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    Geisha

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    Berbece Maria
    A geisha is an entertainer in Japan who undergoes years of training starting in their teenage years. They live in okiya (geisha houses) and are mentored by more experienced geisha. As trainees, called maiko, they observe and assist their mentors at teahouses to learn the skills of dance, music, conversation and more. Ultimately, geisha are highly skilled entertainers who preserve Japanese cultural traditions through their artform.

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    Geisha

    Uploaded by

    Berbece Maria
    364 views25 pages
    A geisha is an entertainer in Japan who undergoes years of training starting in their teenage years. They live in okiya (geisha houses) and are mentored by more experienced geisha. As trainees, called maiko, they observe and assist their mentors at teahouses to learn the skills of dance, music, conversation and more. Ultimately, geisha are highly skilled entertainers who preserve Japanese cultural traditions through their artform.

    Original Description:

    A meaningful presentation about the life of a Geisha

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    A geisha is an entertainer in Japan who undergoes years of training starting in their teenage years. They live in okiya (geisha houses) and are mentored by more experienced geisha. As trainees, called maiko, they observe and assist their mentors at teahouses to learn the skills of dance, music, conversation and more. Ultimately, geisha are highly skilled entertainers who preserve Japanese cultural traditions through their artform.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pptx, pdf, or txt
    364 views25 pages

    Geisha

    Uploaded by

    Berbece Maria
    A geisha is an entertainer in Japan who undergoes years of training starting in their teenage years. They live in okiya (geisha houses) and are mentored by more experienced geisha. As trainees, called maiko, they observe and assist their mentors at teahouses to learn the skills of dance, music, conversation and more. Ultimately, geisha are highly skilled entertainers who preserve Japanese cultural traditions through their artform.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pptx, pdf, or txt
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    The passage provides information about the training, roles, and history of geishas in Japanese culture.

    The steps to becoming a geisha included making the decision to live away from home and undergo intense training, living in an okiya house, training as a maiko apprentice, and observing more experienced geishas.

    Geishas started as male entertainers and gradually became mostly female by 1750. Their roles included entertaining at teahouses, becoming public performers, and representing desirable yet respectable women. Their popularity increased after Japanese wars but their fashion influence declined with westernization.

    What is a GEISHA?

    The majority of the world thinks of a geisha as


    a white-faced lady with her hair in a bun and a
    kimono on. The geishas are much more than
    women with too much make-up on.
    Technically "geisha" refers to "one who lives as
    art (=playing the shamisen, drums, dancing,
    performing the tea ceremony, calligraphy and
    the ability to converse).
    To become a geisha, it takes years of training
    that begins when a young teenager is slowly
    transformed into a entertainer of high society.

    History of Geisha

    One aspect of the Japanese culture that is unique is the GEISHA.


    The traditions of the geisha are beautiful and create an environment
    for Japanese women that empowered them during the time when the
    women of the rest of the world were unable to have power.
    The geisha are the entertainment people of Japan that date back to
    the early 1600s.
    The Japanese government was very focused on upholding morality.
    This meant that entertainers and prostitutes were allowed to work if
    they were licensed and in a specific area of a city.
    When geisha entertainment first started, it was performed ONLY by
    men. It was not until 1750 that the majority of geishas were female.

    So how does one become a geisha?

    1.
    2.

    3.
    4.
    5.
    6.

    The 1st step in becoming a geisha is the actual


    decision.
    In deciding to become a geisha, the girl must be
    willing to live away from home, having intense
    schooling in geisha studies and working in a
    teahouse.
    Once the choice is made, the girl is then sent to
    live in an okiya.
    During the years of learning to be a geisha, the
    trainees are called maiko.
    When the maiko first start out in okiya, they are
    given an onesan.
    The maiko learns the social skills from her
    onesan by accompanying her to the teahouse to
    meet the customers.

    IT IS HERE THAT THE MAIKO OBSERVE HOW TO


    BE A GEISHA .

    Geisha hosting a tea ceremony

    o Traditional Geisha hairstyles can cause the hair to recede. This


    is why wigs are commonly worn by many Geishas.

    FACTS:
    Cant dye their hair;
    Cant pierce their ears;
    They have to contact people by letter
    because phone calls are banned;
    It can take up to two hours(or even more)
    for a Geisha to get all ready.
    Many Geishas prefer not to wear any
    kimono more than once. It is common to
    pass it onto to others to wear.
    They are not allowed to be in a relationship
    for as long as they choose to be a geisha. If
    they want to, they must retire from the
    profession.

    Geishas were trained to sleep with their necks


    on small supports(takamakura), instead of
    pillows, so they could keep their hairstyle perfect.

    The geishas use safflower


    lipstick to color their lips
    red and add sugar to
    create
    a shine.

    A Geishas kimono can take up to three years to manufacture.

    They were the trend setters for Japanese women

    They were mostly to be seen and not to be heard.

    oThe 1860s- golden age in which the


    geisha presented women in a desirable yet
    respectable way.
    oIn 1875, the geisha took another role;
    geishas being dancers at the Spring
    festival- this established the geisha as
    more than just entertainers at teahouses,
    but also as public entertainers.
    oThe victory of the Japanese war caused
    an increase in demand for entertainment.
    (1895)
    oIn 1898 the population of geisha reached
    25,000.
    oThe 1920s brought on a struggle of what
    a geisha should be. The modernization of
    the country questioned the role of the
    geisha once again.

    o Japan as a country wanted to


    become westernized in order to
    become modernized. This
    meant that the traditional
    Japanese ways were no longer
    desired.
    o From 1920 to 1930, the geisha
    slowly lost their fashion
    status due to the introduction of
    Western style clothing.
    o Since the 1930s, the main role
    of the geisha has gone from a
    high class night entertainer to
    a curator of tradition.

    What used to be a
    geisha was no more.

    The heart dies a slow death,


    shedding each hope like leaves until one day there are none.
    No hopes. Nothing remains.
    Arthur Golden, Memoirs of a Geisha

    Who is who?

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