For a long time, the relatively closed Japanese geisha has been full of mystery in the eyes of westerners, which is also the reason why the novel Memoirs of a Geisha and the movie of the same name are popular all over the world. However, the Japanese did not buy the film and its original work.

From 65438 to 0992, Arthur Gordon (a master of Japanese history) became interested in Japanese geisha and decided to write a book about geisha. After many twists and turns, Gao Dun found Toyoko Iwasaki who resolutely withdrew from the geisha circle when he became popular in Kyoto. He lived in Toyoko Iwasaki's home for two weeks and kept interviewing her, recording 65,438+000 hours of audio recordings about Toyoko's life. Five years later, with the publication of the novel Memoirs of a Geisha, Gao Dun became an instant hit.

However, this book, which sells well in Europe and America, is not liked by Japanese readers because of its vulgar plot, and its Japanese translation is flat in sales, which has been resolutely resisted and besieged by Japanese cultural circles. When Hollywood decided to shoot Memoirs of a Geisha, some Japanese even published notices in American newspapers, calling it a cultural rape of Japan. The film was opposed when it was filmed in Japan. Only a few locations were shot in Kyoto and Tokyo, and most scenes were shot in California.

Toyoko Iwasaki, interviewed by Gao Dun, brought a lawsuit to the American judicial authorities, suing Gao Dun and his publisher, Pufu Publishing Company under Langdon Publishing Group, accusing Gao Dun of confusing geisha with prostitutes in his book and "insulting" "all geisha" in order to cater to the curiosity of western readers, which is a wanton trampling on the innocence of geisha.

Toyoko Iwasaki accused Gao Dun of making irresponsible remarks, claiming that this episode of the novel was completely adapted from Toyoko Iwasaki's personal experience. Toyoko Iwasaki said indignantly, "There is absolutely no sacrifice in our circle, and geisha houses are not places to sell meat." To this end, she asked Gao Dun to apologize publicly and instructed him to erase Toyoko's name from the preface of the book when it was reprinted.

With little confidence in winning, Toyoko Iwasaki announced that he would personally write a memoir of a real geisha, "to correct people's prejudice against Japanese geisha." In July, 20001,Toastmasters, one of the largest publishing companies in Japan, published a memoir written by Toyoko Iwasaki. After the first edition was released, there was a great response. Reprinted in September, 2002, and by June, 2005, 10 had been printed many times, and it has been selling well in Japan continuously. Now this book has been translated and published in 17 countries and sold well in Europe and America. Iwasaki wrote this book to tell people that geisha is a part of Japanese traditional culture, a career for women to stand on their own feet, not a "prostitute" misunderstood by Americans.

Toyoko Iwasaki has the most say in the geisha world. In the 1960s and 1970s, she was the richest and most famous geisha in Kyoto. At that time, international dignitaries including the Queen of England, the Duke of Edinburgh and Prince Charles enjoyed her performance. Toyoko Iwasaki, born in 1949, began to receive dance and etiquette training from geisha at the age of 5. /kloc-at the age of 0/5, Feng Zi, a teenager, became a trainee geisha. At the age of 2 1, Fengzi was qualified to change the color of kimono collar from red to white, so she was officially promoted to full-time geisha. Eight years later, Fengzi, who was at the peak of her life, quit her geisha career, which was a big news in Japan that year. After retiring, she married artist Hitoshi Iwasaki and now lives a quiet life in the suburbs of Kyoto, with two daughters.

"First-class geisha should get used to the spotlight, and I spent a lot of my childhood in a dark niche; A first-class geisha always tries her best to please her guests and make everyone who knows her cheer for it, but I prefer to enjoy loneliness; A first-class geisha should be like an elegant willow tree, bowing respectfully to serve others, while I am stubborn, rebellious and unruly ... "—— Toyoko Iwasaki's autobiography.