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CODE OF THE SAMURAI.
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Examines the culturally-sanctioned Japanese model of ideal conduct.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Examines the culturally-sanctioned Japanese model of ideal conduct. Code of ethics and behavior of the martial values of the samurai warrior class. Historical overview. Discusses John Allyn's story of the 47 Ronin that focuses on the Code of the Samurai, written to educate young Samurai in the 18th Century. Plot. Revenge motive.

Paper Introduction:
Code of the Samurai and the 47 Ronin Story Every society has an ideal code of ethics and behavior that embody its most cherished values, and these cultural ideals can have remarkable persistence over time. For much of Japanese history, such a culturally-sanctioned model of ideal conduct was embodied in the martial values of the samurai warrior class. As Thomas Cleary puts it in his introduction to the Code of the Samurai, “the entrenchment of the samurai as the dominant class had profound cultural and psychological effects on the Japanese people” (ix). The samurai had their origin as an offshoot of the aristocracy. They were brought to prominence by the long duration of military governments in Japanese history. As the interests o

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The Tokugawa regime came to power in 16 3, and proceeded to shut offJapan from the rest of the world for the next two-and-a-half centuries in apolicy of national isolation called sakoku. For much of Japanese history, such a culturally-sanctioned model of ideal conduct was embodied in the martial values of thesamurai warrior class.As Thomas Cleary puts it in his introduction to the Code of the Samurai,"the entrenchment of the samurai as the dominant class had profoundcultural and psychological effects on the Japanese people" (ix). The plot is simple. Such persistence of samurai martial values almost four centuriesafter the 47 ronin shows how deeply entrenched the Code of the Samurai isin the collective Japanese psyche. The 47 Ronin Story. The essential thread of the plot is based on one simple motive:revenge. Reading the Code of the Samurai goes a long waytowards making some of the behavior in the book ­ extreme by Westernstandards ­ intelligible to the non-Japanese reader, as a kind of Asianvariant on European codes of chivalry. The true samurai was Puritanical in his outlook, shunning sexual orother pleasures, in favor of a highly disciplined Spartan standard ofconduct that stressed the cheerful endurance of physical and psychologicalprivations. But the most astounding parallel to the story of the 47 roninoccurred in the late 2 th century, when the Japanese writer and culturaltraditionalist Mishima and a few followers committed seppuku after holdingmembers of the Japanese Defense Forces hostage for several hours andharangueing them for having strayed from the samurai tradition. Its author, Taira Shigesuke, was a prominentConfucian scholar and military expert who was eminently qualified toprovide the practical and moral teachings that distinguished the personal,social, and professional standards of comportment embodied in the Bushido ­the Way of the Warrior. Lord Asano of Ako, a rural warlord deeply imbuedwith traditional samurai values, is provoked to murder a high courtofficial named Kira in the Shogun's palace, after being taunted withinsults about his wife for refusing to pay a bribe. 1999.Cleary, Thomas. In order to understand the story it's necessary to discuss the valuesthat drive the characters in this fascinating and well-written book.Cleary's translation of the Bushido Shoshinshu, or Code of the Samurai,written to educate young samurai in the early 18th century, provides thenecessary background. But since defending againstforeign invasion could not entail grants of land due to the obvious factthat there were no newly conquered areas, dissatisfaction among the warriorclass led to internecine conflict and disrupted the relative stability ofthe feudal society. A few behavioral or physical characteristicskeep the variety of characters clearly distinguished. 197 . Their leaderis Oishi, a brave and wily knight who never wavers in his allegiance to thetraditional values of a Japanese knight, although he too is tempted by theincreasing worldliness of Edo under the effete Shogun. Oishi displays the true values of a samurai at a time when the hatedmerchant class are pushing them from their position of prominence insociety, and the Shogun's court itself has become corrupted, as symbolizedby Kira. Works CitedCleary, Thomas transl. Theywere brought to prominence by the long duration of military governments inJapanese history. The young samurai was indoctrinated in the principles of knighthoodand weaponry, as well as in army and combat lore. Civil war ensued, resulting in the Era of Warring States, a hundred-year period during which rival warlords and factions battled for power. The resulting brouhahaultimately causes the mass suicide of his knights after gaining revenge fortheir late master through the murder of the unscrupulous Kira. For example, Oishi'sfaithful acolyte Kataoka is always described as having an impish, monkey-like face, usually covered with a grin. North Clarendon, Vt.: Tuttle Publishing. Butas the author of the Code of the Samurai writes, "knights on the highestorder are rare, even in a group of a hundred or a thousand warriors"(Cleary, 22). Tuttle Publishing: Boston. The most essential valuesof the samurai warrior are summed up in three vitally importantcharacteristics: loyalty, duty, and valor. The rise of the samurai as a class was enhanced by the giving of landgrants to faithful and courageous soldiers. Butby 1574 Oda Nobunaga had finally united Japan under military rule. This central core of samuraiethics is pivotal in understanding the story of the 47 ronin. Although he was trained to fight and die at a moment's noticefor the overlord to whom he owed blind obedience, he was also strictlycounseled on the ethics of the use of force, and ideally would actaggressively only when it was absolutely necessary and appropriate. While such behavior is abhorrent to the Western mind, it has had suchcurrency in Japan that when imperial troops were finally cornered byAmerican soldiers in the last days of World War II, a great many chosesuicide rather than surrender because of the dishonor of failing theemperor. From the first militarygovernment, established in Kamakura in the year 1186 A.D., until the Mongolinvasions that started in 1274, the samurai dominated the aristocrats, whostill held sway in their traditional fiefdoms. It was during this era in theyear 17 1 that the dramatic incident that forms the historical basis forJohn Allyn's gripping story of the 47 ronin took place - in Edo, the newcapital city that later became Tokyo. Code of the Samurai. Shigesuke, Taira. As the interests of the samurai and the aristocracy beganto diverge, the former took over both the military and administrativefunctions in the society, while the latter tended to focus on culturaldevelopment. The samurai had their origin as an offshoot of the aristocracy. Allyn is a master storyteller who uses short English sentences and aprofound knowledge of Japanese culture and history to describe the eventssurrounding this incident. To restore the honor of the house of Asano is of such paramountimportance that the samurai who stick with Oishi to the end are presentedas happy and elated when they are allowed to commit suicide with honor inthe ancient disemboweling ritual of seppuku as punishment for their illegalrevenge. Code of the Samurai and the 47 Ronin Story Every society has an ideal code of ethics and behavior that embodyits most cherished values, and these cultural ideals can have remarkablepersistence over time. It is the very distinction between these ideal behavioralstandards of conduct, so difficult for any man to achieve in practice, andthe actual behavior of fallible human beings, that provides much of theappeal and drama of the story.

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