In this slides I have shared some information about title. This novel 'An Artist of the Floating World' (1986) is a published by British author Kazuo Ishiguro. It is set in post-World War II Japan and is narrated by Masuji Ono, an ageing painter, who looks back on his life and how he has lived it.

1. title analysis of
‘an artist of the
floating world’

2. Smt.S.B.Gardi Department of English
Name :- Riddhi H. Rathod
Presentation Topic :- Title analysis of ‘An Artist of
The Floating World’
Paper No. :- 107 -20th century literature -2
M.A. Sem. :- 2
Enrollment No. :- 4069206420220025
Roll No. :- 17

3. Points to be ponder:-
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4. 1.About the novelist
Kazuo Ishiguro
Born:- 8th November, 1954.
Japanese-British Novelist, screenwriter, musician,
Short-story writer.
He is one of the most critically acclaimed and praised contemporary fiction
author writing in English, having been awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize
in Literature.
Swedish Academy described Ishiguro as a writer, who in novels of
great emotional force, has uncovered the abyss beneath our
illusory sense of connection with the world.”

5. “
His famous novels:-
A Pale View of Hills(1982)
An Artist of the Floating World(1986)
The Remains of the Day(1989)
The Unconsoled(1995)
Never Let Me Go(2005)
 He has wrote many short-story,
screen plays, short fiction and lyrics.
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6. It is set in post-world war 2 Japan and is narrated by Masuji Ono, an ageing painter, who
looks back on his life and how he has lived it.
He notices how his once-great reputation has faltered since the war and how attitudes
towards him and his paintings have changed. His family ashamed for his
Paintings.
About the novel:-
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7. About the title:-
An Artist of the Floating World is a reference to the “floating world” of pre-war Japan.
Easy meaning of Floating World is ‘Changing world’. Floating world must be ‘Changing world’.
How artist faces some kind of trouble and problems in their life.
 This term harks back to Japan’s prewar world of artistic and social excess, and it is closely tied to
the traditional art form Ukiyo-e, which depicted the pleasures and excesses of the time.
Eat, drink and be merry, seize the day- call what you may. The
title is also
metaphor for the fleeting, almost wafting nature of a leisurely languid life
and
the world before the war, and how it all came crashing one fine day.
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8. Continue…
The title sheds some light on the
main character, Masuji Ono, who
was an artist himself, and how his art,
as well as his position in the floating
world, contributed to his personal
conflicts and reflection of the setting,
the society and a reflection of the
protagonist’s journey along with a
commentary on the nature of art,
and by extension, life itself.
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9. What is another meaning of ‘Floating world’??
Literal meaning of the world is translation of Japanese word,
a Japanese word is Ukiyo-e.
What is Ukiyo??
Ukiyo means fleeting, floating , changing transient (not
permanent) world. Not having permanent. During the
Tokugawa or Edo period (1615-1868) this art
has developed.
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10. Some paintings of ukiyo-e art:-
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11. :-
Levine, Yael. "An Artist of the Floating World Plot Summary." LitCharts. LitCharts
LLC, 30 Jul 2018. Web. 12 Mar 2023.
McGeown, Kate. "An artist of the floating world." Nature 388.6640 (1997): 333-333.
Ishiguro, Kazuo. An artist of the floating world. Faber & Faber, 2009.
Levine, Yael. "An Artist of the Floating World April 1949." LitCharts. LitCharts LLC, 30
Jul 2018. Web. 7 Jan 2023.

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Thanks!
Any questions?