The History & Art of Geisha - Veil of Secrecy

[Belladonna300]

Well, true or false it's still my favorite book/Movie of all time, with lots of beauty.

[dalekzruleyeah]

This makes my head hurt. I thought the book was fictional, then I read the introduction which makes it seem like a true story, then I heard somewhere else that Sayuri is completely fictional - and now this video is saying different. What is going on?

This doesn't strike me as very believable, since reading Liza Dalby's 'Geisha'; it says she was welcomed to come and see how life as a geisha really is and use her findings for her book.

[SzChristie]

@dalekzruleyeah Many readers believe that Memoirs Of A Geisha is a true story. But it's not. It's based on actual interviews with an actual geisha. The book deliberately creates the illusion of authenticity before even getting to the actual memoirs, there is a "translator's note" at the beginning from someone named Jakob Haarhuis, who tape recorded and translated Sayuri's story.

[chissprincess]

@dalekzruleyeah Memoirs of a Geisha is a fictional work that is heavily based on a true story. It says right on the cover that the book is a novel, and should be sorted into the fiction section of any bookstore or library (which should be your first clue as to whether or not it is fictional).

None of this contradicts Dalby's work. If it was easy for foreigners to get into the geisha world, there would have been many more by now, but there have only been 4.

[melancholy003]

I thought Memoirs of a Geisha wasn't a true story? o.0

[SzChristie]

@melancholy003 It is a fictional novel written by Arthur Golden.

[biggestbimboever]

@melancholy003 it was based on a geisha told true story :)

[Riyen116]

this is all bull....

[mdelcamp1]

Secrecy of Geisha strikes me as very similar to Catholic Priests and the confidentiality of the Sacrament of Confession.