The Peach Orchard was about a young boy who brought what appeared to be either soup or rice in a bowl for his sister and her friends. He brought six bowls but soon realized that there were only five people there, not including him. He was sure that there were six people so he asked his sister where the other person went and she told him that there wasn't another person present and that he could have the extra bowl. The young boy argued with his sister for a bit because he just knew he had seen six people there. He then began to search the room and finally spotted the girl but she ran outside so he ran after her. No one else saw this girl, just the little boy.
She ran up a mountain and then a group of Dolls appeared claiming to be spirits of the Peach Trees that once use to stand that orchard. These Dolls then told the boy that they would not come to his house because his family members were the ones who cut down the Peach Trees. The little boy then became sad and began to cry and plea with the Dolls. He explained to them that he loved the Peach Trees that once stood there and that was the reason why he was crying. Soon the Dolls realized that the boy was a good boy and didn't have to pay for what his family had done. The Dolls began to dance in unison and before you knew it little tree stubs appeared and there was one with flowers. The girl that he was chasing earlier was actually standing behind that one. He ran up to it and when he arrived, the girl was gone yet again but the tree with blooming flowers was still there.
After watching The Peach Orchard I was mainly curious about the girl that the little boy had chased outside. Could she possibly have been a spirit as well? Just not a Doll? Because the sister and other friends didn't see her and she appeared again in the end but disappeared. With these thoughts in mind, I couldn't help but to think about how the Shinto's believe "everything is spiritual and therefore there is a continuity between humanity, nature and the spirits/gods." Although the Dolls claimed to be the spirits of the Peach Trees I believe that girl was the spirit of the Peach Trees that knew what needed to be done to restore them in that orchard.
She ran up a mountain and then a group of Dolls appeared claiming to be spirits of the Peach Trees that once use to stand that orchard. These Dolls then told the boy that they would not come to his house because his family members were the ones who cut down the Peach Trees. The little boy then became sad and began to cry and plea with the Dolls. He explained to them that he loved the Peach Trees that once stood there and that was the reason why he was crying. Soon the Dolls realized that the boy was a good boy and didn't have to pay for what his family had done. The Dolls began to dance in unison and before you knew it little tree stubs appeared and there was one with flowers. The girl that he was chasing earlier was actually standing behind that one. He ran up to it and when he arrived, the girl was gone yet again but the tree with blooming flowers was still there.
After watching The Peach Orchard I was mainly curious about the girl that the little boy had chased outside. Could she possibly have been a spirit as well? Just not a Doll? Because the sister and other friends didn't see her and she appeared again in the end but disappeared. With these thoughts in mind, I couldn't help but to think about how the Shinto's believe "everything is spiritual and therefore there is a continuity between humanity, nature and the spirits/gods." Although the Dolls claimed to be the spirits of the Peach Trees I believe that girl was the spirit of the Peach Trees that knew what needed to be done to restore them in that orchard.
I agree with you in your last statement. I watched the Peach Orchard too and believe that this story emphasizes the importance of myth and kami (deities). The little boy realized after the spirits picked on him that nature was vital to life, so that's why he started to cry. When that one tree was gone at the end of the clip, I think that symbolized how the boy has lost touch with nature and he had an epiphany of what just happened to him.
ReplyDeleteThe connection between the girl and the boy was definitely something I could not figure out and it makes sense that she may have been a spirit after all. If she was a spirit, I feel like she was the spirit of things other than nature. Like he was interested in her first, then he realized that nature was more important. Then she distracted him towards the end. It is strange. She could have also been, like you said an epiphany to the little boy reminding him that the peach orchard spirits are sad and do not to be forgotten. It was nice to read your post :)
ReplyDeleteYou and other people keep mentioning that a the "six girl" that he say shows right back up at the end, I need to watch it again cause I do not remember seeing her. I thought this movie clip and was very beautiful and very colorful. I think it was great that you told the story at the beginning for other readers who haven’t seen the clip could understand without even having to watch the clip. Very good job with the blog.
ReplyDeletei agree with you that with that mysterious girl, whether to think of her as a spirit or a doll. based on the last scene when she turned in to the flowers i understood that there was a continuity with humanity, nature and the spirit/gods. what i didn't realize was what the dolls in the first scene meant till the end, and after reading the lecture
ReplyDelete