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"The Little Kingdom"

In "The Little Kingdom", Junichiro Tanizaki makes a socio-political commentary on Japan's need for a more democratic form of government. Tanizaki's short story was written in 1918, when prewar Japan was at the beginning of a period of class struggle. That the setting for "The Little Kingdom" is a classroom is no coincidence since the Japanese imperial government targeted education as a chief tool in its indoctrination and repression of the lower classes.

The hero of "The Little Kingdom" is Kaijima Shokichi, a middle-aged schoolteacher. Kaijima is described as a true "child of Edo," Edo being the former name of Tokyo before it was renamed and adopted as the imperial capital. That the hero is a nonconformist is evidenced early in his description. Kaijima is determined to become a scholar and defies the wishes of his father, who wants his son to accept an apprenticeship somewhere. Kaijima's independence is uncharacteristic of Japanese males during this period. The compelling norm of society was that children must do things for the sake of the family: "people learned to inhibit any personal desires which might go beyond the limits of what the family could tolerate or threaten its existence" (Fukutake, 1989, p. 41). Obedience to the household, even when it required considerable personal sacrifice, was encouraged by the imperial government because it helped to maintain harmony in the family that would serve as a model for society as well.

Kaijima is punished for his independent action, however, just as Japanese society punishes the nonconformist with isolation. Kaijima's dream is to become a Doctor of Letters and to devote his life to research on his favorite subject: Asian history. With the death of his father and Kaijima's own marriage, that dream is deferred. Family obligations finally catch up with Kaijima, and his ambitions give way to practical concerns. He becomes a primary school teacher, a position that he w...

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"The Little Kingdom". (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 06:22, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1708255.html