by Eiko Jasmine (Author)
"Taketori Monogatari," literally translated "The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter" is familiar to the Japanese people by the title " Kaguya Hime." It is considered the oldest story in Japanese literature born around the 10th century. It was passed down by the word of mouth so the exact author is unknown. However the story is extremely well known and is part of the core curriculum of the junior-high level of Japanese literature. The students learn to read and understand the ancient Japanese literature and seek depth in their poetic language that was used in the aristocratic society. The story reflects the "romance" aspect of the aristocrats in those times, and how they express their love with beautiful "songs" they wrote to each other. It is even referred as being the "ancestor of all romances" in a classic Japanese literature, "The Tale of Genji."