The intellectual and social theorist Yukichi Fukuzawa wrote An Encouragement of Learning (1872–1876) as a series of pamphlets while completing his critical masterpiece, An Outline of a Theory of Civilization (1875). These closely linked texts illustrate the core tenets of his philosophical outlook: freedom and equality as inherent to human nature, independence as the goal of any individual and nation, and the transformation of the Japanese mind as key to advancing in a rapidly evolving political and cultural world.
In these essays, Fukuzawa advocated for the adoption of Western modes of education to help the Japanese people build a modern nation. He also believed that human beings' treatment of one another extended to and was reflected in their government's behavior, echoing the work of John Locke, Thomas Jefferson, and other Western thinkers in a classically structured Eastern text. This volume translates the full text into English and includes a chronology of Japanese history as it relates to Fukuzawa and his work. An introduction provides additional background on the life and influence of this profound thinker, and a selection of representative writings and suggestions for further reading fully introduce readers to the rare brilliance of his thought.
- Contents
- Translator's New Foreword and Acknowledgments
- Introduction: The LIfe and Works of Fukuzawa Yukichu
- A Note on the Text
- SECTION ONE
- SECTION TWO
- Foreword
- The Equality of Men
- SECTION THREE
- The Equality of Nations
- National Independence Through Personal Independence
- SECTION FOUR
- SECTION FIVE
- Speech Delivered 1 January 1874
- SECTION SIX
- The Importance of National Laws
- SECTION SEVEN
- The Duties of the Citizens of the Nation
- SECTION EIGHT
- Respect for the Independence of Others
- SECTION NINE
- A Letter to Old Friends in Nakatsu Stating Two Ways of Learning
- SECTION TEN
- Letter to Old Friends in Nakatsu Continued
- SECTION ELEVEN
- The Falsity of the Idea of Moral Subordination
- SECTION TWELVE
- An Encouragement of Public Speaking
- The Refinement of Conduct
- SECTION THIRTEEN
- The Damage of Envy in Society
- SECTION FOURTEEN
- A Criticism of People's Thoughts
- The Meaning of the Word Sewa
- SECTION FIFTEEN
- Methodic Doubt and Selective Judgment
- SECTION SIXTEEN
- The Spirit of Independence in Everyday Affairs
- The Compatibility of Intention and Activity
- SECTION SEVENTEEN
- APPENDIX
- A Deefnse of Gakumon No Susume
- Chronology of Japanese history, with Special reference to Fukuzawa Yukichi and An Encouragement of Learning
- Fukuzawa Yukichi: Some Representative Writings
- Index
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