is the name of three films based on the serial novel

The Makioka Sisters (novel)

is a Japanese novel written by Tanizaki Jun’ichirō. It has been called, “the greatest cosmopolitan novel since the Meiji Restoration”.The novel follows the lives of the Makiokas, a wealthy Osaka family, from the autumn of 1936 to April, 1941, focusing on the family’s attempts to find a husband for...

 of the same name by Jun'ichirō Tanizaki. The third of these films, released in 1983, is the most famous. It was directed by Kon Ichikawa

Kon Ichikawa

was a Japanese film director.-Early life and career:Ichikawa was born in Ise, Mie Prefecture. In the 1930s Ichikawa attended a technical school in Osaka. Upon graduation, in 1933, he found a job with a local rental film studio, J.O. Studio, in their animation department...

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The Sisters

• Tsuruko Makioka: The eldest Makioka sister is described as being phlegmatic, and most of her voice throughout the novel is heard through letters she sends to her sisters. Tsuruko lives in the "main" Makioka house in Osaka
  Osaka
  is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
  
  , and is not only removed physically from her sisters, who live in a branch house in Ashiya
  Ashiya, Hyogo
  is a city founded on November 10, 1940 located in Hyōgo, Japan, between the cities of Osaka and Kobe.-Demographics:As of 2009, the city has an estimated population of 93,094 and the density of 5,030 persons per km². The total area is 18.47 km²...
  
  , but also seems to be removed emotionally.
• Sachiko Makioka: The second eldest Makioka sister who is the mistress of the branch house in Ashiya. Sachiko is good-tempered and indulgent of her younger sisters, who live with her instead of, as tradition would have it, with Tsuruko.
• Yukiko Makioka: Melancholy Yukiko is still unmarried at thirty, because, when the Makioka family was in its heyday, all of her marriage proposals were turned down as not being good enough. Now, with the family in decline, marriage opportunities are much more scarce, and Yukiko's stoicity and shyness do nothing to incite her suitors' attentions. So shy that she cannot even speak on the telephone, Yukiko is sometimes frustrating, but ultimately loved by her sisters.
• Taeko Makioka: The youngest Makioka sister embraces both Western clothing style and Western attitudes toward the world more than any of her sisters. Taeko smokes, has affairs and willfully defies the orders of the main Osaka house. This is mostly because she is impatient waiting for Yukiko to marry, which she must do before Taeko is allowed. Taeko is called "Koi san" endearingly, by her two older sisters in Ashiya. Calling the youngest sister "Koi san" is something commonly practiced in Osaka.

Other important characters

• Tatsuo Makioka: Tsuruko's husband, who took the Makioka name when he married her, and is now the master of the Makiokas. The three Ashiya sisters find Tatsuo abrasive, and somewhat dull. Tatsuo is employed at a bank.
• Teinosuke Makioka: Sachiko's husband who also took on the Makioka name. Teinosuke is kind, respectful of the sisters and brilliantly smart, especially when it comes to literary arts, such as poetry and letter-writing. Teinosuke is an accountant
  Accountant
  An accountant is a practitioner of accountancy or accounting , which is the measurement, disclosure or provision of assurance about financial information that helps managers, investors, tax authorities and others make decisions about allocating resources.The Big Four auditors are the largest...
  
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• Etsuko: Sachiko's school-aged daughter, who is especially fond of Yukiko.
• O-Haru: A maid at the Ashiya house. Sachiko took O-Haru under her wing and tries to teach the gossipy maid manners and decorum.
• Mrs. Itani: The owner of a beauty salon that the three younger sisters frequent. Mrs. Itani's gossip and love of matchmaking often help the sisters find prospects for a husband for Yukiko.
• Okubata: Also called "Kei-boy" by the Ashiya sisters, is one of Taeko's suitors with whom she tried, and failed, to elope ten years before the story's beginning.
• Itakura: A photographer friend of Taeko's, a stranger to the Makioka family, to whom Taeko is attracted.

Setting

The story takes place in Japan primarily during the late 1930's (Shōwa era). This is pretty common for Tanizaki novels; his Some Prefer Nettles (Japanese: Tada Kuu Mushi) and Naomi (Chigin no Ai) were both set in the 1920s-30s. The sisters live in the Kansai area (Kobe/Osaka) but travel to Tokyo and other prefectures throughout the novel.

Links and references

• Tanizaki, Junichiro. The Makioka Sisters, 1957 Alfred A. Knopf, Inc