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New Vs. Old Samurai

In the morning of August 6, 1945, the United States military dropped a devastating nuclear weapon on the city of Hiroshima, Japan followed a few days later by the detonation of another nuclear bomb over Nagasaki. It is hard to imagine that this nation which had suffered devastating blows to all facets of its government from the results of WWII would today be one of the most technologically advanced nations with the second largest economy in the world following only the United States. Japan had not always been such a modernized country and in fact was once a feudal society. It was only through the revolutionary views and efforts of certain individuals that Japan would evolve into what it has become today. One of these great men in Japanese history is Yukichi Fukuzawa. He is widely revered as a national hero for the Japanese people and recognized as the hero who paved the way for modernization. Through his autobiography, The Autobiography of Yukichi Fukuzawa, readers can observe the historical struggle between Westernization versus isolationism. The autobiography shows tremendous insight to the status of the Tokugawa society samurai during those times and the birth of a new age of thought of samurais led by Yukichi Fukuzawa.
In order to understand the status of the samurai in Tokugawa society as it is defined in The Autobiography of Yukichi Fukuzawa, it is necessary to be familiar with the historical background of his time. Yukichi's life spanned from 1835 and 1901, a period which comprised greater and more extraordinary changes that any other time in the history of nation of Japan. Yukichi was born into a feudal society that promoted isolationism. During this period there was a struggle for power between the Tokugawa shogunate, a feudal military dictatorship run by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family against the Kinno, supporters of the emperor. Ultimately the emperor faction would win and give birth to the Meiji period. Yukichi develops a strong...