[Column] Ryotaro Shiba's Assessment of Yukichi Fukuzawa: The Power of Cutting Losses in Osaka

2023/12/20

Image: Monument of the former site of Osaka Keio University

The author Ryotaro Shiba (1923–96), who celebrated the 100th anniversary of his birth, resided in Higashiosaka City and continued to write and publish historical novels with rich narratives such as "Tobu ga Gotoku" and "Kashin," as well as travelogues and essays like "Kaido wo Yuku" and "Kono Kuni no Katachi."

An interesting article about Shiba, who is sometimes evaluated as a "national writer," was published in the April issue of Mita-hyoron (official monthly journal published by Keio University Press), No. 1276. It is titled "Three-Person Chat: 100th Anniversary of Ryotaro Shiba's Birth." In this article, Professor Morihide Katayama of Keio University, a specialist in the history of political thought and a well-known music critic, discusses Shiba from various perspectives along with Hiroshi Oishi (Guest Professor (Part-time) at Jumonji University and Professor Emeritus of Keio University) and Yoshiaki Fukuma (Professor at Ritsumeikan University).

According to the article, Mr. Oishi asks, "Ryotaro Shiba mentions Yukichi Fukuzawa when writing about Ogata Koan, for example, but he never discussed him head-on. I wonder why?" In response, Mr. Katayama replies as follows.

"I suspect he wasn't the type of person Shiba liked. If Yukichi Fukuzawa had died sooner, I think he would have written about him. He founded Keio University, established himself as a grand figure, and lived quite a long life for that time. (...) Instead of dying in the midst of romance like Shinsaku Takasugi, he became like a 'Don.' Shiba isn't interested in people like that." Mr. Katayama's characteristic way of speaking is truly interesting. That said, was Shiba really uninterested in Yukichi Fukuzawa as Mr. Katayama suggests? My answer is 'No.'"

It is true that Shiba did not write a novel with Fukuzawa as the protagonist. However, as I discussed in my small book, "Letters to Ryotaro Shiba on the 100th Anniversary of His Birth: Rediscovering the Academic City of Osaka" (Dnieper Publishing, 2023), Shiba often spoke favorably of Fukuzawa in his lectures. For example, in a lecture given on January 28, 1988, at the Kanagawa Prefectural Youth Center, he asserted: "I like Yukichi Fukuzawa. This man wrote very easy-to-understand prose. (...) Fukuzawa used to say, 'The things I write can be understood even by a monkey.' Even looking at his writing alone, Fukuzawa was a wonderful enlightenment thinker."

Furthermore, at the beginning of his lecture "Sun Yat-sen's Farewell to Japan" given on November 12, 1984, at the Kobe City Labor Hall, Shiba said: "Before I talk about Dr. Sun Yat-sen, I will talk about Yukichi Fukuzawa. I like Yukichi Fukuzawa, but there are parts of him that are a bit difficult to understand. He has aspects that are quite detached from ordinary people, and those parts are dry. He is a dry person." What Shiba means by a "dry person" is likely someone with a logical and rational spirit. Such a man, Fukuzawa, has very deep ties to the Kansai region.

First, Fukuzawa's birthplace is Osaka. His father was a retainer of the Nakatsu Okudaira family (a daimyo family located in what is now Nakatsu City, Oita Prefecture) and was posted to the family's Osaka warehouse residence with his family. Fukuzawa was subsequently born in Osaka. Second, Tekijuku, opened in Osaka by the Dutch scholar Ogata Koan, is Fukuzawa's alma mater. Therefore, Fukuzawa spent his youth in Osaka during the end of the Edo period. Third, I would like to highlight the historical fact that after the Meiji Restoration, Fukuzawa established educational enterprises in various parts of Kansai, including Wakayama, Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokushima.

In modern terms, Yukichi Fukuzawa was truly an entrepreneur with the face of a venture capitalist. This is because he founded the private school Keio University in Edo (Tokyo) and started businesses such as the Jiji Shinpo (a daily newspaper) and Kojunsha (a social club). At the same time, we must not forget that Fukuzawa was a first-rate journalist who left behind numerous works such as Things Western (Seiyō Jijō) and An Outline of a Theory of Civilization.

Now, in November 1873, Fukuzawa made a move by establishing Osaka Keio University. He started a branch of the Tokyo Keio University in Osaka. This was because Heigoro Shoda (who later became a manager of the Mitsubishi Zaibatsu), who was a teacher at Keio University in Tokyo at the time, suggested that there would be a demand for Keio-style education in Osaka and that it would thrive.

Fukuzawa also seemed to believe that Keio University would thrive in Osaka just as it did in Tokyo. This was because, in Osaka at the time, famous early modern private schools and academies like Tekijuku and Kaitokudo were in decline, and the newly opened Shusei School (the predecessor of Osaka Prefectural Kitano High School) was a very small-scale institution. In other words, there were few competing schools, so he saw a chance of success.

Fukuzawa submitted an application for establishment to Noboru Watanabe, the Vice Governor of Osaka Prefecture, and opened Osaka Keio University by renting a private house in Shinsaibashi-suji. According to the "Osaka Keio University Opening Report," four subjects were taught at the school: "English books, translated books, Western arithmetic, and Japanese arithmetic." The entrance fee was 3 yen, and tuition was set according to the subject taken—for example, the monthly fee for "English books" was 75 sen. Teachers were dispatched from Keio University in Tokyo.

However, things did not go according to Fukuzawa's calculations. Students did not gather as expected. Realizing the failure of Osaka Keio University, Fukuzawa decided to withdraw from Osaka as early as June 1875 and closed the school. Fukuzawa demonstrated a swift ability to cut his losses. Looking at this management decision, Fukuzawa was indeed a "dry person" in the sense of possessing a rational spirit.

Income (tuition, donations, etc.) was unlikely to meet the running costs of Osaka Keio University. Rather than struggling and focusing on PR to recruit students in Osaka, Yukichi Fukuzawa chose a way of life where he quickly withdrew from Osaka and sought a completely different move. This power to cut losses is one of the charms of Fukuzawa, who shrewdly survived the Meiji Restoration, and it is something that modern educators facing a period of change, especially managers of private schools, should learn from.

Even so, why did Keio University fail in Osaka? I have discussed a hypothesis that differs from the common theory regarding the cause of the slump in the aforementioned small book, and I would be honored if you would take a look.