The Gourmet Club by Junichiro Tanizaki is a story about a specific club called “the gourmet club.” In this club, a group of food-driven individuals get together at a mansion owned by a Count, and explore delicious food from other countries they have never had before. There are some Chinese cultural forms appear in this story. By introducing those Chinese forms, Junichiro Tanizaki wants to emphasis the theme of exoticism, and at the same time, creates an aesthetic atmosphere of this story.
The first one appears when the Count cut through a narrow lane and found a Chinese restaurant. “Just then, the sound of a Chinese violin being played somewhere far off came drifting to his (The Count) ears –a sound with overtones and yearning in the night’s darkness.”(107-108) In this scene, Junichiro Tanizaki fully describes the characteristic of the sound of Chinese violin and this description gives readers a visual and audio feeling of what violin is. In China, the traditional Chinese violin is often used to make music that is for specific kind of occasions. The sound of Chinese violin always sounds mellow and expressive and it sometimes make audiences feel sad. In Tanizaki’s description, the sound that gets the Count’s attention also gets readers’ attention.
The second one appears when the Count saw the sign of that Chinese restaurant and he recognizes that it is a Chechiang restaurant, which serves food from Chechiang province. “He recalled it as a mystic realm of science beauty on the banks of the Westlake, famed in the poetry of Po Lo-t’ien and Su Tung-p’o. And also the best place for Sungari sea bass and for pork belly cooked in soy a la Tung-p’o.”(112) In this scene, Tanizaki inserts some knowledge of Chinese geography. In China, Chechiang province is famous for its delicious Chinese food and due to its advantage of location; Chechiang province is also famous for its seafood. By describing Chechiang province, Tanizaki wants to show that the Count is really into Chinese culture and Chinese food therefore when he sees the name of the restaurant; he recognizes that this restaurant would probably have really good Chinese food.
The third one Chinese form appears when the Count enters the Chinese restaurant and he sees “Others were sipping tea from cups made in Ching-te-chen.”(117) This description shows another characteristic of Chinese culture. In China, the traditional teacups made in Ching-te-chen are considered as high quality teacups and they are often used in good Chinese restaurants. Junichiro Tanizaki uses this detailed information about China because he wants to emphasize that the restaurant that the Count enters in is a good restaurant. Therefore, that restaurant might serve some really decent Chinese food. This Chinese form here plays an important role because it shows that the Count is very knowledgeable about exoticism of food.
In conclusion, in The Gourmet Club, in order to fully describe the Count’s experience in exoticism food, Junichiro Tanizaki processes some elements of China. By using those elements, the entire story becomes more expressive and attractive.
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