I've read that the tradition of black-clad stagehands led to the cultural image of ninja costumes. The idea is, exagerated and romantic stories of the ninja came into favor during the relatively peaceful Edo period, complete with stories of their amazing powers, including that of invisibility. In plays about ninja, when it was necessary to indicate that someone was supposed to be invisible, they used what had already been shorthand for invisibility -- namely, the black clothes of stagehands, who were supposed to be seen but not noticed. Over time this became ingrained in the culture as the image of what a ninja looked like.
Sorry, trivia just pours out of me unbidden. It's a disease.
I've read that the tradition of black-clad stagehands led to the cultural image of ninja costumes. The idea is, exagerated and romantic stories of the ninja came into favor during the relatively peaceful Edo period, complete with stories of their amazing powers, including that of invisibility. In plays about ninja, when it was necessary to indicate that someone was supposed to be invisible, they used what had already been shorthand for invisibility -- namely, the black clothes of stagehands, who were supposed to be seen but not noticed. Over time this became ingrained in the culture as the image of what a ninja looked like.
ReplyDeleteSorry, trivia just pours out of me unbidden. It's a disease.
I'm pretty sure our friend is not a ninja. If she were, we'd likely have been killed already.
ReplyDeleteOr maybe she's just biding her time...