slt1@ra.msstate.edu writes:
Actually this idea has a lot of potential with everyone staying in
character. If the dowry has already switched hands, like it did in
the manga, then the Tendous have lost their home. If you set this
after Mrs. Tendou's death, then this is another serious blow to the
family. Soun, who depressed at his wife's death, made the deal to
ensure the continuation of his family's style of martial arts.
Problem is, the scenario as described doesn't make a whole lot of
sense. Not that Mr. Kuonji's actions in the canon make a whole lot of
sense - why on earth would he be so set on marrying his daughter to the
son of a wandering, presumably penniless martial artist that he would
actually bribe Genma to break a pre-existing agreement? And why was
Genma supposed to take the yatai and Ukyo along - was she actually
supposed to support the three of them as a cook at the age of six?
Personally, I figure that when Ukyo's relatives found out what he was
trying to do they had him committed - that's why we don't hear anything
more of him in the manga. When Ukyo started dressing like a boy and
practicing her cooking against the backdrop of the raging sea they must
have thought she was following in her father's footsteps.
But Soun's actions here are even stranger. The Tendos are, it
seems, a fairly well-off family. Why would Soun want to join his
family with the Saotomes, without the bond created by their
training together under Happosai? The continuation of the family's
style? But, under this supposition, the Tendos and the Saotomes don't
practice the same style. If they just need a boy to take over, they
certainly wouldn't have much trouble finding someone for the dowry
they could offer. And why on earth would Soun sign over the deed to
the house and dojo in exchange for a promised marriage that wouldn't
take place for years? The whole point is that the property is
transferred to the children when they marry, to take advantage of the
loophole in the Japanese laws governing inheritance.
Reid Carson
rcarson@rcarson.com