Namazu Books - Real Life Equivalents?

[Grayve]

So, in todays beast tribe quest, Seigetsu the Enlightened quoted from "The Princeling"

Seigetsu the Enlightened: And, I might add, these shows of benevolence are vital if I am to lead the Namazu from the mire of ignorance in which they languish. As The Princeling so astutely advises, a leader should be both feared and loved by the masses!

Which is clearly a reference to Machiavelli's "The Prince"


So, what other book references have I missed in these quests? I am by no means a scholar of classic literature.

[Enkidoh]

That does not surprise me, given there is a highly-read linguist on the Localization/lore team (Ferne). In fact, it's these sorts of references (from modern pop culture to classic literature, a lot of it downright obscure) that is one of the reasons I love this game so much.

[Squintina]

That does not surprise me, given there is a highly-read linguist on the Localization/lore team (Ferne). In fact, it's these sorts of references (from modern pop culture to classic literature, a lot of it downright obscure) that is one of the reasons I love this game so much.

Yes, I love our localization team for the same reason.
I just wish they would pump out a book or blog or something of all these things because I'm sure I have missed a lot of them.

[Frizze]

I noticed that one too(having read The Prince back in college). There are i think 3 other books ive seen mentioned by name so far, but i didnt recognize real world equivalents. Im blanking on the exact names but one was something about a path, one was a flower maybe?, and one mentioned dango. If Moose or someone doesnt beat me to it, ill try to get the actual names so we can see if someone recognizes them.

[Jyera]

The Chrysanthemum and the Dango is a direct pun on The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, an ethnographic (though awkward and stilted) record of Japanese culture by the anthropologist Ruth Benedict.

Gods, there are a lot of anthropology puns in the Namazu quests, hahaha!

[Keever]

Narrow Road through the Deep Grass is a reference to Oku no Hosomichi, which has been translated into English as Narrow Road to the Deep North. It is a major Japanese text from the seventeenth century, a combination travel journal and book of poetry.

[TinyRedLeaf]

Keep the references coming! I, for one, am greatly enjoying the fishy satire presented by the namazu quests. They're pretty much on point in making fun of culture and civilisation, as well as people who unwittingly believe that incomprehensiblility is a mark of high art and sophistication.

It ties in as well the larger, overarching theme in FFXIV, where gods are literally created through intense belief. If the namazu believe intensely that organising a festival would make them civilised, then yes, yes, by all means do so.

(It's even more hilarious that the whole quest line is becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy! )

[AmemeAmeklin]

Not the books but another literature reference, the quest 'The Importance of Being Yes, Yes' is a reference to The Importance of Being Earnest, doubled down upon by the fact that the other namazu involved is called Earnest Namazu.

[TinyRedLeaf]

Here's another literary reference: The "Waiting for Gyodo" quest, where you take Gyoshin to the shipwrights in Kugane, is a reference to the famous play Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett.

The real-life play has little to do with that particular quest itself, but it is a satire that mocks those who pointlessly seek meaning and higher purpose where there's none (Beckett once said of critics trying so hard to interpret the play: "Why people have to complicate a thing so simple I can't make out?"). So, it's actually a very an apt analogy for what the namazu are trying to do at Dhoro Iloh.

[FJerome]

'Unbeaten Tracks in Yanxia' is probably a reference to 'Unbeaten Tracks in Japan', Isabella Bird's 1878 travel dairy.