Katsu Kokichi’S Autobiography, “Musui’S Story,” Documents

The Samurai’s Tale by Erik Christian Haugaard is about a boy named Taro, the protagonist in the story. The major characters in the story are Taro, Yoshitoki, Lord Takeda Katsuyori, Lord Akiyama Nobutomo, and Togan. The setting of the story is in Japan, in around the 16th century. In the beginning of the story he was presented as a gift by the great Lord Takeda Shingen to Lord Akiyama after his parents had been killed. By using his wits and suppressing his fierce pride, Taro slowly escalates the ranks of his lord’s household until he achieves his greatest goal—becoming a samurai like his father and Lord Akiyama, whom he has come to admire. The life of a samurai is not so easy, Taro finds himself sacrificing opportunities of love and friendship

Katsu begins to dabble in selling swords, as well as learning how to do shadow lotteries, deeds clearly at odds with samurai ideals, yet they represent the stark reality of Katsu’s monetary situation (Katsu 74, 84). Katsu evolves into a unique figure because, while he does not always follow samurai ideals, he does realize the weight his status holds, and he does not shy away from using it to acquire privileges that he would not receive otherwise. Because of his social standing and his benevolent nature, even Katsu’s friends come to his aid with money, as they create a savings association and place Katsu as the head without even having to put in an initial payment (Katsu 95). Another example would include an incident near the end of the autobiography, where Katsu goes out of his way to bail out his landlord by tricking the villagers that he would use his samurai status to shame them in the eyes of the Osaka magistrate (Katsu 129-142). Essentially, Katsu gains a mastery of using his samurai ideals to help his maligned reality, and through it he can call in favors, rely on his friends for monetary support, and use his status to awe members of society.

Next, the Bushido Code shows how the samurai acted around people. One of the rules in the Bushido Code was, “ ‘men must grudge money, for riches hinder wisdom’ ” This means that anyone who was rich in Japan at this time, had to of acted like they didn’t care about money. Wisdom was one of the most important virtues at this time, so if money obstructed

Musui 's Story is a samurai 's autobiography that portrays the Tokugawa society as it was lived during Katsu Kokichi 's life (1802 - 1850). Katsu Kokichi (or Musui) was a man born into a family with hereditary privilege of audience with the shogun, yet he lived a life unworthy of a samurai 's way, running protection racket, cheating, stealing, and lying. Before we discuss how Musui 's lifestyle was against the codes that regulated the behavior of the samurai, it is essential that the role of the samurai in Japanese society be understood.

2. Harutomo Murakami (Taro)- The hero of the story, the son of a poor samurai who died in battle

In Giles Milton’s novel, Samurai William, the reader is taken to the other side of the globe to experience the history of old world Japan. Though out the book, Milton provides reason for complex historical events and actions, while still communicating the subtleties and mysterious customs of the Japanese. The novel also closely examines the wide range of relationships between different groups of Europeans and Asians, predominantly revolving around the protagonist, William Adams. The book documents the successes and failures that occur between the two civilizations, then links them back to either the positive or negative relationship they have. As the book goes on, the correlation is obvious. Milton shows us the extreme role that religion,

He says many times in the book that he went around with his friends starting fights. Many of his other fights come in the form of going to fencing schools and challenging other students. This may show that with the lack of warfare going on samurai's skills in fighting were almost useless and definitely unnecessary during Katsu's time. It was more like a sport than something essential to Japan (as it was before this time). This is no surprise considering that at the time of Katsu's life there probably had been no war for centuries. Also, in a way he was financially dependent on some merchants when ever had to sale arms or his own property to make ends meat. This shows the slow breakdown of the old Japanese hierarchy with the samurai at the top and the merchants on the bottom. We can infer from Musui's Story that now some merchants were more powerful than some samurai.

The samurai were a warrior class in feudal Japan who served the lords of clans in Japanese feudal society. They were highly respected elite warriors in both grand military strategy and individual martial arts. The warrior code that they embodied and the myth of the samurai warrior are still alive in modern Japan today. In his book American Samurai: Myth and Imagination in the Conduct of Battle in the First Marine Division 1941-1951, Craig Cameron draws parallels between the United States Marine Corps and the feudal Japanese samurai. Writing from a post-Vietnam view, Cameron

The author who brought to us The Tale of Genji, a novel now regarded as the first written novel in history, left behind an arguably more treasurable artifact: a diary that opens a window into history. The Diary of Lady Murasaki by Lady Murasaki Shikibu gives the reader a glimpse of the imperial court during eleventh century Japan and presents the past in an illuminated vision. Being an attendant in the imperial court, Lady Murasaki is frequently involved with the activities of elite Japanese women. Her day-to-day interaction with the nobles and elites enhance her account with the curious perspective of an elite female. As a woman, Lady Murasaki's descriptions are oriented around clothing

Throughout History, there have been many different groups or events that are still widely known today. Groups of people such as the Indians or Vikings are popular groups which are referenced constantly in today’s society. However, none of these groups is more known or referenced than the Japanese Samurai. Originating in 646 AD, these Japanese warriors developed from a loose organization of farmers to the dominant social class in Feudal Japan. Along with their dominant military and political standing, the samurai brought with them a unique code or moral belief that became the core of Samurai culture. Because of this, the Samurai and their principles still affect modern day Japanese society with social customs today

The primary beneficiaries of the emerging money economy were the merchants. Daimyo and samurai traded their rice for money with the merchants who soon became very rich. Merchants, cashing in on daimyo debt attained positions of authority within the daimyo households. Many were living lavish lifestyles only dreamt of by samurai. This caused resentment in Japanese society because, although they were socially inferior, merchants enjoyed an elevated status economically (Kunihiko 1997). Perhaps the social class that suffered the most indignities was the samurai who, lacking the means to earn a living on their regular income, indulged in the lifestyle of Edo. Many had to resort to engaging in handicraft for income vice training at the martial arts thus leading to inherent corruption (Nobumitsu 1997).

In the essentially dual religious system in Japan, ideologies and traditions play a heavy role in the everyday life of the Japanese people. Shintoism and Buddhism intertwine and complement themselves in Japanese culture, despite Buddhism coming in from mainland Asia. A particularly powerful idea from Buddhism is mono no aware, the realization and acknowledgment of the impermanence and its place in the world. This idea that nothing stays the same forever manifests itself heavily in Japanese literature, whether in personal writings or fictional works. Despite spanning hundreds of years, each work was shaped by and include manifestations of mono no aware. I intend to underline and pinpoint instances that mono no aware is influencing these works, and discuss similarities and differences between them. In this paper, I have three works that I will explore, each one corresponding to a different time period before the pre-industrial revolution; The Diary of Lady Murasaki comes from the classical period, Essays in Idleness from the medieval, and the immensely popular play Chushingura from the pre-modern era.

The 47 Ronin Story takes place in 1701, approximately 100 years after the Tokugawa Shogunate was formed. The story displays much of the changes going on in Japanese society and culture. From the declining importance of the Samurai, to the rising influence of the merchant class, and finally to the inevitable changing of values that are all exacerbated by the long peace imposed by the Tokugawa Shogunate. The changing of values were not just commonplace among the classes, it also reached into the high echelons of the court. The corruption of the court sparked the beginnings of a series of events that at it's conclusion would inspire a nation and ultimately define them.

During the movie The Last Samurai by Mark Ravina, we get a relatively accurate retelling of the story of Katsumoto --who is likely based on Saigo Takamori, a very important figure in the history of the Meiji restoration. Some nuances are found when comparing the movie to the real events that occurred during the Meiji restoration: the differences between Katsumoto and Saigo Takamori, the direct effect the American's have on the Japanese, the emperor's lack of decision-making and sudden inspiration, and the differences between how the battles are portrayed in the movie as opposed to how historically they happened. The written works of Mark Ravina, Tanya Maus, and Charles L. Yates will be used to compare the movie and what is known of the historical

Ninjas are very secretive, dangerous, and dishonorable which are mainly the characteristics they're known by. Although, it was more than that, they were very skilled and passionate about their work. Ninjas have a strong origin, history, and culture but it’s something no one really talks about because it was all kept to themselves. My project is important because everyone believes ninjas are just people who wore black and fought the bad guys. It is more than that, there is a lot that went through their skill and they took it very serious. They did what was believed to be right. No mercy was felt for the people who were gone after and there was no remorse. Although, they did have a master