Essay On Samurai Rising

Written by Pamela Turner and illustrated by Gareth Hinds, Samurai Rising is a biography on the fascinating life of Minamoto Yoshitsune, one of the most well known samurais in Japan. Yoshitsune was a member of the Minamoto family, who were defeated by their main rival, the Taira family, when he was still just an infant. Most of the adult Minamoto were killed, while their children were sent to live in exile in various parts of Japan. Little is known about Yoshitsune’s early childhood, but there are many accounts on the battles that he led against the once victorious Taira. The personalities of the characters, and the relationships between them, though, are what stood out to me the most in this book. Yoshitsune lived with his foster father from his teens into his early twenties, at a safe distance from Taira territory. His foster father treated him like his own son. However, when Yoshitsune asked
As the top leader of the Minamoto, Yoritomo felt threatened by Yoshitsune’s sudden prominence, and with support from his advisors, he sent a group of assassins to his half brother’s dwelling. Although Yoshitsune and Yoritomo had had quarrels in the past, even he did not see this plot twist coming. At this point in the book, Yoritomo considered himself to be the most powerful samurai in Japan. However, I thought that he was more of a dictator because of the measures that he took to preserve his position, and a true samurai would never put his desire for power before family.
I think that Samurai Rising does an excellent job with portraying the unrest and violence in medieval Japan, with beheading after beheading. It also implies, through its main characters’ traits, that warriors and soldiers today can still follow the example of samurais who lived nine centuries