T aRe BacR the Night ls the position of farm women changing in the 21st century?

-·~- Another. art that a geisha has been expected to master is the ability to play the shamisen. The shamisen is described by Lesley Downer as "A three-stringed, banjo-like instrument ... introduced from Okinawa in the midsixteenth century" (Downer 98-9). The instrument was once made of wood and the opening was covered with a piece of stretched snakeskin, but because of the rarity of snakes in Japan, this opening is now covered with dog or cat skin. The shamisen is played with a rather large pick of wood or ivory. The sound that the instrument produces is a "melancholy" one, but this is beneficial since many of the lyrics to the accompanying songs have a depressing tone of lost love. The shamisen has been called the "definitive instrument of the pleasure quarters ... " (Downer 99). A good shamisen player has always been popular because her talent is recognized and appreciated (Downer 170). The traditional sound of the shamisen keeps its music alive in Japan today and keeps it an integral part of the geisha's art. Clearly, the geisha is a woman who has much more to offer than her body. Although she will likely always be seen as a symbol of glamour and beauty in the hanamachi world, it is important to realize that there is more to them than a stunning exterior. Geisha should be respected and admired for their excellence in entertainment and the arts. They are a symbol of tradition in a country that has transformed many of its practices into "modern" Western ones, and for this reason it is unfortunate that the geisha are slowly vanishing. It is valuable to take the time to study the life and the arts of the geisha, not only because their numbers are dwindling, but also because of the lessons that the geisha can teach us about hardship, strength, intelligence and beauty.