Calligraphy
Nagiko has men write upon her body in an act of carnal pleasure she mixes with sex. It is a symbol of her longing to replace the loss of the closeness with her father.
Romeo and Juliet
Jerome has had an affair with the publisher and Nagiko has caught him. In an attempt to get her back he plans to attempt suicide with a dose of drugs just low enough to make him get near death, but it actually kills him. This is a symbol that these flawed romantic gestures do not end in victory, but in death when one attempts them in reality.
Buried Book
Nagiko buries Jerome's pillow book beneath a bonsai tree. This is a symbol of love and balance along with peace which Nagiko has come to have through the misery of the circumstances of her life.
Guilt
The Publisher has the messenger cut his throat to kill him. This is a symbol that the weight of the reality of what he has done has buried him so deeply in shame that he believes his only way out is death, and thus ends his life rather than choosing to find a way to find forgiveness and a hope to live.
Iconography
Throughout the film Greenaway switches the iconography used in the calligraphy. Some is Chinese others Japanese. This is a symbol of Nagiko's bi-cultural heritage and her navigating her life.
