Confucian culture and Ansai studies in the ruling class of the early modern period of Japan

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K21923
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Research Activity Start-up
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: 0101:Philosophy, art, and related fields
• Research Institution: Tokyo Gakugei University
• Principal Investigator: Tsunakawa Ayumi 東京学芸大学, 教育学部, 研究員 (60882628)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-09-11 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 闇斎学 / 武家社会 / 儒学 / 藩儒 / 藩主 / 教育 / 日本近世

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study focused on the acceptance of Confucianism in the samurai class from the end of the 17th century to the 18th century in Japan. The politicians of this era were not at the stage of valuing scholarship (Confucianism) in politics, and were not aware of the social usefulness of scholarship. The result of this study is to clarify the process by which Confucian and samurai acquired Confucianism (Cheng-Zhu) as a common political methodology. In the Ansai school(main members of the Confucian and Samrai), they needed basic moral indoctrination to gain political consciousness. In particular, they emphasized the indoctrination of young successors . This should have contributed to the establishment of schools in the clan and the transition to clan education.

Free Research Field

日本近世史

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究は、日本の近世における儒学（主に朱子学）が、藩地域（大名家を中心とする武家社会と関連する諸地域）への受容の過程を明らかにするものである。近世の儒学思想は個人の修養から家の規範、そして政治の次元までを包摂し、ある種の変容を伴いながら、教化や教育を通じて人々や社会の一部を形成していく。個人や組織のなかでの受容をめぐる具体的な経緯をより鮮明に描くことが重要である。そして、その解明によって近代へとも繋がる個々の規範や家意識を理解することができるはずである。