Tosa- The Life of John Manjiro - Japanology Plus

The fishing town of Tosa-Shimizu lies right at Shikoku's southernmost point. This is where the mighty Kuroshio Current first reaches the Japanese mainland. Since ancient times, people in the area have relied on its bounty, such as bonito and whale. In the 19th century, a fisherman from this place ended up in America. His name was Nakahama Manjiro, also known as John Manjiro. At age 14, Manjiro was caught in a storm while fishing, was shipwrecked, and eventually found himself in the U.S. He became the first Japanese person to receive a formal education in the U.S. On his return home, Manjiro used his knowledge of America to help open Japan to the world and assist relations with the U.S., playing an important role in the modernization of his home country. Manjiro lived in a truly global society. His spirit of never giving up gives us courage. Manjiro's achievements are highly regarded in the U.S., too. He was named by the Smithsonian Institution as one of 29 notable visitors in U.S. history, alongside great figures such as the British writer Charles Dickens. Manjiro's life became the subject of an American novel. It was recognized by the Newbery, considered one of the most prestigious children's book awards in the world. This influential book can be found in many American schools and libraries. He's cool. I think he's pretty cool. I thought it was pretty cool how he went through everything. Hello and welcome to Japanology Plus. I'm Peter Burrigan. I'm in Kochi on the island of Shikoku, an area which in the past was known as Tosa. The people of Tosa have an expression, the John Mung spirit, which refers to a man called John Manjiro, who was born here in the 19th century, the son of a fisherman. He never gave up, even in the midst of extreme hardship, which is what the John Mung spirit is about. An unexpected twist of fate took him to America, possibly the first Japanese ever to go there. On this episode of Japanology Plus, which is the first of two featuring the charms of Tosa, we'll take a closer look at the life of John Manjiro. Peter has come to a small fishing community in the city of Tosa-Shimizu. This is where John Manjiro was born and raised. Hello. Peter's guide today is Tosa historian, Tamura Kimitoshi. He's a local expert on John Manjiro. Nice view. Yes, it's the sea of Manjiro's hometown. This place feels fairly remote. What kind of a place is it? The Kuroshio current flows nearby, bringing with it the blessings of the sea. Today, the area is mainly accessible by land and considered rural. But in pre-modern times, when sea transportation was the main means of travel, it was an important location along those routes. During the Edo period, people sought out bonito in harsh conditions. The town flourished thanks to bonito fishing. Tosa-Shimizu has an inseparable bond with the sea. The house where Manjiro was born can still be found in Tosa-Shimizu. This is the house Manjiro grew up in. Very simple house. It's a restoration. The house was restored in 2010 based on old photographs. It's a simple wooden house with a thatched roof. Please come in. Was this a fairly typical fisherman's house? Yes, the layout is typical. It's really quite compact, isn't it? Manjiro was one of five siblings, so together with their father and mother, seven people lived here. They slept in this space, which is extremely small. Of the five children, Manjiro was the second son. His childhood was far from easy. How much is known about Manjiro's childhood? Manjiro lost his father at the age of nine. His elder brother was a sickly child. So at the age of 10, Manjiro went to work for a prominent family in the village. He felt he had to support his family and developed a sense of responsibility. But he wasn't actually getting paid. Although he didn't get paid, it reduced the number of mouths to feed at home. He was helping his family by cutting down on household expenses. At his master's house, Manjiro was tasked with husking large amounts of rice. To husk the rice, he used a foot-operated mortar and pestle. For a 10-year-old boy, it was a job that required quite some strength. But Manjiro came up with an ingenious idea. He put some gravel in the mortar along with the rice. Please come over here. The gravel rubs against the rice and speeds up the husking process. He was creative and ingenious like that. Interesting that nobody had ever thought of that, though. Yes, but on the flip side, if gravel was left in the rice, it would break people's teeth as they ate. He got a fierce scolding from his master. Then he argued with his master, ran out of the house, and escaped by swimming. He ran away. In those days, making one's master angry really did mean losing one's livelihood. But there were bonito fishing boats moored in the harbour of a neighbouring village. So he got a job there. The boy's intelligence and wit got him in trouble with his master. Perhaps he had no choice but to leave. After becoming a fisherman, Manjiro's life took an unexpected turn. He was 14 at the time. He was out fishing for the first time with four more experienced fishermen, and their boat was hit by a huge wave and badly damaged. After drifting for some time, they reached an uninhabited island some 750 kilometres from Tosa, called Torishima. Literally meaning bird island, Torishima is a volcanic island with very little vegetation and no spring water. They had to survive there, sheltering from the wind and rain in caves. But then a miracle happened. Manjiro spotted a ship out at sea. It was a passing American whaler, the John Howland. This happened after Manjiro and the others had spent nearly five months on the island. There is a statue in Tosa Shimizu that vividly depicts Manjiro and the other fishermen at this moment of hope. This incredibly dramatic scene. A foreign whaling ship, the John Howland, happened to be passing by Torishima. They all waved as hard as they could and shouted for help. It shows that scene. That's Manjiro at the front, trying his hardest, waving and seeking help. Nakahama Kyo is a fifth generation descendant of Manjiro. The Nakahama family has passed down Manjiro's writings from generation to generation. It's incredible that they managed to survive at all. Do you know how they did survive? They arrived on Torishima to find an island of very steep cliffs. But somehow they managed to get up onto land. But in that process, they lost all their flints and fishing equipment. However, luckily for them, there were albatrosses living on Torishima. They caught the birds and ate them to stave off hunger. They ate the meat raw or after drying it in the sun. Eating live albatross, raw albatross. After three months, however, the albatrosses finished breeding and flew away from the island. Now all they had for food was a little seaweed they could harvest. While everyone was in despair, Manjiro refused to give up. The older fishermen thought that they would die on the island and became despondent. Only Manjiro worked hard to find food. He encouraged the older fishermen and survived by refusing to ever give up. So if it hadn't been for him having a more positive attitude to surviving, the chances are that maybe none of them would have lived through long enough to be rescued by the ship. That's right. However, Manjiro and the other fishermen were unable to return to Japan. At that time, Japan had a policy of national isolation. Any foreign ship approaching the coast would be fired on and quickly driven off. The captain of the whaling ship that had rescued them, William Whitfield, proposed to the young Manjiro that they travel to the United States together. After considering the matter, Manjiro decided to part with the other fishermen when they disembarked in Hawaii and go with Captain Whitfield to America. Did Manjiro himself want to go to America? Yes. The young Manjiro was full of curiosity. In any case, if he went back to Japan, the policy of isolation meant he wouldn't be let in. But the main reason he went to America was Captain Whitfield. Manjiro was drawn to the captain and followed him. I think he wanted to see a new world. Manjiro arrived in New Bedford, Massachusetts. In the 19th century, it was a bustling town because it was home to one of the world's leading whaling ports. Manjiro was welcomed into the Whitfield family, treated like their own son, and was given the name John Mung. Manjiro was 16 years old, but due to his family's poverty, had not received any education in Japan. In the U.S., he attended elementary school and learned his ABCs alongside younger students. After graduating from elementary school, Manjiro entered a school of navigation. At this school, Manjiro learned about more than just navigation, becoming acutely aware of the difference between American democracy and Japan's feudal system. Then, at the age of 19, Manjiro once again went on a whaling ship. The voyage's goal was whale oil. It was before the development of the oil industry, and the American whaling industry was at its very peak. People from many different countries lived together on the whaling ships. Manjiro was exposed to different cultures every day while venturing out onto the world's oceans as a member of the whaling crew. Sakurai Hayato is an advisory curator at the New Bedford Whaling Museum and researches the history of American whaling. What would life have been like on an American whaling ship? Let's take a look at this model. The huge whale ships carried small boats like these. It was actually these boats that pursued the whales, and they were crewed by people, each with their own role. At first, Manjiro was literally a complete unknown. But he wasn't the only unknown person. At the peak of the American whaling industry, ships like these sailed the world's oceans. It was extremely tough work. People got injured a lot, and fed-up sailors would run away. For those reasons, the ships would recruit new people wherever they went. And he'd thrown onto an American whaling ship with a crew recruited from all over the world and put in this very international situation where he probably doesn't understand what people are talking about. It's a real adventure for him, isn't it? It is. And yet, Manjiro seized an opportunity to be promoted to harpooner. The harpooner was the person who finished off the whale, an important role given only to the most trusted. There were people with various cultural backgrounds on the ship, and yet Manjiro managed to earn their trust. It's not about language or where one is from. The whaling world required what you might call the whole range of human qualities. Manjiro believed he had a role to play in the American whaling industry, and that he was rightly appreciated. I think he really felt that. Manjiro lived in the U.S. without ever losing heart or giving up. He had grown up amid the strict master-servant relationships in Japan, but now discovered the joy of being appreciated by others. Then, at the age of 24, Manjiro finally returned to Japan, the country he had left a decade before. What awaited him was a series of harsh interrogations. During Japan's period of national isolation, traveling abroad was a crime punishable by death. Although Manjiro escaped the death penalty, he underwent a series of interrogations spanning nearly two years. The year after he finally returned to his hometown, an earth-shattering event happened in Japan. Commodore Perry of the U.S. Navy conveyed his nation's request to Japan that it open its ports to protect shipwrecked sailors and supply fuel to whaling ships. Manjiro was asked for his opinion by the shogunate. Manjiro told officials that the U.S. was not a hostile nation and urged them to open Japan's ports. As a result, Japan began to take steps toward opening itself up to the world. Having seen the outside world with his own eyes, Manjiro firmly believed Japan needed to open its doors. Before his return to Japan, Manjiro had written a letter to Captain Whitfield. I will try to open a port, he wrote. He signed the letter, John Mum, and added the word Japanese. Five years after Commodore Perry's arrival, Japan's first official international delegation visited the U.S. The nation's doors to the world had opened. It is said that Manjiro had joined the mission as an interpreter, providing support and advice alongside great figures of Japan's modernization, such as Katsu Kaishu and Fukuzawa Yukichi. However, he didn't appear in any of the mission photographs. He stayed behind the scenes, out of the spotlight. At the John Mum Museum in Tosa-Shimizu, there are numerous books and materials related to Manjiro from after Japan opened to the world. Of particular historical importance is Japan's first English phrasebook written by Manjiro himself. This is the English phrasebook, Eibei Taiwa Shoukei, written by Manjiro. It was a bestseller at the time. It's all in Japanese with the pronunciation of the English as well. Manjiro learned English by listening, so he wrote the pronunciation, how the words sounded to him, using Katakana. But amazing, because this is the first English textbook in Japan. What was Manjiro's main objective in writing this book? After he returned to Japan, Manjiro received offers to enter politics. There were many such offers during the Meiji Restoration. But he preferred to pass on the English language and navigation skills he had acquired in the United States to young people. Japan had opened up, and American culture was coming in. Manjiro thought that Japan had to interact more with the world. So he tried to share what he had learned with young people. I expect he could see that the times were changing, and he wanted to help people to adapt to that. In his later years, Manjiro lived a quiet life while also teaching at schools. Having supported Japan's modernization from behind the scenes, he passed away aged 71. He never gave up, and faced all difficulties head on. Such qualities are called the Jongmong spirit, and the people of Tosashimizu take great pride in that. At schools in Tosashimizu, students learn about Manjiro. What's so great about it? I spent over a hundred days in Horishima. I learned how to speak Japanese, and how to speak English. I'm Manjiro. Don't give up! Keep going! Work together! How do you say that in Japanese? Jongmong spirit! Through Manjiro, students learn to pursue their dreams without giving up. What do the children think of Jongmanjiro? I think it's amazing. So you're in fourth grade, and you're studying English? How long have you been studying English? Since first grade. You've been doing it since first grade? Yes, since first grade. Then let's speak in English. I don't understand it at all. It has also been passed down through the generations. In 1987, Tosashimizu became the sister city to Fairhaven, where Manjiro lived with the Whitfields. The towns engage in cross-cultural communication by taking turns to host an annual Manjiro Festival. This year, the festival will be in the U.S., and some high school students who hope to attend are practicing a special dance. Jason Sardina is from Massachusetts, where Manjiro once lived. Sardina currently works at City Hall in Tosashimizu. Do you have some connection to this trip that these students are going to be making to Fairhaven in America? Oh, yes, I do. I'll be going to Fairhaven this year for the Jongmanjiro Festival. And I heard that a group of students will be going this year, and today that they were going to be practicing the Ashizuri dance. So I rushed up here from work to come and check it out. Ashizuri Odori is a much-loved local dance which is performed to pray for the prosperity of Tosashimizu. Peter has decided to have a try. LAUGHTER Now I'm lost. I'm lost. I'm interested about how Jongmanjiro is perceived in the U.S., if at all. I mean, I guess he lived only in Massachusetts for the not-all-that-long time that he was there. Do people know who he is? As you mentioned, in Massachusetts, in places that he lived, he does have an influence. He had an influence there, and he is known. For example, in Massachusetts, of course, and Fairhaven in the area, he's very well known, as well as in California. I hear that he participated in the gold rush to earn money for his trip back home to Japan. Right. And there, people are aware of him, as well as I hear that people in professional circles, especially political circles, international relations, are aware of his presence. But unfortunately, the general populace probably is not very well aware of him. Right. Well, that's pretty much what I imagine. Yeah. When he was in college, Sardinha became interested in Manjiro after attending the Manjiro Festival. He was an assistant English teacher, and he was sent to Tosashimizu by chance. He has lived here for 14 years, and he has decided to stay permanently. Do you find an appeal in him and his story? Yes, I do. I find great inspiration in him, especially if it was me at the young age of 14 after going through that ordeal. I would want to go home as soon as possible, I think. And for some reason, we don't know. It's not really recorded why he decided. Right. But for me personally, I just think it was his curiosity in the world, you know, and that's just really inspiring that that curiosity gave him that ability to make that decision to, like, carry on the adventure. Right. After the opening of the country, Manjiro was employed several times as an interpreter. And in addition to his linguistic skills, his experiences also gave him an understanding of American values, culture, and technical aspects, too. At the same time, because he was the only one who had this kind of understanding, it sometimes made him an object of suspicion. People tended to think he was a spy or a traitor. And in his later years, he actually had to employ a bodyguard. The fact that he also had habits that he'd picked up in America and that stayed with him his whole life, like drinking coffee every morning and eating homemade bread, perhaps made him stand out in a way that might have been seen negatively in Japan at the time. It could be said that he was maybe a little bit too ahead of his own time, but perhaps he's now due for the attention that he deserves.