Seigo Nakao

Interesting and fairly short treatise on the expected behaviour for Samurai in 16th century Japan. I managed to read it in an afternoon (well, the English translation - my Japanese is very rusty so I didn't take much more than a casual glance at the original Japanese).

The author by this time I believe was fairly elderly, which shows through in classic grumbling about young people these days. Same story, different setting. There was no life-changing philosophy here - I learned that Samurai shouldn't beat their wives, shouldn't make their masters look bad, and should spend their free time productively rather than wining and womanising. I suppose if anything this humanises the oft-mythologised Samurai warrior.… (more)

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