The Analysis of Yukichi Fukuzawa

The Analysis of the Autobiography of Yukichi Fukuzawa Yukichi Fukuzawa was definitely one of the greatest Japanese theorists and thinkers during the Meiji era. He played a leading role in the development of Japan’s education system based on the ideas of Western civilization. The Autobiography of Yukichi Fukuzawa is a book dictated by Fukuzawa offers a vivid portrait of the intellectual’s life story and a rare look inside the formation of a new japan. This book gives his accounts of growing up in the land of Samurai and emperors. He lived through the Meiji Restoration and died around the turn of the century and referred to the overhaul of the educational system, the growing industries, and the establishment of a strong military. In the Autobiography of Yukichi Fukuzawa, many fundamentals of a successful Japan are discussed. Fukuzawa uses his vast life experiences from childhood social class matters to western travel in order to illustrate his point of view of japan. Specially, he highlightes “freedom’ and “independence” and maps out reasons why these matters are important and fundamental to the success of a nation. In his essay, Encouragement of Learning, he especially dwells on the meaning of freedom and importance in feudal Japan. In the text, he states,
“‘Heaven never created a man above another nor a man below another,’ it is said. Therefore, when men are born, Heaven’s idea is that all men should be equal to all other men without distinction of high and low or noble and mean, but that they should all work with body and mind, with dignity worthy of the lords of creation, which they are, in order to take all things in the world for the fulfillment of their needs in clothing, food, and dwelling, freely but without obstructing others so that each can live happily through life” (Fukuzawa 391).
In this quote he emphasizes that men indeed are equal to one another. This shows that through realization of equality, men should be working towards a common