Murasaki Shikibu

Murasaki was author to one of the earliest known works of pros "Tale of Genji" as well as a poet. If you have ever read "Tale of Genji" or read even a portion of it is simply staggering for a book written between 1000 and 1008. Yet despite being a literary giant for her day her popularity in western education and culture is not as strong as it should be. It is believed she lived from 973c-1014or25 because of this a video or audio done by here is impossible. Below are some links about her and her works.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murasaki_Shikibu
http://home.infionline.net/~ddisse/murasaki.html#anchor103259
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tale_of_Genji
http://www.taleofgenji.org/

Here is an excerpt from the book "Tale of Genji" by Murasaki Shikibu which contains a rather large amount of poetry. You can find this excerpt and more on http://home.infionline.net/~ddisse/murasaki.html#anchor101108

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"...two side by side."
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[From Chapter 23, when Genji and Murasaki have been together for almost 20 years and their relationship has survived his exile and his ongoing affairs with other women. As Reichhold points out, "it is rare for [poems of the period] to contain the happiness of love." Sitting alone with Murasaki, Genji says:]

at last the thin ice
has melted from the pond
the mirror reflects
an image unequaled in
these times of two side by side.

[And Murasaki replies, extending the image to past and future:]

how clear it is
in the mirror of the pond
these images of
ten thousand generations
which remain vivid forever. [p.173]

I honestly feel "Tale of Genji" being arguably the first novel ever written that has survived until today and the fact that in its time it was far and away in a league of its own should give it a prominent place in our education system and make it or at least a part of it a required text.