Neo-Confucianism (Cheng-Zhu) living in Soseki／ 漱石に息づく《朱子学》

Natsume Sōseki (1867/Keiō 3 – 1916/Taishō 5) was, to put it positively, highly introspective—negatively, he had a tendency to overthink, worry excessively, and dwell on complaints. While this trait can be overwhelming in his fiction (at least for me), it truly shines in his essays.

Sōseki's formative years took place during the turbulent period spanning the late Tokugawa era and the Meiji Restoration. He studied classical Chinese literature at Nishōgakusha. This change in academic path came after he dropped out of the second year at Tokyo Metropolitan First Junior High School in response to the death of his biological mother, Chie, in 1881. Confronted with a personal crisis—an identity crisis, perhaps—he resolved to become a literary scholar, dedicating himself to rigorous self-discipline. His efforts paid off: in later years, his Chinese poetry was highly regarded, even by native Chinese scholars. This suggests that his intellectual foundation had already been solidified through his studies in classical Chinese literature. More precisely, what was referred to as "Chinese studies" (kanbun) at the time was, in essence, an education shaped by Neo-Confucian (Zhūzǐxué) texts.

Though Sōseki is often imagined as a quintessential English gentleman, his ideal was not that of a Western "gentleman" but rather the Confucian "jūnzǐ" (君子).

This marks a significant contrast between Sōseki and Mori Ōgai, despite both being deeply immersed in classical Chinese studies. For Ōgai, such studies served as a means to advance his career. For Sōseki, however, they were the very root of his existential being. This is not to praise Sōseki at Ōgai’s expense. The career-driven mindset was common among young men in the Meiji era, and Ōgai was no exception. If anything, had young Kin’nosuke (Sōseki’s given name) been able to fully embrace this path, his life might have been simpler. But his complex family history made that impossible.

As a result, Sōseki turned out to be a profoundly moral (moralisch) individual, while Ōgai was more amoral (amoralisch). To be clear, Ōgai prioritized aesthetic (ästhetisch) values over moral ones. In that sense, he can be described as both amoral and aesthetically inclined. That a person of such disposition became the head of the Imperial Japanese Army’s medical staff was one of the major tragedies for the military.

For a more detailed discussion of Sōseki’s connection to Neo-Confucianism, please refer to the following blog posts:

1. 学問をして人間が上等にならぬ位なら、初めから無学でいる方がよし（漱石）: 本に溺れたい If learning does not make one a better human being, it is better to remain uneducated from the start (Sōseki)
2. 漱石、第一次世界大戦、トライチケ(Treitschke): 本に溺れたい Sōseki, World War I, and Treitschke
3. 漱石に息づく《朱子学》: 本に溺れたい （Japanese version of this article）