The emperor's palace was formerly the castle of the Tokugawas there is a temple here, a scene of an ancient battle there, a tomb of a famous warrior around the corner. And even a Tokyoite in the middle of the concrete jungle does not have to travel far to be reminded of the ancient past. Some of us continue the traditions of 16th-century Japan in the form of tea ceremonies, the martial arts, Zen Buddhism. We Japanese grow up with that stuff - samurai games, tons of comic books and novels, movies, and countless samurai series on the tube. No, we do not go around lopping people's heads off, committing hara-kiri on the slightest pretext, boiling people to death, nor urinating on them.īut I should be understanding: Most Americans have never seen a drama about 16th-century Japan. Then I'll reply yes to the first two and scream "No!" to the third. At the next cocktail party someone will inevitably approach me and ask if I am Japanese, if I have seen "Shogun" and if all those horrible things that the Japanese did were true. By Kunio Francis Tanabe September 17, 1980
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