The autobiography of Fukuzawa is an interesting cross breed of Western and Japanese culture. He logically attempts to reason with all traditions. He tries to do the same with modern western ideas as well. Fukuzawa rejected few traditional Japanese ideas of Shinto, Confucianism, and also the ideas of Feudalism. He didn’t believe in the differences of social classes, since he came from a poor background himself.
In the beginning of his autobiography Fukuzawa writes about the struggle of being in the feudal system. He felt that he could not improve his social standing in the society due to the fact that the ranks in society were based on birth. He writes, “Everywhere people clung to the ancient custom by which the rank of every member of a cla
What Fukuzawa hated the most about the Japanese traditions was the feudal system. The class difference really made him feel low. How the society had made different rules for different classes seemed unjust, and rightly so. Fukuzawa writes “The thing that made me most unhappy in Nakatsu was the restriction of rank and position. Not only on official occasions, but even in private intercourse, and even among children, the distinctions between high and low were clearly defined.” A philosophy or ideology that remained with Fukuzawa till the end was off the bold words from a Chinese book, “Never show joy or anger in the face,” which showed him how to have emotion stability through the good time and the bad.
Fukuzawa’s father was a very educated man. He believed in the
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