Life in Samurai Era Japan:

As Envisioned by Akira Kurosawa

Evan Elias
JAPN 310: Japanese Cinema
Dr. Takahashi
12/8/15

Introduction
The Samurai. Almost everybody around the world has heard of them. They are a staple
part of Japanese culture. In fact, they are such a staple part that they could be a culture unto
themselves. People living in Japan have loved and idolized Samurai since they began and still
love them today. Akira Kurosawa himself, one of the most iconic filmmakers in the world, was
raised by a father who was a samurai. This really affected the way he viewed Samurai and the
way he portrayed them in films. The best way to see how Japanese people have viewed Samurai
is through the use of Japanese media. The way that Akira Kurosawa depicted daily life in his
movies reflects the popular opinion of the time on how people were assumed to have lived back
in Samurai Era Japan.
Before I start speaking about popular belief of Samurai, I will focus on the reality. A
Samurai was not just a mere foot soldier. A Samurai was a class of people, like the medieval
knight of Europe. In fact, Samurai Era Japan is very similar to Medieval Europe. The Samurai
Period in Japan began in 1604 and went until the Meiji Restoration in 1868.The King in Europe
is equivalent to the Shogun in Japan who was the Tokugawa Family. Underneath the King are his
noblemen, the equivalent in Japan being the Daimyo in Japan. Daimyo were the wealthy, land
owning Samurai who directly served and paid homage to the Shogunate (Vaporis, 2009, p. 17).
Underneath the noblemen in Europe were the knights of the kingdom. The equivalent to this in
Japanese culture is the run of the mill Samurai that many people think of. However, unlike in
Europe, underneath them existed another class of Samurai, the Ronin. The similarity is that
underneath the knights were peasants and underneath the Samurai were peasants as well.
However, the idealized Samurai and historical Samurai werent all that different in some aspects.
Throughout the history of Japan, the ideal version of a warrior changed with the times, starting in

the 1300s and ending before World War 2 (Coldren, 2013, p. 1). Its possible that the ideal
Samurai in the Era of Akira Kurosawa was going through another change as well, since he
existed in a time of disarmament due to Japans loss of World War 2. In this time, Japan had just
lost and were being de-militarized and all of their weapons were being confiscated by the U.S
Military. This included, but was not limited to, Samurai Families swords that had been passed
down through generations. In addition to that, the era of a militaristic Japan was unequivocally
over. Gone were the Samurai of old, and gone too was the era of a modern Japanese military.
Perhaps because of this, Akira Kurosawas Samurai films were so loved. It romanticized a time
long gone and never to come again and it reminded the Japanese people of their heritage in an
unstable time of great change.
The Movies of Akira Kurosawa
The best way to showcase that Akira Kurosawas movies depicted life in ancient Japan in
a way that seemed familiar to the public would be to use some of his movies as evidence. I will
be using three; Yojimbo, The Hidden Fortress, and Red Beard. All three of these movies take
place in the Samurai Era of Japan, also known as the Edo Period. This was a war-like and war
filled period. There was more war in this period than peace and it was in this period that most of
the famous warriors in Japanese history made names for themselves and their clans. Every battle
was an opportunity to better yourself and your clan. Every battle carried with it the opportunity
to make a name for yourself, become noticed by a great Samurai lord, and to become rich. As
such, everyone, from lowly peasants to the poor Samurai endeavored to do great things and
battle and eagerly awaited the next one and a chance to become great themselves. Because of
this, there are many stories, legends, and myths told about this period even in modern day Japan.
It was such a long, tumultuous and vibrant period that there was no way that legends couldnt be

made from it. Kurosawas movies carry within them stories that changed through the years,
idolized by Samurai families who may have well been formed in those times. These Samurai
families themselves might have told and retold these stories so many times that the stories grew
somewhat exaggerated by the end of it. The common beliefs of the common people were no
different either. Like the modern day student in America, reading about the Spartans or
Alexander the Great and the great things they did with awe, the peasants and, later, the modern
day Japanese person idolized these stories about what Samurai were and how they acted.
Yojimbo
Lets start off with Yojimbo. The main character in it called himself simply, Yojimbo. A
Yojimbo was a hired Samurai body guard, though they didnt always have to be Samurai. So,
basically, the main character in the movie didnt actually give his name. The man, Yojimbo, was
what was known as a Ronin, or a masterless, travelling Samurai. Like his appearance in the
movie, Ronin were poor Samurai, scarcely better off than peasants, and they wandered around
Japan looking for a master or a job to make money to live off of. Contrary to popular belief, there
were more of these poor, wandering Samurai than there were rich and powerful Samurai,
bedecked in expensive, fancy, armor and owners of vast castle estates. The Ronin of ancient
Japan sought to serve these powerful Samurai and make money and names for themselves. When
they couldnt, or were travelling around searching for a master, they commonly worked as
Yojimbo.
Now, both Ronin and Yojimbo were looked down upon by commoner and Samurai alike
in those times. The commoners viewed them as war hungry beasts, as evidenced in the beginning
of Yojimbo when a farmer called Yojimbo a filthy dog. The powerful samurai viewed them as
pathetic and lower class because they werent successful. However, today, and perhaps even in

the days when the movie released, people in Japan have shone a more romantic light upon Ronin
and Yojimbo. Their view on them is similar to the wests view on pirates. Theyre viewed as
swashbuckling, gruff, men who lead adventurous and exciting lives with a possibility of great
wealth and treasure.
Akira Kurosawa as well, though his Yojimbo, was grittier and realistic compared to a lot
of others movies about Yojimbo, made it action- and adventure-like. He viewed it kind of like a
western cowboy, searching for wealth. He notices the local criminal groups and plans to destroy
them by pitting them against each other. However, just like in many westerns, it doesnt work
and the main character just ends up killing them all themselves in a massive shoot out or, in this
case, a massive sword fight. One could say that Yojimbo was Kurosawas idealized version of a
Samurai.
The Hidden Fortress
If Yojimbo was a good way to describe Kurosawa and the common peoples views on the
Ronin then The Hidden Fortress is a good way to describe their views on the traditional Samurai.
The Samurai bedecked in fancy armor, upholding every value of Bushido and holders of vast
estates that most people think of when they hear the word, Samurai. The Samurai that Toshiro
Mifune plays in this movie meets that standard. However, they meet this standard without
holding vast estates and fancy armor since the Samurai and his master in this movie belong to a
defeated clan and are running for their lives and trying to escape their former country in shabby,
wrecked clothing. Regardless of their state of dress, they still manage to uphold the traditional
Samurai class etiquette and form. The second we see Mifune, we can tell he is a Samurai by the
way he holds himself. He stands up straight, never slouches or ambles and every movement is
quick and precise. He also keeps his left hand on a stick he stuck into his obi and his right hand is

across his body, as if to draw the stick. Even though he is trying to disguise himself as a nonsamurai, he cannot hide his posture and presence. A samurai is always ready for battle, and we
can see that from his stance of being ready to draw his sword, or a stick in this case.
In this movie I believe we can see Kurosawas upbringing in a Samurai household the
most easily. Just like Kurosawas father, who had many traditions and rules he had to uphold, we
see many of the Samurai traditions and rules in this move. Kurosawa remembered in his
autobiography, Akira Kurosawa: Something Like an Autobiography, his father getting mad at his
mother for serving him his food with his chopsticks facing him. In samurai tradition, this was
done by a samurai about to perform Seppuku, or ritual suicide by cutting ones stomach open.
(Kurosawa, 1983, p. 35). There may have been many other incidents like that in Kurosawas
upbringing that, unbeknownst to him, imprinted into his mind and affected his view on samurai
in general and in his movies.
Red Beard
The final movie I would like to speak about is Akira Kurosawas, Red Beard. Unlike the
former two movies, this movie doesnt star a samurai. The main character in this movie is named
Noboru Yasumoto, a young doctor. He comes from a prominent family that may, or may not, be a
samurai family. However, regardless of whether they were or not, he wore a short sword at his
waist, he lived in Samurai Era Japan and is a good window into how the public and Kurosawa
viewed it. Also dissimilar to the first two movies was the fact that there was very little action in
the way of fighting and adventure in this movie. I can think of only one actual fight scene in this
film and, though I enjoyed it and thought it was very cool, it had little to do with the plot.
This film is more of a view into how common people lived in the Samurai Era Japan and
less about how the Samurai lived. Its in this film that we focus mainly on the poor, common folk

and see how they lived. Some of it is, of course, exaggerated but it is still a view into the minds
of the common people of Japan back then and today since they believe that the peasants in the
movie are accurately represented. In this film, the sick peasants in the hospital respect and
protect each other. They group together for protection and because of common cause, in this case
their illness. They care when anyone dies and, like in the movie when one man keeps working
despite the doctors telling him not too, they warn someone to listen to the doctors because they
actually cared what happened to the person. The poor nurses as well, had a tight knit group and
protected each other and those they accepted into the fold. However, like in the movie when a
poor boy snuck in and tried to steal food and the little girl that Red Beard and Noboru saved
didnt help try and stop him, they are very suspicious and angry towards strangers. I feel like this
was the common viewpoint of common peasants in Samurai Era Japan. They didnt trust very
easily because it could easily be an enemy nation plot and it could lead to their deaths or their
women being raped or sold or all three. However, once you earned that trust or were born into a
village with them, they trusted you with their lives and cared about you as if they were family.
I feel like Kurosawas experiences with his family in Akita really helped influence the
peasants in his movies. They were really kind to him and treated him like family, though this
might just be because some of them were family or the fact that his fathers family used to rule
there. Whatever the reason, Kurosawa thought that this village was frozen in time, and it hadnt
changed at all whenever he had visited it within his life (Kurosawa, 1983, p. 62). I feel like that
was where he got most of his ideas on how the common folk in Edo Era Japan from. What would
be a better place to research ancient Japan than a little village, left behind by time. He even said
that they didnt know any foreigner foods, like Pork Tonkatsu, which wasnt foreign at all but

Japanese food. Since they were so out of touch with their own, modern, country they must have
been a decent representative to older Japan (Kurosawa, 1983, p. 62).
Closing Statements
While the Samurai tradition is well known throughout Japan and without, not many
people know of the actual details of Edo Period Japan. They know of the stylized and
romanticized versions of Samurai but dont know anything about the truth. However, you can
find some truth in the stylized media, such as we did in Akira Kurosawas movies. Through them
we can learn of the common peoples lives in these Eras. Since these lives werent very admired,
they are left, almost, unchanged by rumors and myth. We learn almost exactly how they behaved
and the way they believed. Kurosawa was able to do so because of his upbringing and his time in
Akita. However, though more accurate in a way, Kurosawas view of Samurai was no less
affected by popular belief and media than the common persons. His, Yojimbo, was an idealized,
western cowboy-styled samurai despite being a poor Ronin. This Ronin was looking for money
and doing the right thing while still being gruff and willing to do anything for money. His,
Rokurota Makabe, from The Hidden Fortress, was better but still slightly idealized. He upheld
every ideal of a proper Samurai and followed every rule as did the Samurai, despite being a
retainer to a lord with no power. This was something that Kurosawas father might have inspired
with his insistence on following Samurai rules despite no longer being a Samurai. However, this
movie was still filled with clichs like how Izumi Nagakura, the enemy general who happened to
be good friends with Rokurota Makabe, betrayed his lord for Rokurota and his master, Princess
Yuki, because she showed bravery in the face of death and his lord seemed less awe inspiring.
So, in conclusion, I believe that Akira Kurosawa was at some times more influenced by popular
belief of samurai than in others. As he was raised by a Samurai father, it would make sense that

he would hold beliefs, glorifying these important Samurai and their actions and histories. He was
also raised in a time that saw great changes in Japan, including modernization and life after
World War II. His films highlighted traditional elements appropriate to the Samurai era while
also implying these values still held value within his lifetime. So much so that his movies have
had numerous remakes throughout the ages by other directors. In fact, it was not just his movies
that were influential. Even his techniques, groundbreaking at the time, have been emulated and
are celebrated to this day. (Wild, 2004, p. 7).
Life of Edo Period Japan, as depicted by Akira Kurosawa, was fairly accurate compared
to history. The exception to that being the Samurai he depicted. He had a somewhat biased view
on the Samurai and he had to make the main characters of his movies interesting so his already
biased view became even more exaggerated in the name of entertainment. He was not alone in
this, however. The common people of Japan also loved these exaggerated stories. Perhaps it was
because it rekindled some ancestral desire to become great through battles, like the desires of the
Edo period Samurai and peasants or it might be because they miss the closeness that the
characters in ancient Japan held, a closeness that is swiftly disappearing in modern Japan.
Whatever the reason, like most media, Akira Kurosawas movies held a portion of truth, a
portion of exaggerated myth, and a whole lot of entertainment.

Works Cited
Akira Kurosawa
Kurosawa, A. (1983). Something Like an Autobiography. New York, New York.: Random House,
Inc.
Tour of Duty
Vaporis, Constantine N. (2009). Samurai, Military Service in Edo, and the Culture of Early
Modern Japan. Honolulu, Hawaii.: University of Hawaii Press.
Coldren, David A. (2013) "Literature of Bushido: Loyalty, Honorable Death, and the Evolution
of the Samurai Ideal," International ResearchScape Journal: Vol. 1, Article 2.
Wild, P. (2014). Akira Kurosawa. London, UK: Reaktion Books.