48 pages • 1 hour read
The Samurai's Tale
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Background
Authorial Context: Erik Christian Haugaard
Erik Christian Haugaard was born in Denmark in 1923 and is best known for his historical novels for young readers and his translation of Hans Christian Anderson’s folk tales. He came from an upper-middle-class family, but they lost their money, and he went to work on a farm at 15. Two years later, he sailed to the United States on the last ship to leave Denmark before the Nazi invasion. The experience of being uprooted by war became a common theme in the novels he wrote for children and young adults, including The Samurai’s Tale.
Haugaard published his first story in his high school newspaper in California. He later enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II because the US armed forces would have required him to renounce his Danish citizenship. Haugaard began writing for young readers after his first novel for an adult audience was rejected. He went on to write nine novels, including A Boy’s Will, The Untold Take, and Cromwell’s Boy.
His work won several awards, including a Notable Book Award from the American Library Association and a Culture Minister of Denmark Prize. He traveled widely in Japan, Italy, Spain, and the United States. In 1981, he lived in Japan for a year while studying the Takeda family, and that research formed the basis for The Samurai’s Tale. He died in 2009.
Historical Context: Japan’s “Warring States” Period
The Samurai’s Tale is set in the 1500s during Japan’s Sengoku, or Warring States Period. The era, which was marked by almost constant civil wars, began in 1467 when the hereditary rulers of Japan lost power after a succession crisis. During the power vacuum, local leaders gained power and became powerful feudal lords who fought with one another for control of territory.
Harutomo’s father was a samurai who served the warlord Uesugi Kenshin and was killed in a battle with the army of another feudal lord, Takeda Shingen. Both men were real historical figures who fought a series of battles between 1553 and 1564. Takeda, who becomes Harutomo’s new lord, lived from 1521 to 1573 and was 20 when he forcibly took over the clan from his father. He grew to be one of the most powerful military leaders in his region of Japan and battled with warlords Oda Nobunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu, who would later help unify Japan. Takeda was succeeded by his son Katsuyori, who was later defeated by Nobunaga and Tokugawa.
Castle building in Japan increased during the Sengoku period as warlords strove to defend themselves and their armies from attack. Guns also changed the nature of warfare during this time. Firearms were introduced to Japan by the Portuguese in the mid-1500s, and they played a role in Katsuyori’s defeat at the battle of Nagashino, which Haugaard describes in The Samurai’s Tale.
Sociocultural Context: Bushido
The Sengoku period was violent, and war was a part of daily life as warlords vied for power. The decline of the central government meant that regional lords could make their own rules. A popular expression at the time was “the weak become meat; the strong eat” (Friday, Karl. “Once and Future Warriors: The Samurai in Japanese History.” Education About Asia, vol. 10, no. 3, 2005, pp. 31-38).
The Daimyo, or feudal lords, commanded private armies. They gained wealth through trade and taxing the peasants on their lands. These lords had great power in the highly structured feudal society. For example, military governors needed their lords’ permission to marry, and lords usually passed power to a male heir.
The lords’ warriors, or samurai, were expected to follow a strict code of honor known as Bushido, the way of the warrior. They were expected to pledge lifelong allegiance to their lords, follow their superiors’ directions without hesitation, and commit ritual suicide if they lost their honor.
While loyalty and discipline were parts of the samurai ideal, warriors did sometimes change sides when it was to their advantage, and family members were known to kill one another in struggles for power. Like chivalry in European culture, bushido is steeped in myth, and the ideals did not mean that all warriors practiced honorable behavior.
Zen Buddhism was popular at the time in part because it promised reincarnation, and the religion influenced many parts of warriors’ lives. In addition to practicing disciplines such as riding, archery, and other martial arts to prepare for war, they were expected to engage in cultural activities such as calligraphy, writing poetry, and meditation, activities that are prominent in The Samurai’s Tale. While Zen was popular, the power of Buddhist temples declined during this time due to a lack of state support.
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