The Career Design of Fukuzawa Yukichi

2004/04/01

Published in "Juku" No. 242, 2004

From the end of the Edo period to the Meiji era!
Fukuzawa Yukichi's life was split between the early modern and modern periods, with the Meiji Restoration as the dividing line. He passed away at the age of 68 in the year that marked the beginning of the 20th century.
Born as the second son of a low-ranking samurai of the Nakatsu domain and having lost his father at the age of two, what kind of ambitions did Fukuzawa hold as he forged his path in life and raced through the dawn of the modern era?

"Banking, life insurance, trading companies, publishing, newspapers, hotels"—these are not the employment destinations of today's Keio students. They are the main industries in which Fukuzawa Yukichi was directly or indirectly involved in establishing during the early Meiji era. Fukuzawa persuaded his disciples to manage the various industries that Japan needed on its path to modernization. He lobbied the government on behalf of Yokohama merchants who complained about the negative effects of foreign banks monopolizing foreign exchange services, and realized the establishment of the Yokohama Specie Bank (later the Bank of Tokyo) with Nobukichi Koizumi as its vice president. Yuteki Hayashi started the Maruya Trading Company, which handled pharmaceuticals and Western books under the trade name Maruzen. Hikojiro Nakamigawa, known as the restorer of the Mitsui zaibatsu; Heigoro Shoda, who built the Mitsubishi zaibatsu as the manager of Mitsubishi Goshi Kaisha; and many other disciples were active in the financial world. Fukuzawa himself entered the publishing business in 1869 (Meiji 2), joining the booksellers' guild under the name "Fukuzawaya Yukichi." This later developed into the Keio University Press. For Fukuzawa, who argued that "if one person is independent, one nation is independent" and that strengthening the power of the citizenry, rather than relying on the power of the government, would lead to true nation-building, creating a financial world that stood on equal footing with the political and bureaucratic worlds was nothing less than the practice of his philosophy.

What kind of aspirations did Fukuzawa himself, who sent his young disciples into the business world, have in his youth? According to "Fukuō jiden" (The Autobiography of a Venerable Old Man), when he was around 16 or 17, his older brother Sannosuke asked him, "What do you intend to become in the future?" Fukuzawa replied, "Well, first I think I'll become the richest man in Japan and spend money as I please," for which he was scolded. This was written in his later years and contains some exaggeration; it is likely that he merely mentioned merchants, the most despised profession at the time, out of rebellion and ridicule toward his brother, who, as a samurai of the Nakatsu domain, sought to uphold "filial piety, fraternal love, loyalty, and faithfulness until death." Born into the family of a low-ranking samurai in a feudal society, Fukuzawa had few career options. His father, Hyakusuke, who died when Fukuzawa was 18 months old, was pleased that the newborn Yukichi seemed likely to grow up big and strong and said he would make him a Buddhist priest when he grew up. In later years, Fukuzawa felt sorry for his scholar father, who, constrained by the feudal system, was unable to accomplish anything and passed away in vain. He wept at the thought of his father's inner suffering and deep love, who had intended to make his son famous even if it meant him becoming a monk. What is clear is that the young Yukichi harbored the ambition to one day break free from the narrow world of the domain and devote himself to academic training. Also around the age of 16 or 17, he became engrossed in practicing massage, about which he said, "I had no great ambition or anything of the sort. I was just poor but still wanted to pursue my studies, so I came up with the idea of massage out of necessity." In his later years, he would demonstrate his massage skills to his wife and children to make them laugh. Fukuzawa had been languishing under the clan-based system, but the turbulent times at the end of the Edo period opened up a path for him. Starting with his departure to Nagasaki at age 19 to study Dutch studies, he went on to study at Ogata Koan's Tekijuku in Osaka, where he eventually became the President. However, he was summoned to Edo by domain order and in 1858 (Ansei 5), he opened a school for Dutch studies in a corner of the domain's residence in Tsukiji Teppozu. This was the origin of Keio University. Around that time, he encountered a major event that would determine the course of his later life. One day, he visited the foreign settlement in Yokohama and was shocked to find that he could not read the English signs, and that his prized Dutch studies were of no use. However, as soon as he realized that the world would henceforth be centered on English studies, he recovered from his disappointment the very next day and began learning English. He devoted himself to his studies almost entirely on his own, not hesitating to ask even a young castaway for pronunciation lessons. A year later, when the shogunate decided to dispatch the Kanrin Maru to the United States, he managed to accompany the mission, even debasing himself to the lowly status of an attendant to a magistrate. There is no need to elaborate on Fukuzawa's subsequent achievements.

Fukuzawa Yukichi's distinctive qualities lie in his foresight to see into the future, his decisiveness to act without hesitation once a decision is made, and his adventurous spirit to bet on what he believes in. In addition, it can be said that his flexible, rational spirit, unbound by common sense or convention, and his personality, which allowed him to overcome adversity with humor, led to his great success. Born in 1835 and passing away in 1901 after the turn of the 20th century, Fukuzawa lived exactly half his life in the Tokugawa period and half in the Meiji period, with the Meiji Restoration as the dividing line. It may seem as though the son of a low-ranking samurai, living in a turbulent era, was swept away by the times and led an unexpected life. His moves to Osaka and Edo were prompted by his brother's recommendation and the domain's orders. However, he did not seek advancement within the domain, nor did he serve the shogunate to the death after being employed by it; instead, he went beyond his duties as a professor of Dutch studies and a translator of Western books to strive for his own self-improvement. In modern terms, his mindset was one of "finding a profession" rather than "joining a company." However, Fukuzawa himself recommended that young people study without a specific purpose. In Edo, where the shogunate and various domains were eager to acquire new Western technologies, it was easy for those with some understanding of Western books to make a living from translation fees. In Osaka, however, a city of merchants, students could study for years without finding work or securing their livelihood. As a result, a culture of studying diligently for the sheer enjoyment of learning, without a specific goal, emerged, which in turn increased their abilities. Indeed, it is difficult to be clearly aware of one's own abilities and the path one should take during one's youth. Even listening to the employment experiences of Keio University alumni, there are many examples of people who entered their current path through unexpected opportunities and achieved success. During one's student years, it is preferable to devote oneself to purposeless study, cultivating the comprehension and judgment applicable to all things. And above all, is not the greatest career design to form a character of independence and self-respect, one that is not swayed by the world?

Among the "learning" that Fukuzawa recommended is jinkan kosai (society). He stated, "The most important thing in the world is the association between people. This in itself is a form of learning" (from *Buzen Bungo Michi Bushin no Setsu*), and also preached, "All things in this world, be it learning, industry, politics, or law, exist for the sake of jinkan kosai (society); without human association, all would be useless. The broader the association, the more harmonious human feelings become, and the less likely it is that war will be rashly started" (from "Gakumon no susume (An Encouragement of Learning)," Part Nine). Trust in people, the tolerance to speak with an open heart, and a spirit of open-minded interaction regardless of age—this is the tradition of Keio University, and the comprehensive human skills cultivated through interaction with others become a valuable qualification. The founder of the university, Fukuzawa Yukichi, did not have a career design in the narrow sense of which qualifications to obtain or which job to take. However, his life, which could be described as a grand play, teaches us that broadening one's world through learning and jinkan kosai (society) is the best career design.