Public-domain ebook
Language: en1,144 downloads on Project Gutenberg
Subjects
In: Short Stories·Mythology, Legends & Folklore
Public-domain ebook sourced from Project Gutenberg #67650.
Tales of the Samurai presents a collection of short stories that illustrate the moral code of the Japanese warrior class, or bush‑bushido, as it was understood in the early twentieth‑century. The volume opens with an essay by Miyamori that situates the tales in both historical fact and contemporary Japanese culture, noting that even after the abolition of the feudal order the samurai spirit persists in the national psyche. The first story, “Ungo‑Zenji,” begins with a vivid winter scene in which the young daimyo Daté Masamuné admires a snow‑covered landscape, only to provoke a violent reaction from his lowly sandal‑bearer Heishiro when the lord’s clogs are insultingly used as a seat. The narrative then follows Heishiro’s long‑term quest for vengeance, charting his ascent from servant to revered priest, and setting the stage for the moral dilemmas that run through the anthology’s eleven subsequent tales.
Miyamori’s prose reflects the literary style of Meiji‑Taishō Japan, blending straightforward narration with occasional lyrical description, and retains the formal diction of translated kōdan storytelling. The voice is that of a learned chronicler who respects both the oral tradition of the kōdanshi and the scholarly expectations of a modern readership. Readers who enjoy historical fiction grounded in authentic cultural sources, as well as those interested in the ethical dimensions of samurai legend, will find this work rewarding. Its focus on loyalty, honor, and the tension between personal ambition and moral duty makes it especially appealing to scholars of Japanese literature and to general readers drawn to nuanced portrayals of pre‑modern societies.
The opening · free to read
The following tales of the samurai, the knights of old Japan, are based largely on real facts. They have been adapted from among traditional stories related by kōdanshi, story-tellers, who nightly delight large audiences with romances and historical stories, especially the noble deeds of the samurai. There are also numerous Japanese books and magazines devoted to stories of this description, which are read with keen interest by all classes of our countrymen, in particular by young people.
It is true the samurai class has gone forever along with feudalism; but fortunately or unfortunately the Japanese at large are samurai in a sense. During the last half century European civilization has revolutionized Japanese society, both for better and for worse. In institutions political and social, in manners and customs, in arts and literature, the Japanese have lost many of their characteristics; yet it may safely be said that the sentiments, motives and moral principles of the samurai in some measure remain in the bedrock of their character in their subconsciousness, so to speak. The Japanese of to-day are intellectually almost cosmopolitans, but emotionally they are still samurai to no small degree.
Honest Kyūsuké, the hero of the story of the same title, was not a samurai, but his principles were those of a samurai. Let that justify the inclusion of the story in this volume.
The author’s hearty thanks are due to Mr. Joyen Momokawa, a celebrated kōdanshi, who kindly helped him in the choice of these tales, and also to the editor of the Kōdan Kurabu for permission to translate Katsuno’s Revenge, one of his stories.
A. Miyamori. Tokio, December, 1920.
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