Two Spirits: The Dichotomy of Saigō Takamori and Its Portrayal in The Last Samurai

Abstract

The Last Samurai, directed by Edward Zwick, is easy to pass off as an American movie under the guise of a Japanese motif, but there is something deeper beneath the surface. The movie opened to Western criticism of the portrayal of samurai and Japan and mediocre public reception, but was juxtaposed by the overall positive and appreciative reception by Japanese viewers. While there are historical inaccuracies abound, these romanticized aspects that are commonly mistaken for Hollywood’s blatant disregard for factual events could in fact be indicative of a phenomenon deeply imbedded in Japanese culture. By analyzing the 21st century American movie itself, other popularized iterations of historical figures in Japanese media such as Sakamoto Ryōma, firsthand accounts of the modernization of Japan, and analyzing the Japanese reception of the movie compared to Western reception, this capstone aims to prove that portrayal of Japan and the rebel leader Saigō Takamori is a direct result of Japan’s own sense of tradition, heritage, and culture. Ultimately, this capstone will demonstrate that the glorification and misrepresentation of Japanese rebel Saigō Takamori is less a manufacturing of American design, and rather the mythologizing of a historical Japanese figure through a Japanese public memory that traditionally exemplifies certain characteristics of prominent national characters throughout its extensive history.