Memoirs of a Geisha: What Lies Past the Facade of Beauty

One question that many ask themselves is that of what true beauty is. The novel Memoirs of a Geisha, written by Arthur Golden, has a strong theme, which reflects on the perception of beauty that recurs throughout the story and that is, beauty cannot be judged fairly. This is portrayed throughout the novel primarily because geisha typically achieve a higher status than others due to their artificial beauty, many only acknowledge the geisha’s façade rather than whom they truly are, as well as false beauty being the main focus of a geisha, which creates bias.

The basis of the theme thrives from the poetic visions that flow from the eyes of the primary character, Sayuri. Sayuri finds beauty in everything, even the smallest things like the way a snowflake falls toward the ground. As shown, the question of what beauty is to Sayuri is epitomized through nature. Repetitive imagery is used to as well drive the theme of beauty and the unfairness that originates through judgement.

Throughout the novel, it is known that Geisha typically achieve a higher status than others due to their artificial beauty and not their true beauty. Many are unable to see what is behind the false beauty that geisha present. This is especially brought out through the main antagonist, Hatsumomo. The portrayal of her character changes until her eventual downfall caused by her wrath and jealousy towards Sayuri. However, Sayuri always perceived her as being the most beautiful person in the world, despite how much she truly despised Hatsumomo. 'A tree may look as beautiful as ever; but when you notice the insects infesting it, and the tips of the branches that are brown from disease, even the trunk seems to lose some of its magnificence' (Golden, 324).

This quote demonstrates how the deterioration of Hatsumomo's character and career was brought on by her schemes against Sayuri, which truly displayed the internal ugliness within her. Sayuri sees beauty epitomised through the medium of nature; however, others take its raw beauty for granted. Many do not take the precious time they have in their lives in order to soak in all the splendour that is the planet's natural beauty. Next, Sayuri uses imagery of a pistol to compare it to Hatsumomo when an officer brings it out in front of her. Sayuri states, “An officer took out his pistol and laid it on the straw mat to impress me. I remember being struck by its beauty.

The metal had a dull gray sheen; its curves were perfect and smooth. The oiled wood handle was richly grained. But when I thought of its real purpose as I listened to his stories, it ceased to be beautiful at all and became something monstrous instead. This is exactly what happened to Hatsumomo in my eyes after she brought my debut to a standstill” (182). A pistol looks beautiful on the outside and is made out of rich and fine material, like a geisha, like Hatsumomo, who looks beautiful and uses rich materials in order to attain their beauty. The pistol looks perfect to anyone, however, it is used for cruel intentions against others, which is what as well applies to Hatsumomo, who is very beautiful as a geisha, but has wicked intentions towards others she is displeased of.

Many do not see past the façade of a geisha’s face to respect who they truly are. Sayuri always saw her rival, Hatsumomo, as being the most beautiful person in the world because of her make-up and embroidered kimonos. Sayuri felt that the only way to emulate Hatsumomo's beauty was to become a geisha. For instance, when she was introduced into the geisha culture, Sayuri thought, 'I had the feeling I might drown in beauty. At that moment, beauty itself struck me as a kind of painful melancholy' (187). On the contrary, during World War II, Sayuri was so poor that she could not afford to wear her exquisite kimonos; she had to settle on wearing what was considered 'peasant clothes'. Sayuri felt naked in them, as these plain clothes had no way of showing other people that she was a geisha. 'If you no longer have leaves, or bark, or roots, can you go on calling yourself a tree? I am a peasant and not a geisha any longer' (350). This quote uses the imagery of nature to go against the said theme of how beauty is not just external. This is because Sayuri was so dependent on her false identity as a geisha, she didn’t want it noticed because she was afraid of losing all of the things that make her happy.

To a geisha beauty is only about artifice and concealment rather than the truth. Geisha conceal themselves in order to be judged with bias, because she’s a geisha and is typically highly regarded because of their artificial elements that are considered “beautiful” by standard. This creates bias towards normal women and geisha, as a geisha’s top priority is their beauty due to believing that it is all people want. The same happens with Sayuri, as beauty becomes her top priority within her time as a geisha. “In the years since, I've been called beautiful more often than I can remember. Though, of course, geisha are always called beautiful, even those who aren't. But when Mr. Tanaka said it to me, before I'd ever heard of such a thing as a geisha, I could almost believe it was true”(73).

At an early age, Sayuri believed that compliments on her physical appearance were genuine, however, after being complimented so many times on her false beauty, she ends up making her physical appearance to others her main priority above anything else about her. This leads to Sayuri’s demise, as she starts to believe that nobody would truly love her for who she is behind her disguise until she meets the chairmain, who sees beyond her false beauty. Next, Nobu, hen Nobu is parting from Sayuri, he states that she will remind him that beauty is not the only thing that defines one. Nobu states, “I don't know when we will see each other again or what the world will be like when we do. We may both have seen many horrible things. But I will think of you every time I need to be reminded that there is beauty and goodness in the world” (348).

Thanks to Sayuri, Nobu is one of the few that are able to see the good and bad of a geisha rather than just the shell that is defined by their beauty. Sayuri was able to break the stereotype and demonstrate that a geisha (or anyone) cannot be judged fairly based on looks and stereotypes, as they can be someone truly unique on the inside. Sayuri concludes that people can be considered attractive to others even if they aren't in her eyes. “It struck me as odd that even though no one could have called her a beauty, Mr. Tanaka's eyes were fixed on her like a rag on a hook” (78). Sayuri realizes that to her, some geisha aren't pretty. They're simply pretty because of all the makeup, which shows that the allure of the geisha is in the general mystique, not necessarily in the individual attractiveness of the geisha.

Near the story's conclusion, Sayuri realises that all her success as a geisha was thanks to the Chairman, as was a man who saw how beautiful a woman Sayuri was even when she was a worn maid working for Hatsumomo. The message portrayed through this realisation granted Sayuri to truly grasp at the theme of how beauty can be seen beneath the front one could make for them.

Imagery used in Memoirs of a Geisha captures the raw essence of true beauty that is seen in the nature of the world. It is used to relate to the fact that beauty cannot be judged fairly. Throughout the novel, geisha are typically favoured for their artificial beauty, geisha as well, use façades on their faces which causes many to view them based on their false looks rather than who they truly are and a geisha’s mindset primary focus on false beauty and concealment rather than who they truly are. The imagery used coincides with what the author and Sayuri interpret as what true beauty is. The novel proves that the moving splendor of nature is capable of rousing the internal consideration within the reader as to how they should appreciate the truth and real beauty, and should not take any of these for granted.