was the pen-name of a journalist, political theorist and statesman in

Meiji-period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. His real name was . His major contribution was the popularization of the

egalitarian Egalitarianism (), or equalitarianism, is a school of thought within political philosophy that builds from the concept of social equality, prioritizing it for all people. Egalitarian doctrines are generally characterized by the idea that all hum ...

doctrines of the French philosopher

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...

in Japan. As a result, Nakae is thought to have been a major force in the development of

liberalism Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for c ...

in early Japanese politics.

Biography

Nakae was born in Kōchi,

Tosa Domain The was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, controlling all of Tosa Province in what is now Kōchi Prefecture on the island of Shikoku. It was centered around Kōchi Castle, and was ruled throughout its history by t ...

(present day

Kōchi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Kōchi Prefecture has a population of 757,914 (1 December 2011) and has a geographic area of 7,103 km2 (2,742 sq mi). Kōchi Prefecture borders Ehime Prefecture to the northwest and ...

). His father was an ''

ashigaru were infantry employed by the samurai class of feudal Japan. The first known reference to ''ashigaru'' was in the 14th century, but it was during the Ashikaga shogunate (Muromachi period) that the use of ''ashigaru'' became prevalent by various ...

'', or lower ranking foot soldier in the service of the

Yamauchi clan The Yamauchi clan (山内氏) were a family of rulers over what was then the Tosa Province which spanned the southern half of Shikoku island. The province was given to the family in 1600 after Yamauchi Kazutoyo led troops under Tokugawa Ieyasu a ...

of Tosa. Having displayed an early aptitude for Western learning, after studies at the domain academy, Nakae was selected to study French and

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hidden Christian Sites in the ...

and Edo. Later, he worked as a translator for the French minister to Japan,

Léon Roches Léon Roches (September 27, 1809, Grenoble – 1901) was a representative of the French government in Japan from 1864 to 1868. Léon Roches was a student at the Lycée de Tournon in Grenoble, and followed an education in Law. After only 6 mo ...

. After the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

, he was selected as a member of the

Iwakura Mission The Iwakura Mission or Iwakura Embassy (, ''Iwakura Shisetsudan'') was a Japanese diplomatic voyage to the United States and Europe conducted between 1871 and 1873 by leading statesmen and scholars of the Meiji period. It was not the only such m ...

and travelled abroad (under the patronage of the

Justice Ministry A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...

) to study philosophy, history, and

French literature French literature () generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of France other than Fr ...

in France, where he lived from 1871 until 1874. While in France, Nakae translated some of the works of

into Japanese (most importantly, Rousseau’s "Du contrat social") and

Eugène Véron Eugene is a common male given name that comes from the Greek εὐγενής (''eugenēs''), "noble", literally "well-born", from εὖ (''eu''), "well" and γένος (''genos''), "race, stock, kin".Saionji Kinmochi Prince was a Japanese politician and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1906 to 1908 and from 1911 to 1912. He was elevated from marquis to prince in 1920. As the last surviving member of Japan's ''genrō,'' he was the most in ...

Emile Acollas Emil or Emile may refer to: Literature *'' Emile, or On Education'' (1762), a treatise on education by Jean-Jacques Rousseau * ''Émile'' (novel) (1827), an autobiographical novel based on Émile de Girardin's early life *'' Emil and the Detecti ...

' Law School for foreign students in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. Upon his return to Japan, Nakae served as a lower-ranked secretary of the

Genrōin The was a national assembly in early Meiji Japan, established after the Osaka Conference of 1875. It is also referred to as the Senate of Japan, being the word used to describe the Roman Senate, and other western legislatures named after it. ...

. However, he soon became disenchanted by corruption and factionalism in Japanese government, and resigned to devote himself to other literary and educational activities. In 1874, he established his own French language school. In 1881, he helped to start the daily newspaper, , through which he propagated Western democratic ideas. The newspaper was soon suppressed by the authorities for propagation of

republicanism Republicanism is a political ideology centered on citizenship in a state organized as a republic. Historically, it emphasises the idea of self-rule and ranges from the rule of a representative minority or oligarchy to popular sovereignty. It ...

and lese majesty. The newspaper reemerged as the milder the following year with Nakae as its chief editor. The newspaper continued to attack factionalism and corruption in government, and to agitate for revision of the

unequal treaties Unequal treaty is the name given by the Chinese to a series of treaties signed during the 19th and early 20th centuries, between China (mostly referring to the Qing dynasty) and various Western powers (specifically the British Empire, France, the ...

and the rapid implementation of an elected

national assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

. In 1887, Nakae was sentenced to exile from Tokyo under the Peace Preservation Law for publishing critical articles about the

Meiji oligarchy The Meiji oligarchy was the new ruling class of Meiji period Japan. In Japanese, the Meiji oligarchy is called the . The members of this class were adherents of ''kokugaku'' and believed they were the creators of a new order as grand as that est ...

. He spent the next few years in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

, where he started the . Nakae was pardoned after the promulgation of the

Meiji Constitution The Constitution of the Empire of Japan (Kyūjitai: ; Shinjitai: , ), known informally as the Meiji Constitution (, ''Meiji Kenpō''), was the constitution of the Empire of Japan which was proclaimed on February 11, 1889, and remained in for ...

in 1889, and he and his family moved back to Tokyo in October of that year.Chōmin, Nakae. ''A Discourse By Three Drunkards On Government''. Translated by Nobuko Tsukui. Boston: Weatherhill, 1984. During the 1890 General Election, Nakae successfully ran for a seat in the

lower house A lower house is one of two Debate chamber, chambers of a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has co ...

of the

Diet of Japan The is the national legislature of Japan. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives (, ''Shūgiin''), and an upper house, the House of Councillors (, '' Sangiin''). Both houses are directly elected under a paralle ...

from the Osaka 4th District. He allied with Itagaki’s '' Jiyūto'' political party, and its successor, the ''Rikken Jiyūtō'', establishing a newspaper, ''Rikken Jiyūtō Shinbun'', as the party’s official mouthpiece. However, Nakae soon became disenchanted with the domination of the ''Jiyūtō'' by members of the former Tosa clan, and its blind opposition to policies of the Chōshū-dominated government. He left government for health reasons and for

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

, and retired to

Hokkaidō is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

, where he again established a newspaper. He ran for office again in the 1892 General Election, and after re-election was a strong supporter of railroad development. Nakae continued to write, despite poverty and illness, until his death of

esophageal cancer Esophageal cancer is cancer arising from the esophagus—the food pipe that runs between the throat and the stomach. Symptoms often include difficulty in swallowing and weight loss. Other symptoms may include pain when swallowing, a hoarse voice ...

in 1901. His grave is at

Aoyama Cemetery is a cemetery in Aoyama, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, managed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. The cemetery is also famous for its cherry blossoms, and at the season of hanami, which many people would visit. History The cemetery was origin ...

, Tokyo.

Works

* A Discourse by Three Drunkards on Government

Notes

References

* Eddy Dufourmont, ''Rousseau et la première philosophie de la liberté en Asie (1874-1890): Nakae Chômin'', Le Bord de l'eau, 2021. * Dufourmont, Eddy. (2010)
"Is Confucianism philosophy ? The answers of Inoue Tetsujirô and Nakae Chômin,"
in ''Whither Japanese Philosophy?'' (Nakajima Takahiro ed.), UTCP Booklet 14, p. 71-89. * Dufourmont, Eddy. (2009)
"The Spirit of Parody: Nakae Chōmin and the 'Philosophy of Joy',:
in ''Whither Japanese Philosophy?'' (Nakajima Takahiro ed.), UTCP Booklet 11, p. 81-89. *Hane, Mikiso. ''Modern Japan: A Historical Survey''. Westview Press (2001). *Hotta Eri. ''Pan-Asianism and Japan’s War of 1931-1945. Pan-Asianism and Japan's War 1931-1945''. Palgrave Macmillan (2007). * Jansen, Marius B. (2000). ''The Making of Modern Japan.'' Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
OCLC 44090600
*

Najita, Tetsuo was an American historian. Biography A nisei, Najita was raised in Hawaii. He graduated from Grinnell College in 1958, and was named a Woodrow Wilson Fellow. While in Grinnell, he became a member of Phi Beta Kappa. Najita completed a doctorat ...

. ''Japan: The Intellectual Foundations of Modern Japanese Politics''. University of Chicago Press (1998).

External links

National Diet Library Bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chomin, Nakae People of Meiji-period Japan Japanese philosophers Japanese political journalists 1901 deaths 1847 births People from Kōchi, Kōchi Deaths from cancer in Japan Deaths from esophageal cancer 19th-century Japanese people Members of the House of Representatives (Empire of Japan) Liberal Party (Japan, 1881) politicians Burials in Japan

Biography

Works

Notes

See also

References

External links