pořízena, Dýně klopýtla pár
kroků od dveří a ohlédla se
přes rameno.
Thank heavens she was
blown onto the hood! (p. 42)
Díky bohu že ji to odválo na
kapotu!
Díky bohu že byla odváta
na kapotu!
…I found that except for my
plain hairstyle, I might have
been taken for a young
apprentice geisha on her
way to a party. (p. 10)
… zjistila jsem, že kromě
mého obyčejného účesu by
mě mohli považovat za
mladou gejšu-učednici na
cestě na večírek.
… zjistila jsem, že kromě
mého obyčejného účesu
jsem mohla být
považována za mladou
gejšu-učednici na cestě na
večírek.
Another option when dealing with the translation of passive voice was the omission.
Omitting passive altogether solved some difficult translating cases. When an English text is
being translated into Czech, the Czech version sometimes becomes unnecessarily lengthy and
72
rather hard to follow, which kept happening in some specific cases in the practical part of this
thesis. For that reason, omitting the passive came as a reasonable solution, making the sentences
shorter, easier to follow and also better fitting for the purpose of storytelling. Some of these
special cases can be seen in the following chart.
Arthur Golden My translation
For a time I woke up every morning with my
hair ruined and had to wait in line at the
hairdresser for my chance to be tortured.
(p. 23)
Nějakou dobu jsem se budila se zničeným
účesem, což vedlo k častému mučení u
kadeřníka.
From the moment on, I was no longer
known as Chiyo. (p. 27)
Od toho momentu jsem již nebyla Chiyo.
I was summoned to Mameha’s apartment
several times in the next few days. (p. 50)
Dalších pár dní jsem byla několikrát
navštívit Mamehu v jejím bytě.
If Pumpkin stayed at a party only five
minutes, the host was billed the same as if
she’d stayed a full hour. (p. 61)
Pokud Dýně na každé oslavě nezůstala déle
než pět minut, dostala zaplaceno stejně,
jako by tam byla hodinu.
To conclude, three different approaches were applied while translating sentences in passive
voice – keeping the passive, turning passive into active voice and the omission. As for the
representation of each option in the original text, it is illustrated in the graph below.
As can be seen there, in the end, turning passive into active was the most frequent option (17
sentences in total), followed by sentences kept in their original passive structure (11 sentences).
30%
46%
24%
REPRESENTATION OF TRANSLATED SENTENCES IN PASSIVE VOICE
Keeping the passive Turning passive into active voice Omission
73
The omission, though, follows closely with 9 sentences in total, which means that the
representation of all the options is almost similar in numbers. From my point of view, this shows
that all the options are equally valid and thus it is mostly the choice of the translator to use
whatever strategy works best for a particular text.
4.2 Cleft sentences
There are two major types of cleft constructions: it-clefts and wh-clefts. Both cleft types (and
the reversed variant of wh-cleft) are used to bring particular elements into additional focus,
which may be contrastive. The extra focused element normally appears early in it-clefts and
late in wh-clefts, a property which means that these structures are also connected with
distribution and cohesion (Biber et al., 2000, p. 958-959).
Dontcheva-Navratilova (2016, p. 136) explains that cleft sentences proper, also called it-
clefts, are used to highlight sentence elements by dividing the original sentence pattern into two
clause-like parts, the prominence being usually given to the final item in the SVC clause. The
first part of the cleft construction (SVC clause) consists of the formal subject it (empty theme)
followed by the respective form of the verb to be, introducing the highlighted element (the
focus). The second part of the construction takes the form of a relative clause introduced by the
relative pronoun that, which can be omitted. The use of wh-pronouns instead of that is
extremely rare and therefore not recommended.
The verb form in the it-part of the cleft sentence typically uses the present simple of the past
simple tense – present when the second verb is present and past when the second verb is past.
Nevertheless, the present tense may be used irrespective of the form of the second verb when
the people referred to are still living, or the objects concerned are regarded as familiar and close
to the participants. The verb phrase in the it-part of the cleft sentence can also include modal
verbs (Crystal, 1995, p. 226-245).
(1) It may be Roger that he is waiting for.
(2) It was India that Columbus wanted to discover.
(3) It is/was Peter that I met yesterday.
(4) It is/was this bag that he gave me as a birthday present.
Crystal (1995, p. 226-245) also states that when the element following the copular verb to
be is recoverable from the context, the focus is rather on the following relative clause. Thought
cleft sentences proper are very flexible, there are some restrictions on their use. A cleft sentence
proper cannot be used to achieve focus on the verb. Also, it is not possible to make subject
74
complement focus of it-clefts, especially when the subject complement is an adjective phrase.
When the subject complement takes the form of a noun phrase it may become the focus of an
it-cleft.
(1) It is clever that he is.
(2) It was a great actress that she became.
Similarly to the cleft sentences proper, Dontcheva-Navratilova (2016, p. 137) describes the
pseudo-cleft construction, which has the function of achieving focus on a highlighted sentence
element. The construction is typically introduced by a nominal relative clause followed by the
verb to be and the highlighted language item.
(1) What he’ll do is write a letter.
(2) What he’s done is break my heart.
(3) What he hates is linguistics.
The order of the elements preceding and following the copular verb to be may be inverted.
When the wh-element comes second, we call it a reversed pseudo cleft.
Another point made by Crystal (1995, p. 226-245) is that the cleft sentence proper is
preferable when the highlighted elements are an adverbial or a prepositional phrase. If the
adverbial can take a noun phrase form, the wh-cleft can be used with a final when- or where-
clause; it is called ‘reversed’ cleft sentence. Reversed wh-clefts which open with a
demonstrative referring to the preceding discourse are called demonstrative wh-clefts.
(1) That’s why she wants to come with us.
Some reversed wh-clefts look exactly like ordinary wh-clefts, apart from the position of the
wh-clause in relation to the focused element. A very common type of structure contains a
demonstrative pronoun (usually that) followed by a form of be plus a dependent clause
introduced by a wh-word. Although these structures are not normally reversible, they are
structurally related to reversed wh-clefts. Moreover, they open with a reference to the preceding
text (Biber et al., 2000, p. 960-961).
The wh-cleft sentence can also focus on the subject complement of a clause, whereas the
cleft sentence proper normally cannot (except in the case of a noun phrase functioning as subject
complement). Clauses introduced by who, whose, why and how do not easily enter the pseudo-
cleft construction and are usually replaced by paraphrases, involving noun phrases of general
reference in place of the wh-item (Dontcheva-Navratilova, 2016, p. 138).
In the case of cleft sentences proper (it-clefts), Dušková (2003, p. 537) states that in English,
a special level of FSP is formed by sentences in which an element is emphatically pointed out.
The means by which it can be achieved are for example intonation and contrasting stress. The
75
same effect as the one of a contrasting stress can be achieved by a cleft sentence proper. These
sentences have the same function both in English and in Czech, to point out the rhematic
element from the background of the other thematic elements, and if a sentence element can
function in both ways, they are interchangeable. They also have a similar distribution of
narrative dynamics, differing only in the position of the theme. In Czech it is more common to
use word order and word stress to achieve the same effect.
(1) It was Tom who repaired Jane’s typewriter at the office yesterday. /Byl to Tom, kdo včera
spravil v kanceláři Janin stroj.
As for the pseudo-cleft sentences, translating them into Czech works very similarly to cleft
sentences proper and Dušková (2003, p. 538) states that it is mostly an element of literature,
not an everyday spoken production.
(1) What Tom did at the office yesterday was repair the typewriter. /To, co včera Tom dělal
v kanceláři, bylo spravování psacího stroje.
Dušková (2010, p.30-31) explains in her paper the examinations from the viewpoint of
context dependence/independence of the content expressed by the two constitutive clauses, the
it-clause and the subordinate clause. This involved the basic distinction between stressed-focus
it-clefts, i.e., cleft sentences with context-dependent information in the subordinate clause
which is hence weakly stressed; and informative-presupposition it-clefts, whose subordinate
clauses are context-independent and stressed accordingly. Since context
dependence/independence is a crucial point in assigning cleft sentences to one or the other type,
and context itself is a phenomenon of a graded nature (Firbas, 1992, p. 32-35), a significant role
is played by the factors through which a given element becomes disengaged form context
dependence. According to Firbas (1995, p. 22), these factors involve selection, contrast,
identification, purposeful repetition, and the summarizing effect. Considering that context is
inherently a textual feature, all these factors play a textual role.
Dušková (2010, p. 30-31) argues that there are differences in the textual functions of it-clefts
according to the type of text. According to her research, there is a difference between the use
of it-clefts in prose and in fiction; fiction being in favor of clefts with an anaphoric scene-setting
adverbial in the it-clause and new content in the subordinate clause, whereas academic prose
displayed context-independent information in both clauses.
76
4.2.1 Translating cleft sentences
The chapters from Memoirs of Geisha used for this thesis do not include overwhelming
number of cleft sentences, but for the purpose of this analysis it is a satisfactory amount. There
are nine cleft sentences proper (it-clefts) and six pseudo-cleft sentences (wh-clefts).
According to Dušková (2003, p. 537-538), cleft sentences are particularly useful in writing,
because there cannot be used intonation for emphasis. That is exactly the purpose for which this
structure was used in the original text. As can be seen in the chart below, the word order of the
translated sentences was kept similar, to help them achieve the already mentioned emphasis.
Arthur Golden My translation
It wasn’t the most beautiful kimono you
would ever see, but when I looked at myself
in the full-length mirror… (p. 10)
Nebylo to nejkrásnější kimono, jaké jste
kdy viděli, ale když jsem se podívala do
zrcadla…
Isn’t it possible I was just looking at the
rainspouts along the base of the houses?
(p. 15)
A není možné, že jsem se třeba jen dívala
na kapky deště tekoucích po základech
domů?
But it isn’t the length of the obi that
makes it hard wo wear … (p. 24)
Délka obi ale není důvodem, proč je tak
těžké jej nosit.
It’s a wonder Konda-san didn’t burn a
hole in it with his eyes, trying to see
through it the way he did. (p. 36)
Je pozoruhodné, že se Kondovi nepodařilo
propálit do ní pohledem díru, jak moc se
snažil dívat skrz.
… well, it was their leader who hid
himself in the Ichiriki Teahouse while
plotting revenge. (p. 26)
… tak právě jejich vůdce byl ten, který se
schovával v čajovně Ichiriki, zatímco
spřádal plány k pomstě.
The other strategy used in the thesis was changing the word order or even part of the sentence
completely, avoiding the clefting altogether but keeping the original meaning of the statement.
As it was mentioned before, cleft sentences are not nowadays commonly used in Czech
language, so this alteration seemed the most reasonable and natural. Some of the examples are
shown in the chart below.
Arthur Golden My translation
It was an image of the geisha I wanted to
become. (p. 19)
Ztělesňovala gejšu, kterou jsem se chtěla
stát.
77
Then Mother went to stand behind Pumpkin
and struck a pose as though she were about
to spark a flint, even though it was always
Auntie or one of the maids who did the
job. (p. 8)
Za ni se postavila matka, pózující jako by se
chystala vykřesnout jiskru pro štěstí, i když
normálně to byla práce tetičky nebo jedné
ze služek.
… for it was such a narrow alleyway that
everything echoed. (p. 49)
… protože v úzké uličce se všechno
ozývalo.
Wasn’t it possible Mameha would realize
the hopelessness of my cause and leave
me to languish in the okiya like a little-
worn kimono that had seemed so lovely in
the shop? (p. 56)
Bylo by možné, že by si Mameha
uvědomila beznadějnost mé situace a
nechala mě chřadnout v okiji jako málo
nošené kimono, které se v obchodě zdálo
tak krásné?
Similar translation methods can be used in the case of pseudo-cleft sentences. Despite the
structure being considered outdated in Czech language (Dušková, 2003, p. 538), a decision was
made to lean towards the option of keeping the word order similar to the English original. For
example, this sentence below was translated using a relative clause:
Arthur Golden My translation
What I had wanted for so long had finally
come to pass, and oh, how my stomach
churned! (p. 18)
To, po čem jsem tak dlouho toužila, mám
konečně na dosah, a jak se mi z toho stáhl
žaludek!
One example of demonstrative wh-clefts (reversed pseudo-cleft sentence) also occurred in
the text, translation of which was dealt with by changing the word order to achieve the needed
emphasis of the statement’s inner message. In Czech language, the rhema is at the end of the
sentence, the word order is interchangeable, and so the only step that has to be taken is
postponing the verb towards the end of the sentence.
Arthur Golden My translation
But this isn’t what Hatsumomo was
doing. (p. 60)
Hatsumomo to ale takhle nedělá.
With this specific sentence, I was also considering another version, which would include a
change of sentence elements, so the final sentence would be Ale tohle nebylo jednání
Hatsumomo. In the end I have decided against this version because it sounds rather unnatural.
78
It took me a moment to figure out a Czech approach towards translating both cleft sentences
proper and pseudo-cleft sentences, but Dušková’s (2003, p. 537-538) explanations helped me
to find the right solution. To summarize this chapter, several strategies were used to translate
cleft sentences from the original text, all of them dealing with word order. In some cases, the
word order was kept close to the original, in some it was changed and in some the decision was
made to omit some sentence elements to avoid unnatural sentence structures. To conclude, the
representation of each method in the translating process can be seen in the following graph.
4.3 Clauses with hypothetical meaning
To better understand the inner workings of clauses with hypothetical meaning, it should be
first explained what a clause is in general. A clause is a unit structured around a verb phrase.
The lexical verb in the verb phrase characteristically denotes an action or state. The verb phrase
is accompanied by one or more elements which denote the participants involved in the action,
state, etc., the attendant circumstances, the attitude of the speaker/writer to the message, the
relationship of the clause to the surrounding structures, etc. (Biber et al., 2000, p. 120).
The core of the clause can be divided into two main parts: the subject and what is
traditionally called the predicate. Structurally, these correspond broadly to a nominal part and
a part with a verbal nucleus; semantically, to a topic and a comment. Together they express a
proposition. The predicate can be broken down into a verb phrase proper and a number of
complements, such as objects, predicatives and obligatory adverbials (Biber et al., 2000, p.
122).
Leech & Svartvik (2008, p. 140-145) explain that there can be factual, neutral and
hypothetical representation in dependent clauses. Clauses with hypothetical meaning (1) are
46%
18%
36%
TRANSLATION METHODS OF CLEFT SENTENCES
Keeping the word order similar to original Omittinng some sentence elements
Changing the word order
79
used to signal that the truth or falsehood of a fact is assumed rather than directly stated.
Neutrality (2) does not imply whether the dependent clause states a fact or not, i.e. it is neutral
with regard to truth or falsehood. Factual meaning (3) assumes that what the dependent clause
states is a fact, i.e. it assumes the truth of the statement.
(1) If Roger did not arrive in time, we would have to start without him.
(2) Roger tried to get there.
(3) Roger succeeded in getting there.
A fact is usually expressed by a finite verb clause or by an -ing clause. A hypothesis (or
hypothetical meaning is usually expressed by the past tense in dependent clause and
by would (or 'd) + infinitive in the main clause.
(1) If we had enough money, I would buy a radio today/tomorrow.
These two constructions can be seen respectively in the conditional subclause and in the
main clause of hypothetical conditions. (Leech & Svartvik, 2008, p. 107-108)
In addition to the past tense, there are three less common ways of expressing hypothetical
meaning in subclauses:
(A) The were-subjunctive
I’d play football with you if I were younger.
(B) Were to + infinitive (This construction expresses hypothetical future.)
If it were to rain tomorrow, the match would be postponed.
(C) Should + infinitive
If a serious crisis should arise, the government would take immediate action.
Constructions (B) and (C) are also slightly formal or literary and suggest tentative
conditions. These last two constructions are in general limited to conditional clauses. (Leech &
Svartvik, 2008, p. 108-109)
Also, Leech & Svartvik (2008, p. 109) explain that another type of hypothetical conditional
clause has no subordinating conjunction if, but instead begins with an operator placed before
the subject (inversion). The three operators which occur in the construction are had,
subjunctive were, and putative should. The constructions with were and should are rather
literary in tone and can always be replaced by an if-construction.
(1) Had I known, I would have written before.
(2) Were a serious crisis to arise, the government would have to act swiftly.
(3) Should you change your mind, no one would blame you.
According to Dušková (2003, p. 248) clauses with hypothetical meaning are exclusively
English, thus do not exist in Czech language.
80
4.3.1 Translating clauses with hypothetical meaning
The analyzed chapters from Memoirs of Geisha are not exactly rich in clauses with
hypothetical meaning, but as an element of English grammar they seem very interesting, so the
decision was made to include them in this thesis as well. Eight sentences containing
hypothetical meaning were identified in the text, examples and their translation can be seen
below.
Arthur Golden My translation
…if I’d been a man, I would have thought
she’d given herself over very briefly to
strong feelings she was struggling to hide.
(p. 15)
Kdybych byla muž, myslela bych si, že na
moment bezmezně podlehla svým
pocitům, které již nedokázala skrýt.
If I had the power to make a man faint,
I’m sure I’d be aware of it by now. (p. 15)
Kdybych uměla muže odrovnat pohledem,
jsem si jistá, že bych o tom věděla.
I would have given up without even
trying, if I hadn’t noticed two things. (p.
16)
Nejspíš bych to ani nezkusila, kdybych si
nevšimla dvou maličkostí.
If I could crown him so that he had to step
up onto the sidewalk and stumble over
the curb, he might drop the tray. (p. 17)
Kdybych se k němu přiblížila dostatečně
blízko, možná by ho to přinutilo uhnout na
chodník a zakopnout tak o obrubník, a
tudíž i upustit podnos.
… though Hatsumomo would have been
angry if she’d known. (p. 22)
… i když by tím naštvala Hatsumomo,
kdyby se to dozvěděla.
And my face felt so hot from nervousness
that I wouldn’t have been surprised if my
makeup had simply melted and begun to
drip onto my lap. (p. 42)
Tváře mi žhnuly nervozitou tak, že bych se
nedivila, kdyby se moje líčení rozpustilo a
začalo mi kapat do klína.
I wondered what he would think if he
could see me kneeling here in Mameha’s
apartment, wearing a robe more
expensive than anything he’d ever laid
eyes on, with a baron across from me and
Přemýšlela jsem, co by si asi myslel, kdyby
mě viděl takto klečet v Mamehině bytě,
s šatem dražším než cokoliv, co kdy
spatřil, s baronem naproti mně a s jednou
z nejznámějších gejš v celém Japonsku po
mém boku.
81
one of the most famous geisha in all of
Japan at my side. (p. 56)
Translating sentences into Czech required the use of adverbial conditional clauses (vedlejší věta
příslovečná podmínková), which is included in every sentence in the chart. Even though clauses
with hypothetical meaning do not exist in the same way in Czech, translating them was not
hard, because conditional clauses are very common in Czech language. Another option would
be of course changing the word order of the sentences or in some cases even passive
construction could be possible, but to me these versions seemed like to best options for the
story.
4.4 Extraposition of clausal subject
To introduce this chapter, let me first explains what an ordinary subject is. According to
Leech & Svartvik (2008, p. 273-274), the subject of a clause is a noun phrase or pronoun; a
non-finite verb, or a nominal clause, usually with introductory it. The subject normally occurs
before the verb in statements. In questions, it occurs immediately after the operator. The subject
has number and person concord with the finite verb. The most typical function of a subject is
to denote the actor: that is, the person, etc. causing the happening denoted by the verb. When
an active sentence is turned into a passive sentence, the subject of the active sentence becomes
the agent of the passive.
Concerning the semantic role of the subject, Tárnyiková (1993, p. 19-31) explains that the
usual function of the subject is that the agentive participant (the willful initiator of the action),
though it is not the only one possible; the subject may also have the role of affected participant,
external causer, instrument, recipient, experiencer, positioner, locative, temporal and eventive.
A clausal subject is a clausal syntactic subject of a clause, i.e., the subject is itself a clause.
Extraposition of clausal subject is used for postponing the clausal subject represented by a
nominal clause towards the end of the sentence according to the principles of end-focus and
end-weight. The postponed element is replaced by a substitute – the anticipatory pronoun it.
The resulting sentence thus contains two subjects – the anticipatory formal subject it and the
postponed notional subject (Tárnyiková, 1993, p. 19-31).
All nominal clauses, except the nominal relative clause, may be extraposed using the
anticipatory -it structure. In some cases, such as the passive construction, the clause cannot be
kept in subject position and the sentence cannot exist without extraposition, i.e., the
82
extraposition is obligatory. As sentences with nominal clause subjects are usually used with the
anticipatory -it construction, the variant without extraposition is regarded as marked and gives
contrastive emphasis to the rest of the main clause. The only exception is the nominal ing-
clause, which is typically left in subject position. When postponed, typically informal speech,
it is considered as an afterthought (Tárnyiková, 1993, p. 19-31).
(1) It is worth the effort trying to be a good teacher.
In SVC sentences there is an alternative to the anticipatory -it construction which still avoids
the clause in subject position. This transformation involves promoting the object of the nominal
clause to the role of main clause subject; thus, the object noun phrase becomes theme in place
of the formal subject it.
(1) It is very demanding to work with him.
(2) It was a surprise to hear them sing.
(3) It doesn’t matter what she wants.
Constructions with the formal subject it + verbs such as seem, appear, happen + that-clause,
look similar to sentences with extraposed clausal subjects, but they differ in that they have no
corresponding versions without extraposition. such sentences, as well as anticipatory -it
constructions with the expressions be sure, be certain, be said, be known etc. + that-clauses,
may undergo a transformation by which the subject of the extraposed clause is fronted from the
theme in the sentence, and the subordinate clause takes the form of a to-infinitive clause
(Tárnyiková, 1993, p. 19-31).
(1) It is certain that they will win election.
According to Pešek (2021, p. 196) extraposition can be also found in Czech language, but
mostly in spoken interaction, which is more spontaneous and informal. The emphasis is on the
intonation, and it is used to contrast a number of topics.
(1) Petra toho vídám každý den.
(2) Petrovi tomu říkám, že jeho otec přijel.
4.4.1 Translating sentences with extraposed clausal subject
In this part of the thesis, I would like to explain the main challenge of identifying and
translating sentences with extraposed clausal subject. As it was already described, constructions
with the formal subject it + verbs such as seem, appear, happen + that-clause, look similar to
sentences with extraposed clausal subjects, but they differ in that they have no corresponding
versions without extraposition. These are the ones I found in the text. For better understanding,
some of them can be seen in the chart below.
83
Arthur Golden My translation
I may have been no more than fourteen, but
it seemed to me I’d lived two lives
already. (p. 18)
I když mi bylo sotva čtrnáct, přišlo mi, že už
jsem prožila dva životy.
It seemed to me that my fantasies of
success might indeed come to pass. (p. 46)
Vypadalo to, že moje představy o úspěchu
se nakonec opravdu mohly naplnit.
It may seem strange that such an award
existed, but there’s a very good reason. (p.
57)
Možná vám přijde zvláštní, že taková cena
vůbec existovala, ale byl pro to dobrý důvod.
“It seems to me,” I said, “that everyone
will remember her as the girl who
surpassed Raiha.” (p. 58)
„Mně se zdá, že si ji všichni budou
pamatovat jako tu dívku, která překonala
Raihu,“ namítla jsem.
Sentences in the previous chart show that my strategy for translating sentences with extraposed
clausal subject was simple, I have decided to keep the word order mostly intact. The biggest
difference between these sentences is my own take on the word seem, which occurs in all four
examples.
4.5 Functional Sentence Perspective
According to Adam (2007, p. 9) the theory of functional sentence perspective (FSP) has been
closely connected with the Prague School of Linguistics.
The Functional Sentence Perspective theory analyses discourse into stretches of languages
(sentences, clauses or noun-phrases) called distributional fields, which serve as ground over
which the degrees of communicative dynamism are distributed. The degrees of communicative
dynamism are carried by syntactic elements which function as communicative units. According
to the degree of communicative dynamism, we can divide a distributional field into two basic
parts – theme and non-theme. The non-thematic part may be further subdivided into transition,
which has higher communicative dynamism than the theme, but lower than the rheme, and
rheme, which carries the highest degree of communicative dynamism. The theme and the rheme
never coincide and the theme is not associated with sentence initial position. In elliptical
sentence the theme and even the transition may be missing, but the rheme is always present
(Firbas, 1992, p. 14-20).
84
The degree of communicative dynamism of a sentence constituent depends on the interplay
of several factors which influence the relation of a constituent on the other sentence elements.
According to Firbas (1992, p. 6-8) these factors are:
o Linear modification factor – the word order of the sentence
o Contextual modification – the role of the context as signaling some items as thematic
o Semantic factor – the meaning and function of some items predetermines that they are
the most important
o Intonation
While in written language the distribution of communicative dynamism is the result of the
interplay of the first three factors (the linear modification, contextual and semantic factors), in
spoken language the fourth factor, intonation, has a decisive role, as the nuclear stress may mark
as rheme any element of the sentence (Firbas, 1996, p. 6-8).
Firbas (1996, p. 66) states that in an analysis of a text shows that the information conveyed
by the verb, or rather by its notional component, participates in the development of the
communication in one of two ways. It perspectives the communication either towards the
phenomenon presented by the subject, or towards the quality ascribed to the phenomenon
expressed by the subject or beyond this quality towards its specification. In other words, it
performs either the dynamic semantic function of presentation, or that of expressing a quality.
In consequence, the subject either performs the dynamic semantic function of expressing the
phenomenon to be presented, or dynamic semantic function of expressing the quality bearer.
The qualification ‘dynamic’ is necessitated by the fact that the semantic content concerned is
not viewed as unrelated to the flow of communication, but as linked with definite contextual
conditions and as actively participating in developing the perspective of the communication.
Vachek (1995, p. 14) states that when translating, we are faced with a great difficulty. The
translation should adequately express not only the factual content, but also its functional
perspective. The main factor that must be taken under consideration is theme – rheme. This
particular sequence is called the objective order; the opposite order would be called subjective
and would signal some degree of emotion on the part of the speaker/writer.
According to Vachek (1995, p. 32-33) the problem of word order in the sentence has always
been justly regarded as one of the most complex in linguistics. The reason for this complexity
is that in any language, including both English and Czech, the rules governing word order
cannot be reduced to the operation of just one single principle. In general, at least four factors
appear to be at work in determining the rules of word order.
85
The first of the four factors may be called the grammatical principle. According to the
principle, the position of each sentence element within the sentence is determined by its
grammatical function, i.e., by its functioning as subject, object, predicative finite verb,
adverbial, etc. Anyone familiar with the situation in English and Czech will instantly observe
that in the former this principle is asserted much more regularly the latter: as a matter of fact,
in English it is only by their positions in the sentence that the subject and the object can be
distinguished from each other at all – if they exchange their position in the sentence, the
meaning of the whole message may be fundamentally altered.
(A) Peter saw Paul – Paul saw Peter
In Czech, on the other hand, the grammatical principle plays a less important part, so that an
exchange of places between the subject and the object does not result in any essential semantic
shift within the transmitted message (Vachek, 1995, p. 33).
(A) Petr viděl Pavla – Pavla viděl Petr.
The second factor which co-operates in determining word order both in Czech and English
is the FSP linearity principle. This principle is asserted by organizing the elements of the given
utterance in conformity with Firbas’ rule, known as the basic distribution of communicative
dynamism. In Czech, the FSP linearity principle plays a more essential part than grammatical
principle, unlike in English (Vachek, 1995, p. 33-34).
The third factor that co-determines the order of words in a sentence is the emotive principle.
In Czech its operation must be studied against the background of the facts of functional sentence
perspective. As emotive utterances, belonging thus to the marked style, we have to evaluate in
Czech those which reverse the usual, unmarked ‘theme - rheme’ sequence, and open the
utterance with the rheme:
(A) I z fyziky nedostatečnou dostal.
In English, however, the situation is fundamentally different. In English we evaluate the
ordering of words as emotive when it deviates from the usual, unmarked word order prescribed
by the grammatical principle (Vachek, 1995, p. 34-35).
The fourth and last factor, according to Vachek (1995, p. 35-36), which participates in the
shaping of the order of works, if only as a subsidiary agent, is the rhythmic principle. In Czech
its operation rests in putting a rhythmically heavy element, i.e. a substantive or semantically
full-fledged word, in the last position in a sentence.
(A) Včera jsem se potkal s bratrem.
(B) Včera jsem se s ním potkal.
86
English differs from Czech in that it does allow a rhythmically light element to appear at the
end of sentences.
(A) He disappeared in the Amazon region and that’s the last time we heard of him.
(B) She sent me a Valentine card with a heart on it.
If such rhythmic aspects of the English sentence are taken into consideration, we can understand
more easily the fact that in English a special stylistic effect is reached by placing a rhythmically
very heavy sentence element at the beginning of a sentence. Both in English and in Czech the
operation of the rhythmic principle conforms very well with the operation of those principles
which dominate in those languages in determining their word orders, and does not come into
conflict with them: the grammatical principle dominating in English and the principle of
functional sentence perspective which constitutes the main shaping factor of the word order in
Czech (Vachek, 1995, p. 36).
An interesting feature of Czech becomes apparent when comparing Czech impersonal
constructions denoting both pleasant and unpleasant mental and physical states with
corresponding personal constructions used in similar situations in English. Such constructions
are, for example:
(A) Těší mě – I am pleased
(B) Je mi líto – I am sorry
(C) Mrzí mě – I regret
(D) Bylo mi zima – I feel cold
In all these and similar instances the speaker is indirectly affected by the concerned action, i.e.
he (or she) is not an agent but a patient. In Czech, this is reflected by denoting the speaker not
by a subject but the by the pronominal object of the personal construction. In English, the
situation is very different: the subject no longer has the function of denoting an agent, its main
function being to express the theme of the statement. In other words, the subject denotes a
person or a thing which is being predicated on; the verbal predicate does not denote here the
activity performed by the subject, but simply an action which is in some way related to the
subject (Vachek, 1995, p. 15). Some of these constructions appear in the original text translated
in this thesis, as can be seen in the following chart.
Arthur Golden My translation
(A) The others were on their way out to join
her, but I was the one she looked at, with an
expression that seemed to say she was very
Ostatní už byli venku, ale Dýně se dívala na
mě. V očích se jí zračila lítost. Mrzelo ji, jak
se vše v poslední době vyvíjelo.
87
sorry for the way things had turned out. (p.
10)
(B) And I’m sorry to say that the smell of
dirty hair was overpowering. (p. 21)
A bohužel musím přiznat, že zápach
špinavých vlasů byl nesnesitelný.
(C) You didn’t expect she’d be pleased at
your comment, did you?” (p. 46)
Snad jsi nečekala, že bude mít z tvého
komentáře radost?“
(D) It was a sad picture, and I was pleased
to learn that Pumpkin was doing better than
that. (p. 58)
Byla to smutná představa a já jsem byla
ráda, že se Dýni daří víc, než jak Mameha
předpověděla.
In the chart, there are two examples similar to Vachek’s (1995, p. 15) translations (examples
(A) and (D) to be exact), in which I kept the proposed structure, unlike in the other two examples
(sentences (B) and (C)), where I chose to replace the predictable structure. This decision was
made to support the flow of the story. To be more specific, in example (C) the structure was
changed to make the character’s speech more natural and realistic, as Mameha is a strong female
character in position of power, with a slight tendency for irony and sarcasm (which is the
purpose of her statement in example (C)).
Dušková (2003, p. 528) argues that while dealing with the Functional Sentence Perspective
(Aktuální členění větné or AČV in Czech) there are some differences between English and Czech
in the word order, because in Czech there is a strong tendency to sort sentences according to
the degree of communicative dynamism, whereas in English the grammatical structure of the
sentence often works against the sentence linearity. If a context-independent sentence contains
only a subject or an adverbial, the basic distribution of communicative dynamism in both
languages is a theme – transition – rheme.
(A) a boy broke a WINDOW /nějaký chlapec rozbil OKNO
(B) Tom has gone to the POST OFFICE /Tom odešel NA POŠTU
FSP should always be considered as one of the key elements of the translating process. This
is especially true when translating from English to Czech (or the other way around), because
these two languages are very different. Dušková (2003, p. 527-541) gives a number of ideas on
how to deal with it problem. One of the options is the use of articles. Indefinite articles normally
function as an introduction for rhematic object, which in Czech is always placed in the end of
the sentence, while the definite article points to a context dependent instrument which then
moves forward in the sentence (Dušková, 2003, p. 529).
88
Other examples that Dušková (2003, p. 527-541) mentions are for example the placement of
adverbials, the rhematic subject (also known as existential sentences) and passive, which has
already been mentioned earlier in this thesis.
When translating the original text, FSP was the key element of the whole process. While
working on the translation, I had to make a pause at one sentence, find the theme and the rheme,
reconsider the word order and then act accordingly. The following chart maps the process from
the first to final draft, showing the changes to word order according to the rules I have learned.
Arthur Golden First draft Final version
(A) The maids held
Pumpkin's arms while she
slipped her feet into the tall
wooden shoes we call
okobo, which an
apprentice geisha always
wears. (p. 8)
Služky pomohly Dýni nazout
vysoké dřevěné boty, známé
jako okobo, které jsou
běžně nošeny začínajícími
gejšami.
Služky pomohly Dýni nazout
vysoké dřevěné boty, známé
jako okobo, které běžně
nosí začínající gejši.
(B) During the spring of
1934, after I'd been in
training for more than two
years, Hatsumomo and
Mother decided that the
time had come for
Pumpkin to make her
debut as an apprentice
geisha. (p. 7)
Na jaře roku 1934, kdy už
jsem byla v učení více jak
dva roky, se Hatsumomo s
matkou rozhodly, že nastal
čas na Dýnin debut jako
gejša – učednice.
Na jaře roku 1934, kdy už
jsem byla v učení více jak
dva roky, se Hatsumomo s
matkou rozhodly, že nastal
čas na Dýnin debut. Měla se
stát gejšou-učednicí.
(C) When I needed to bow
to someone, I stopped my
feet. (p. 11)
Když jsem se potřebovala
někomu uklonit, musela
jsem zastavit své nohy.
Když bylo potřeba někomu
se uklonit, musela jsem se
zastavit.
(D) … then the woman
returned a respectful bow,
but not as deep as
Mameha's, and afterward
looked me up and down
before giving me a little
nod. (p. 12)
Tyto ženy pak poklonu s
respektem opětovaly, i když
ne tak hluboko, pak si
prohlédly mě od hlavy k patě
a věnovaly mi malé
pokývnutí hlavy.
Tyto ženy pak pozdrav
s respektem opětovaly, i
když se neklaněly tak
hluboko, pak si prohlédly mě
od hlavy k patě a jemně
přikývly hlavou.
(E) It wouldn’t surprise me
if you were able to make a
man faint right here on
the street. (p. 15)
Nepřekvapilo by mě, kdybys
pohledem přiměla muže
omdlít uprostřed cesty.
Nepřekvapilo by mě, kdyby
kvůli tvému pohledu na
ulici nějaký muž omdlel.
89
(F) Mameha talked with me
a while, and then just when
we were ready to leave,
asked me to pour her a
cup of tea. (p. 29)
Mameha si se mnou chvíli
povídala, a když nastal čas
odchodu, mě ještě požádala
o nalití šálku čaje.
Mameha si se mnou chvíli
povídala, a když nastal čas
odchodu, požádala mě ještě,
abych jí nalila šálek čaje.
To look at the chart in more detail, the first example (A) shows the process of working with
postponement, more specifically with the passive voice. In the first draft I made a choice to
keep the passive, something that has already been discussed in previous chapters, but then I
reconsidered, because in this specific case the sentences seemed very old-fashioned. In the end
the sentence was transformed from passive into active voice.
Example (B) shows a nice difference between Czech and English. In English, the
information can be expressed in just one whole sentence, but when translated into Czech, this
option becomes somewhat obscure. That is why the sentence was eventually split into two,
carrying the information more realistically.
Example (C) was a bit peculiar to me at first, because grammatically, the sentence is
completely appropriate. But in Czech, it just does not work this way. When we stop, we do not
stop just our feet, we stop our whole body, because it is carried on those exact feet. The similar
situation is in examples (D) and (E), these again show that Czech language is different and not
everything sounds natural when translated literally. In my opinion, when translating a piece of
fiction, it should not even be the aim.
The last example (F) shows one of the many cases in which seemingly challenging
translating situation can be easily remedied. As can be seen in the example, a somewhat
inconvenient sentence structure was fixed by creating a subordinate clause.
90
5. CONCLUSION
This thesis consists of two parts. The first part constitutes of a translation of the three and a
half chapters of Memoirs of Geisha by Arthur Golden. This novel is very special to me, as it
was the first novel I have ever read in English. The language is quite advanced and I still
remember how challenging it was to read it, but just like in this thesis, I did not run away from
the hardship, I persevered and I still consider this novel my all-time favorite.
Many factors had to be considered while translating chapters from a novel set in such
different society and culture. Every time the main protagonist spoke or acted in any way, what
had to be kept in mind was the principle of politeness levels of Japanese society, not just in
Shōwa era, but also generally in Japan, because the author himself had a great grasp of what
was allowed and what unacceptable. What I mean by this is the bowing, the proper personal
distance, the way they interact, and especially the honorifics (such as -san), which are very
typical of Japanese society. Another decision that had to be made was about the Japanese
terminology. Some of the terms had to be translated for the sake of the text, but most of them
were kept intact to better illustrate the environment in which the story was set. Specifically for
this reason, footnotes were written to help readers understand the cultural and social context of
the story, based solely on my amateur knowledge of Japanese culture and habits.
The second part deals with a theoretical background and analysis of selected syntactic
structures encountered while working on this thesis. Altogether, sixty-five sentences were
analyzed and their representation in the thesis can be seen in the graph bellow.
57%
23%
12%
8%
ANALYZED SENTENCES
Passive voice Cleft sentences Clauses with hypothetical meaning Extrposition of clausal subject
91
The theoretical part in general was the most challenging part of this thesis, because
identifying correctly some of the structures meant for my analysis was rather confusing
sometimes. Some structures can seem very similar and properly categorizing them requires a
certain level of linguistic skills. Also, as I know this novel very well, majority of the text was
at first translated without any guidelines from secondary literature, guided solely by my sense
of narration, which made the analysis that much harder.
It the theoretical part, the strongest subchapter is the first one, dealing with passive voice.
The reason for that is the number of analyzed sentences, which is the highest in this thesis (37
analyzed sentences). Three different strategies were used to translate these passive sentences:
keeping the passive, omitting the passive, and turning passive into active. All three options have
large representation in the text and the analysis shown that as they all work naturally, in the
end, it is up to the translator to choose the best possible option for the flow of the narration.
Personally, as a translator of this particular text, I wanted to keep the emotions behind some of
the sentences similar to the original text, so I went back and forth between keeping the passive
or turning the sentences into active voice, but in the end, I believe there can be seen reasonable
amount of all three cases, each positioned in the text so that it can benefit the natural flow of
the narration.
The three other subchapters dealing with cleft sentences, clauses with hypothetical meaning
and extraposition of clausal subject do not have such large representation in the text, but they
describe some specific problems which can manifest during the English-Czech translation and
therefore were very useful in while writing this thesis. What was surprised that some of the
elements do not exist the same way in Czech grammar, but it helped me realize why I was
struggling with translating some of them. But after finding their Czech equivalent the solution
was always found.
Apart from syntax, Functional Sentence Perspective is also discussed, as it is a crucial factor
in the translating process. This last subchapter is a representation of basic problems, which can
appear while translating from one language to the other. Some possible challenges are
mentioned as well as rules and ideas on how to solve them or even avoid them altogether. This
chapter is especially important because it changed my perspective as a translator. In the
beginning, when I started translating these chapters of Memoirs of Geisha, I based most of my
decisions solely on the feeling, ignoring all rules, simply turning sentences from one language
into another. But the product of this strategy was unreadable. What FSP made clear to me is
that both languages are extremely different, and they follow completely different rules or
grammar, word order, etc. So, after I was done with mechanical translation of the text, I started
92
to focus only on the Czech side, reading the text as a whole, realizing how unnaturally my text
sounded. After many re-writes I finally believe I have made better and smarter decisions and
even though I might not be the best translator, I am quite proud of the work I have accomplished.
93
6. BIBLIOGRAPHY
6.1 Primary source
Golden, A. (1998). Memoirs of Geisha. Vintage. ISBN 978-0-099-77151-7
6.2 Secondary sources
Adam, M. (2008). A Handbook of Functional Sentence Perspective: (Fsp in theory and practice):
With key. Masarykova univerzita.
Baker, M., & Maier, C. (Ed.s). (2011). Ethics and the Curriculum [Special issue]. The Interpreter
and Translator Trainer, 5(1): 1-14.
Biber, D., Johansson, S., Leech, G., Conrad, S., Finegan, E. (2000). The Longman Grammar of
Spoken and Written English. 1st ed., Harlow: Longman. ISBN 0-582-23725-4
Catford, J. C. (1967). A Linguistic Theory of Translation. London: Oxford.
Crystal, D. (1995). The Cambridge Encyclopaedia of English Language. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press
Dikken, M. den. (2013). The Cambridge Handbook of Generative syntax. Cambridge University
Press.
Dontcheva-Navrátilová, O. (2016). Grammatical Structures in English: Meaning in Context. 2nd
ed., Brno: Masaryk University.
Dušková, L. (2003). Mluvnice současné angličtiny na pozadí češtiny. Praha: Academia. ISBN 978-
80-200-2211-0
Dušková, L. (2010). Syntactic Construction, Information Structure and Textual Role: An Interface
View of the Cleft Sentence. Brno Studies in English, 36(1), 29–45.
Firbas, Jan (1992). Functional Sentence Perspective in Written and Spoken Communication.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Firbas, Jan (1995). ‘Retrievability span in functional sentence perspective’. Brno Studies in
English 21, 17–45.
Gethin, H. (1996). Grammar in context: Proficiency level English. New edition. Harlow:
Longman. ISBN 0-17-556420-5.
94
Knittlová, D. (2000). K teorii i praxi překladu. 2. vyd. Olomouc: Universita Palackého v
Olomouci. ISBN 8024401436.
Knittlová, D. (1995). Teorie překladu. Olomouc: Vydavatelství Univerzity Palackého.
Leech, G., & Svartvik, J. (2008). A communicative grammar of English. Longman.
Levý, J. (1996). České teorie překladu. Edited by Jiří Honzík. Vyd. 2., (rozdělené do dvo. Praha:
Ivo Železný. ISBN 8023728393.
Levý, J. (1998). Umění překladu. Vyd. 3., upr. a rozš. Praha: Ivo Železný. ISBN 802373539X.
Newmark, P. (1991). About translation. Clevedon: Multilingual matters.
Newmark, P. (1988). A textbook of translation. New York: Prentice Hall. ISBN 0139125930.
Newmark, P. (1993). Paragraphs on translation. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. ISBN 1-85359-
192-0.
Pešek, O. (2021). Dislokace, extrapozice a nominativus pendens — srovnávací studie
syntaktických struktur ve francouzštině a češtině. Časopis pro Moderní Filologii, 2021(2), 183–
209.
Quirk, R., & Greenbaum, S. (1990). A Student’s Grammar of the English Language. Harlow:
Longman, Ltd.
Štícha, F. (2013). Akademická gramatika spisovné češtiny. Praha: Academia. ISBN 978-80-200-
2205-9.
Tárnyiková, J. (1993). Chapters from Modern English Syntax I. (A Communicative Approach),
Olomouc: Univerzita Palackého v Olomouci
Vachek, J. (1995). A functional syntax of modern English. Vydání 1. Brno: Masarykova univerzita.
ISBN 8021008636.