福沢諭吉の人間観

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Keio Gijyuku University, the oldest modern private university in Japan, is celebrating its Centennial this year. Fukuzawa Yukichi (1834-1901), the founder of Keio Gijyuku, was a guiding star of the "Bunmeikaika" (Enlightenment) movement in the Meiji period. His famous phrase "heaven did not create men over other men" became a popular slogan for the emancipation of men and women from the feudalistic concept of man and society. He has refered to his thought as "Jitsugaku" which means a combination of utilitarianism, positivism and pragmatism, with especially great importance attached to the role of reason in the development of scientific ability and knowledge. He eagerly adopted the 19th century concepts of Western civilization but excluded Christianity. He was completely irreligious and materialistic. For him superstitious religions and Christianity were no different. His materialism is not the dialectical materialism of Karl Marx but is more uniquely Japanese, reflecting the nature of the materialism in the heart of common Japanese people, while, at the sametime, showing the influence of the 19th century materialism of the West. Moreover, his way of thought has had a strong impact on the modern intellectuals of Japan. This essay aims to analyse the nature of his understanding of man mainly with respect to the following two points: a/ Fukuzawa's concept of "God" or "gods" and "heaven" as the basis of his value concept. Here the irreligious or materialistic nature of his thought is examined. b/ Fukuzawa's paradoxical concept of man which viewed man from two poles. He believed in the dignity, equality, and rights of man. On the other hand, he sometimes seemed to reveal a kind of Buddhistic pessimism in his references to man as an insignificant worm. Yet his fundamental view of man is basically optimistic and rationalistic. This analysis examines not only Fukuzawa's way of thought but also the dominant irreligious and materialistic value concept which always, has been an undercurrent along with the surface nationalism in the modern educational thought in this country. This is one of the hidden obstacles to the healthy penetration of Japanese cultural soil by the Christian concept of man.
国際基督教大学の論文

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武田清子
国際基督教大学

福沢諭吉の人間観

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