Welcome to Cute Guides!
I am Takuma Furukawa, a student of Graduate School of Humanities, Kyushu University (now work as a librarian there from Apr. 2017). I major in literature in English, especially American literature.
I studied the theme how the culture of medieval Europe was accepted by Mark Twain (1835-1910), including Joan of Arc (c. 1412-1431).
I have been interested in the social and cultural history of her since my high school days.
In this abstract in English, I generally introduce the brief history of her and cultural reception on her in Japan.
The Book below is useful for readers in English in order to grasp the reception of Joan of Arc.
Realms of Memory by 1. The Life History
Joan of Arc was born in Domrémy (now Domrémy-la-Pucelle), a small village in Lorraine around 1412, in the middle of Hundred Year's War. She was a mere daughter of a farmer.
She in her later years said that she had heard a voice of God and seen the vision of the angels, although some medical scholars consider it hallucination supported by the archives of her mental illness. She thought that she received a revelation which she was to save a court of France from the invasion of England.
After much meandering, she saved Orleans as a commander. This became the start of the counterattack of a Court of France.
She was caught by the combined army of England and Burgundy in 1430 and burnt at the stake in 1431.
2. The After-Death History
I would like to insist on the importance of the after-death history of Joan of Arc, for she had a great influence on persons in the world after her death rather than her lifetime.
Since Napoleon Bonaparte took up the topic on her for his publicity in the 19th century, persons have reevaluated her. In 1920, the Vatican canonized her.
Today, Joan of Arc is one of the most famous historical person in the world as well as the Roman Catholic World.
1. Japanese Translation of Western Literature
Many writers and artists in the world have received the image of Joan of Arc and applied for each work. I can list some of the famous writers below which have been translated into Japanese:
William Shakespeare, Henry VI: Part 1 (c. 1590)
Friedrich Schiller, The Maid of Orleans (1803)
Mark Twain, Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc (1896)
George Bernard Shaw, Saint Joan (1924)
Michiel Tournier, Gilles and Jeanne (1983)
2. Pop Culture in 21th Century Japan
In addition to it, she is popular in the cultural scene in Japan, especially the pop culture. Fate saga, a popular series of PC novels and books Fate/ stay night (2004) by Kinoko Nasu (奈須, きのこ), depicts her too.
You can see some websites in Western languages and illustrations of Joan in order to learn the saga and her in it.
