Fukuzawa Yukichi Memorial Keio History Museum 2nd Article: Expanding the Horizons of the History of Yukichi Fukuzawa and Keio University

2021/03/16

One thing you notice when visiting other historic universities is that Keio University has very few bronze statues. To begin with, Yukichi Fukuzawa disliked bronze statues. He hated the idea of a person's achievements being implanted as an established authority rather than being evaluated based on facts. Therefore, those close to Fukuzawa did not build a statue after his death. When a movement to build one in Nakatsu started in 1904, it was stopped, and instead of a statue, a giant obelisk engraved with "independence and self-respect" was erected.

However, in the post-war era, as the number of people who had direct contact with Fukuzawa dwindled, a bust (created by Kaiseki Shibata) was made while people who knew his appearance well were still around; this is the bust currently located on the Mita Campus.

Today, it is taken for granted that a statue of Fukuzawa stands on campus. He is a great figure in textbooks. A pioneer who brought the whirlwind of Western civilization to Japan. A success story recognized by the government, becoming the face of the 10,000 yen note. The bronze statue, which embodies Fukuzawa—now a figure above the clouds—in the physical world, is a perfect photo spot for visitors to Mita, with some even folding their hands in prayer or offering coins. Keio University, the school he founded, is now viewed as an authority, ranked among the most difficult higher education institutions. Some alumni distinguish people based on whether they are "Keio University alumni" or not, huddling together with an attitude that anyone who is not an alumnus is not worth knowing. The philosophy and history at the core of this solidarity are often overlooked, and I fear that both "Yukichi Fukuzawa" and "Keio University" have now undoubtedly become institutionalized authorities.

I am not suggesting we follow the BLM movement and destroy the Fukuzawa statue at Mita. Rather, I believe we need to strip away that authority once more and humbly examine and share its contemporary and modern significance. This was the primary focus when preparing this museum.

I wanted to prevent visitors from falling into a state of mental stagnation due to the preconceived image of "the great Yukichi Fukuzawa." Therefore, I placed a main visual at the beginning that is "not conventionally cool but grows on you." It shows Fukuzawa in his final years, dressed strangely and leaning on a cane while taking a walk. It is a famous photograph, but to those who don't know it, it looks odd. However, this appearance actually expresses his philosophy succinctly. Furthermore, it connects to the academic culture of Keio University today. From the opening message next to that life-sized photo, a single pen-drawn line emerges and guides visitors through the exhibition hall in one continuous stroke. This line represents the flow of empirical and rational learning—what Fukuzawa called "jitsugaku (science)"—which started with the birth of Dutch Studies in Japan and continues strongly today through the intervention of Fukuzawa and Keio University. The line escorts visitors, transforming into the figures of Keio students from various eras or depicting symbolic patterns related to the exhibits. Keio students from the early Meiji period with cropped hair and kimonos, the Taisho period with soft hats and high-collared uniforms, the pre-war period with round caps and gakuran, the post-war period in civilian clothes, or those in uniforms from affiliated schools are scattered about alongside the walking Fukuzawa, all connected by a single continuous line.

This concept was refined through repeated online sessions during the COVID-19 lockdown with Rie Nishio of Total Media Development Institute, designer Keiji Harada, and planner Wataru Ishikawa.

As you walk through the exhibition space following the line, the line ends at the very last part. If you look closely, Fukuzawa is nowhere to be found. This carries the message of continuing to move forward beyond Fukuzawa.

One thing I was careful about in this exhibition was ensuring that people with no connection to Keio University would also find it interesting. This museum intends to raise questions about Japan's progress since the modern era, not as a history led by the government or politics, but from the perspectives of resistance and setbacks by private-sector forces, education, and scholarship. To achieve this, it was necessary to avoid creating a space that alienates those outside the Keio University community. Unique Keio terminology requires caution. For example, terms like "Keio University alumni" or "Keio Gijuku Shachu" can easily create an exclusionary, "insider" feel.

However, in the final section of the exhibition, I deliberately featured "Shachu Cooperation" and "Mita-kai." In the commentary, I wrote that the tradition of Shachu cooperation is "originally not something self-righteous or exclusive, but something that combines social proactivity with a sense of tension to protect the ideals of a private institution." This solidarity originally had a context that could be called resistance against the worship of the government and the disparagement of the people. We should not be gleefully buying up media reports that have recently been highlighting the solidarity of Mita-kai and Keio University alumni, calling them the "kings of academic cliques." This part of the exhibition is an expression of my own "concern for the Juku," and it might be the most personal description in the entire museum.

I also intended to write in a way that does not ignore the existence of critical perspectives toward Yukichi Fukuzawa, aiming to ensure that interest continues through diverse interpretations and readings.

While many modern exhibition facilities use various elaborate display methods, this museum is quite orthodox in that regard. Although I tried to minimize the word count and keep explanations simple, one might get the impression that the text is packed in tightly. Someone who saw it for the first time even remarked, "It's quite 'dense,' contrary to the current times (social distancing)."

To ensure it isn't insufficient for those who want to know more, I provided a wealth of information while placing keywords throughout that lead to further interesting topics, creating a network of links that visitors will notice as they view the exhibition multiple times.

Additionally, I scattered impressive passages, such as Fukuzawa's own words and important texts from Keio's history, throughout the exhibition. I had museums of various U.S. presidents in mind for this. Along with the "actual materials," I wanted visitors to encounter the "raw words" of the time, hoping to spark curiosity so that they might return to the original sources to deepen their understanding if interested.

Another area of great effort was the principle of providing English translations, anticipating international visitors. This was made possible through the hard work of Philip Brunton, Thomas Lidwen, and Alex Queen from the Global Engagement Office Keio Translation Team, as well as Jeffrey Krashige from the Faculty of Business and Commerce. Translating historical expressions into English is quite difficult, and I suspect we will need to continue making revisions. Beyond that, following recent trends, all names were standardized to the Surname-Given Name order. For historical proper nouns within Keio that lacked established translations, we created new ones. For example, the "Kotobu" established in 1922 was translated as "Junior College of Liberal Education," a significant liberal translation based on the reality of the education and pre-war translation examples. For the "Shoko Gakko" opened in 1905, we did not adopt a different recent translation example; instead, noting that the school's emblem featured the letters C and T overlaid on The Pen Mark, we translated it as "Commercial and Technical School." In this way, we incorporated various circumstances into the English translations as much as possible.

Even if you visit this museum, there is not a single immediately useful exhibit that provides a direct answer to today's complex social conditions. During the planning phase, I sometimes heard voices asking if we should use the precious space in cramped Mita for backward-looking purposes like reflecting on the past. History may not have immediate effects, but over many years, it can have the power to influence the way people live. I want this facility to be such a place, regardless of whether one is affiliated with Keio University. In that sense, I believe the existence of Fukuzawa and the history of Keio University are truly useful.

Fukuzawa, who knew all too well the suspicious nature of things that everyone immediately appreciates, noticed as his death approached that those around him were expecting "final words of wisdom." What was born then was "independence and self-respect." These words are easily accepted by anyone, yet in reality, they simply mean "think for yourself." If we can make this a place that supports the strength of visitors to continue learning throughout their lives, always thinking for themselves and taking on challenges, I will be satisfied.

Fukuzawa Yukichi Memorial Keio History Museum Website

Fukuzawa Yukichi Memorial Keio History Museum – A history museum for thinking about modern civilization through the life of Yukichi Fukuzawa and the 160-year history of Keio University