Aoi no Ue

Aoi no Ue (葵の上) is a fictional character in The Tale of Genji. Daughter of the Minister of the Left and Genji's first principal wife, she marries Genji when she is sixteen and he is only twelve. Proud and distant from her husband, Aoi is constantly aware of the age difference between them and very much hurt by Genji's philandering. Aoi temporarily gains Genji's favour after giving birth to his son Yūgiri and experiencing spells of spirit possession. The episode of spirit possession itself is extremely controversial and brings forward two female characters of the tale: Aoi and Lady Rokujō. The relationship between the two women may be that between victim and aggressor, if one follows the traditional interpretation of spirit possession, Aoi dies at the end of the "Aoi" chapter and her exit from the tale is thus definitive.