May 30, 2024
On May 15, 1868, while Edo (present-day Tokyo) was in a state of turmoil in the midst of the Boshin War, Yukichi Fukuzawa remained unperturbed and continued to present a lecture as usual on an economic text by the American economist Francis Wayland. A memorial lecture has been held at Keio University on May 15, designated the "Yukichi Fukuzawa-Francis Wayland Lecture Day," since 1956 in order to pass down to posterity the spirit of Fukuzawa who esteemed learning and education over any social change that took place.
On Wednesday, May 15, this year, Professor Emeritus Shigehiko Ioku delivered a lecture titled, "Yukichi Fukuzawa and Indigenous Industries ― Focusing on His Thoughts on theSakeBrewing Industry."
Professor Emeritus Ioku explained that Yukichi Fukuzawa had a close connection withsakethroughout his life, and held high expectations for thesakebrewing industry, among other indigenous industries. To modernize thesakebrewing industry, Fukuzawa proposed that Japanese traditional techniques and experience should be combined with Western science-based brewing methods. He added that the current popularity that Japanese brewed products, such assakeand soy sauce, enjoy overseas is thanks to the fact that Japanese brewers have respected, cherished and preserved their unique traditions and experience while developing their breweries, rather than pushing for uniform mechanization across the industry, and Fukuzawa’s teachings are said to have contributed to this.
During that era, Fukuzawa would have wanted to impart to his pupils not only Western technology, but Western philosophy as well, so that they could leverage it to modernize and develop their traditional family businesses. The audience listened intently and many could be seen taking notes on the handouts for the lecture.
Photographer: Takeshi Kishi