CopyRight YANABU Akira
X ©R ijiyuuClibertyj
| Repulsion of Yanagida Kunio *
Yanagida Kunio once told his memories:
To give an example, when I was five or six years old, it was the time when the word, jiyuu minken (liberty and civil rights) flowed like a flood into Japan. One day a young gambler got drunk and fell asleep in front of my house in the village. Many people from inside and from outside tried to raise him in order to remove him in vain, then, I remembered, he cried 'Right of jiyuu!' This incident much confused the concept of jiyuu, made me feel quite a trouble, and from that time on for a long while, I had repulsion toward the chief of the jiyuu and civil rights movement, Itagaki Taisuke. ("Tanoshii seikatsu (My happy life)" 1941)
I will pay attention to two points on this tale. One is from the viewpoint of the young gambler, when he got drunk and fell asleep at the door of others, he could mention 'Right of jiyuu!'. Here I notice particularly the word, jiyuu, which was in fashion of the day. People spoke of it in various cases. And it was often used in unsuitable cases as I will mention below. This example is one of them too. Namely, its meaning was not understood well. And the very word the meaning of which is not understood well is used well, and is in fashion. This is caused by the effect peculiar to translating words I repeatedly mentioned.
And the other one, let's think from the viewpoint of the author Yanagida Kunio. He said: 'much confused the concept of jiyuu, made me feel quite a trouble,' and being the experiment of childhood, it continued 'for a long while'. In order to understand the meaning of a word generally, it is important, I believe, to see whether good or bad. 'Jiyuu' was for Yanagida, 'bad' meaning, bad effect word, the cause of which derived of course from the rude behavior of the young man. We must think of the other cause however, that is, the word jiyuu itself had been of bad meaning.
If this had been a Western word, liberty or freedom which had had the bright history, it would never connected with the rude behavior. For instance, if a gambler had said 'Right of jiyuu!' then an objection would have at once followed saying that jiyuu was never such a meaning word.
This incident told in the story was about a century ago, the same sort of happening we may meet in various cases today, which is what they call in Japan 'mistaken jiyuu'. We are apt to think vaguely that jiyuu is good when it is understood well, and bad when understood mistaken, I think however, this is not true. The problem is not the way of understanding. The word rooted deeply in the history of its mother tongue cannot be mistaken.
Mistaken jiyuu is a translating word 'jiyuu'. Our jiyuu after modern era have had the mixture of the meaning as the translating word from liberty or freedom in English, and that of the traditional Chinese character's jiyuu. And speaking simply, the meaning of jiyuu as the translating word is good, while that of traditional jiyuu is bad.
In the last days of the Tokugawa era, in a Japanese document translated from the report submitted by the Dutch governor-general of Java, there was the writing: 'The situation of the whole world became wagamama * day by day. 'Wagamama was translated from vrijheid in Dutch,
which is liberty or freedom in English. Having looked at this writing, some officers in the feudal government thought that it meant the foreigners would be self-indulgent and indulge in plunderage, hence they had to be kept away from Japan. Was it a quite lost track of mistranslation that vrijheit was rendered as wagamama?
Putting this story on the beginning, a historian Tsuda Soukichi #
wrote an essay on the history of wording, jiyuu ("Misunderstanding derived from a translating word", 1956).
To give an old example, in "Gokan jo $", the rebels of Sekibi treated
the emperor whom they set up as a child, and they did everything jiyuu. For Japanese example, in "Turezuregusa * ", Joshin Souzu was 'a man who
is hard to deal with, treats the world lightly, behaves jiyuu toward everything and nearly always does not submit to others.' Jiyuu was thus in many cases used as self-indulgent.
There were however instances used as 'good' meaning, Zen priests especially spoke 'jiyuu and deliverance' implying to be delivered from worldly passion, which may have had paradoxical meaning. And in Kirishitan # documents jiyuu was used meaning a spirit delivered by
Christ and get jiyuu, the reason of which may have been, Tsuda Soukichi said, because Zen priests associated with the translation of the documents. And in conclusion, he said:
As we have seen instances above, excluding Kirishitan documents, there is some significance to be blamed in the word jiyuu, needless to say the legal terms. Even though in cases it meant not to be restrained, many of them meant something self-indulgent or wayward, which people in general could not approve. When it meant
doing as one will, being seen from the world of others it could not be approved either. There were some instances used in good meaning, but few. Fukuzawa wrote in "Seiyou jijyou (The Circumstances of the West)" that there had never been appropriate translating words for liberty nor freedom, one of which for trial had been jiyuu, on which, I remember, Fukuzawa noticed in particular that jiyuu did not mean being wayward and setting the laws at naught. Jiyuu seems not to be a proper translating word.
Here, returning to that instance having translated vrijheid as wagamama, it was not so much different from having translated liberty or freedom as jiyuu. In a word, we can understand how difficult it was to translate these Western words into Japanese.
The history of jiyuu in China and Japan has been old, and that of translating word jiyuu has been also fairly old. Kirishitan documents used it already, and in "Oranda jii (Dutch vocabulary)" adjective vrij was rendered as jiyuu naru * (free) and noun vrijheid was jiyuu mata kakariai no naki koto * (freedom and not concerning oneself in). "Eiwa taiyaku shuuchin jisho (English-Japanese portable dictionary)" put liberal as ogoru * (haughty), mono oshimi senu * (not stingy), kokoro o uchiakeru * (frank), jiyuu naru, and liberty as jiyuu, kakariai no naki koto, which inherited "Ornda jii", and it put free as jiyuu naru, shoujiki naru * (honest), yasuki * (easy), sawarinaki * (no troubled) freedom as menkyo * (permission), yurushi o uketaru koto * (licensed), jiyuu. "Futsugo meiyou (French elucidation)" rendered liberal as mono oshimi senu, liberte as jiyuu, mono ni osorenu koto * (not to be afraid of anything).
Thus liberty or freedom, or the other same sort of Western words seemed to be translated at first as jiyuu till about immediately before the Meiji Restoration.
After the Restoration however, when people began to translate various books of Western thoughts, they came to notice that this word was not appropriate for the translating word, which was first declared by Fukuzawa Yukichi as Tsuda Saukichi said in the quotation above. In 1870, Fukuzawa wrote in "Seiyou jijou (The Western circumstances) the 2nd book", as follows:
When I translated Western books, I was often troubled with the lack of proper translating words. For instance in my translation I often used jiyuu, its original word riberuchi * (liberty), tsuugi, its original word, raito # (right), these are not sufficient to
express the original meanings. Above all, at the beginning of this chapter I argue mainly on jiyuu and right, I will first explain the meanings of two words for the readers' convenience as follows:
To begin with, 'riberuchi' means jiyuu, and Chinese people translated it as ©ε (independence), ©κ (autonomy), ©Ύ (self-reliance), ©α (self-possession), ©εΙ (self-realization), CΣ (voluntary), °e (tolerance), ]e (calmness), these are however not sufficient to render the original meaning.
After all, he said that every word is not good, not appropriate rather than saying that jiyuu is not good.
Once Rousseau wrote in the beginning of "The Social contract" in 1762, 'Person was born free, but she/he is everywhere in chains.' This phrase soon fired people everywhere in the West. Even in the East and in Japan, there have been plenty of movements against oppression. They had also demanded of liberation from chains, they had not had however the word to be demanded and valued as an idea in person's spirit. Fukuzawa who realized keenly this matter at first, I believe, was the originator of the history of this idea in Japan.
From that time on, intellectuals in modern Japan seemed to have chosen carefully the translating word of this idea. As for the word, jiyuu, they seemed to avoid it. Then I will look back upon their trials.
Nishi Amane used jishu (independence) in his book "International public law" (1868), for instance; jinshin jiyuu jishu no shoken * (the rights of personal liberty), kuni no tokuritsu jishu no ken * (the right of the independence of a nation). Tsuda Shinichirou who studied in the Netherlands with Nishi also used jishu like jishumin fujishumin * (liberal people and nonliberal people) in his book "The laws of the country in the West" (1868).
Jishu was as Fukuzawa said, chiefly used in Chinese translation, in Morrison's "English-Chinese dictionary" (1822) liberty and freedom were both put as ©εV (the reason of independence), in Medhurst's "English-Chinese dictionary" (1847-48), liberty was put as ©ε,CΣ‘ κ (arbitrary as one pleases), ©RΎΣ (triumphantly liberal), RΎ© Θ (self-reliance), ©εV (independent behavior).
Katou Hiroyuki used in his book "A Survey of constitutional politics" jishu, and jizai # (as one wishes), like shigen jizai no kenri # (the right of freedom of speech), shinpou jizai no kenri # (the right of freedom of faith). In 1870 he wrote "An outline of true politics" in which he introduced Western political thoughts, he used chiefly there fuki * (unconventional), like fuki no jyou # (unconventional mind) and fuki jiritsu no jyou # (unconventional and self-supporting mind). In 1871, Kanda Kouhei # used jishu and jizai in his translation "A survey of natural law".
And the next year, Nakamura Masanao's "Jiyuu no ri (On Liberty)" was published. It was widely read in those days, and seemed to influence greatly the translating word jiyuu to come to stay. This jiyuu was however, for the translator Nakamura himself, not a definite translating word of liberty. Same as Fukuzawa, Nishi, Tsuda and Kato
contemporary with him, or more carefully, he may have taken precautions of the translating word jiyuu.
Nakamura wrote an article titled "A Prospect for Western sciences" in serial form in "Meiroku magazine" from 1874, and in No.10 of this magazine, in the first of which he wrote:
'riberaru porichikusu $ ', which I will render as kankou no seigaku * (tolerant politics)
That is, liberal was put as kankou no, and liberty was kankou. The author of "Jiyuu no ri (On liberty)" avoided jiyuu, two years after its publication.
And in the same serial article, in No.12 of the magazine, he wrote a commentary:
'furii suteitsu # (free state)' which means a state where people can jiyuu ni (freely) express their belief.
Here jiyuu appeared again, but at the end of the writing Nakamura wrote as follows:
The translator said that there is a word, liberty in Western languages, correspondent rightly to which there is no word in China and in Japan. Morrison translated it as ©εV (the reason of independence), and Lobsheid as CΣsV (the right of voluntary behavior). It should mean the power that people can do as they like. In the Western world the power of people that is not restrained by others except to obey laws of prince or that of common, is called shibiru riberuti # (civil liberty), and is thought to be the source of civilization and peace. Hence reriziasu riberuti # (religious liberty) means that people obey the religion
they believe, and the authorities do not force them and not deprive their belief.
He said at first that 'riberuti' was difficult to translate, and said it had been a word of crucial importance in Western history. And in the following, not using translating words he applied riberuti only. And in the continual of this article in No.15 of the magazine, jiyuu again appeared:
Reriziasu riberuti, the matters of religion, it is the right of jiyuu that people gain obeying what they believe.
Thus having done the way of using words bending here and there, jiyuu became used in the end. About these days, the age of precaution of the translating word jiyuu might have turned.
Once Fukuzawa Yukichi having said jiyuu was not good translating word for liberty or freedom, but he at last used this translating word. Maybe because it had been an ordinary word of people. He hoped thereby that readers of his works would be careful of this translating word. A word in general however, once having been circulated widely among people, it comes to have the function and the fortune of itself. It does not obey the intention of its creator or user. Soon "Jiyuu no ri (On liberty)" became widely read, in which background jiyuu monopolized in the end the position of the translating word of liberty or freedom.
But why jiyuu had remained undefeated. There had been various trials of translation in modern Japan so far I have seen, for instances jishu (independence), jizai (as one wishes), fuki (unconventional), kankou (tolerance). Jiyuu seemed not to be better than these instances, or rather, jishu, jizai, fuki, kankou seemed to be chosen having avoided jiyuu. At least they were more suitable than jiyuu, because of not having bad feeling, which intellectuals of the day ought to have known well.
Generally speaking, what translating words are chosen and left subsequently is not so easy question. It can be said in general however, that the most suitable meaning of words do not always remain. It is certain that the words really looking like translating words remain and soon take root. Translating words are the heterogeneous ones that have entered into the context of the mother tongue. In the meaning of heterogeneous words there must be something beyond understanding and feeling of readers. Such sort of words ought to be
rather left unknown. It might be inconvenient that they are confused and assimilated with mother tongue.
As I mentioned above, Sino-Japanese characters are usually read in two ways, namely on yomi which is pronounced following after Chinese, and kun yomi which is the reading of native Japanese words corresponding with the Chinese characters. Hence Sino-Japanese read with on yomi are foreign origin words, which have been compounded with the native Japanese words, yamato kotoba. According to this traditional Japanese structure, translating words after modern ages have been chiefly made of on yomi characters. In this language structure, especially more looking like translating words are more suitable than those of easy to adapt to traditional Japanese. It is not owing to the user's intention, but the structure of Japanese language, I believe, naturally work so. Translating words are, from the viewpoint of native words, so to speak, differentiated words, which are marked somewhere so that people can feel it intuitively.
So far I have been looking at jiyuu from the tranalator's side, namely a small number of intellectuals side, I will look at it afterwards from the receptors of the translating words, namely majority of people's side, for instance, from the young gambler or Yanagida Kunio himself in his memoirs put above.
In Tsuji Kousou's "Tales of civilization" (1879), a dialogue on jiyuu was described, which was a fiction though, seemed to tell the real situation of the day.
kconservativel: c You flatter yourself so much, thinking because of ability you have been appointed to the post, waste your money on a hat and shoes, use Chinese characters which we have never seen and heard from Gyou and Shun * to Shin * dynasty of today, thus you are proud to have done the work, which is a great mistake. kcivilizedl: Really you are a man of the Tempou * era. You know, in
these days the rights of jishu, jiyuu have been imported from the
West which the government has bought, peddled out and delivered even to humble people c jiyuu means doing as one pleases, not to be restrained by others and being self-indulgent. Hence even if I put a hat on, or put my shoes on, it must be said to object my jiyuu that others say this or that, c
kconservativel: Think about well, if you do as you please, there is no need of the national law, no need of public officers. Urging you to enter school may be to object your jiyuu, it's meddlesome indeed. And because of speaking ill of you is speaking what one thinks, it may be freedom of speech, so if you are angry and say to expel you, it's meddlesome too. What, the barbarian's law, your jiyuu! If everyone becomes independent saying your jiyuu, how can we govern our country? From morning to night quarrels won't cease.
In the first place, what was jiyuu for this civilized who supported jiyuu? 'c have been imported from the West which the government has bought, peddled out and delivered even to humble people' is of course not liberty, nor traditional native jiyuu. At any rate however, it was 'imported' precious thing, it was a word like a 'cassette'. Hearing his speaking 'doing as one pleases, not to be restrained by others and being self-indulgent', it was the meaning of traditional Japanese jiyuu. Namely, in the word of 'cassette', there was the meaning of ordinary Japanese, not only that however, but there was something unknown meaning plus, which he himself did not know well, but it must be good thing.
While the meaning understood by conservative who opposed him was 'you do as you please', which was of traditional Japanese. And not only that, but it was understood as 'we have never seen and heard from Gyou and Shun', it is anyhow bad thing, which consisted of the traditional meaning and plus something, which was negative one.
Here looking back the memoir mentioned in the beginning of this chapter, I notice that its structure of the opposition about jiyuu was similar to this instance. The young gambler and Yanagida had opposed each other like these 'conservative' and 'civilized'. Both the approver and the opposer did not understand its meaning, both parties however earnestly and eagerly approved or opposed to jiyuu.
This is perhaps not restricted to translating words, it may be the fundamental pattern of reaction by personal being in general against newly appearing things and things from abroad.
Translating words have come from words which have situated in a language system or cultural meaning system, and which are cut off and separated from their background. It is natural thereby that looking at the separated translating words only how eagerly, one cannot entirely understand their meanings.
Generally speaking however, things are not always received after having been understood thoroughly. There is another way of reception that having received things at any rate, and then people come to understand gradually. Our translating words are, frankly speaking, words of such function. Since the beginning of the history, Japanese have been receiving heterogeneous cultures through Chinese characters. And in addition, Chinese characters in general in Asian countries and areas may function as such a way of receiving cultures.
Well, returning to the dialogue above, though it was caricatured, it described the essence of our understanding of translating words. Jiyuu here which 'civilized' understood looked like the same as traditional jiyuu, it was however 'imported from the West' and 'peddled out and delivered' precious thing, which was apparently different from traditional jiyuu. Then people may have reflected that 'doing as you pleases', 'not to be restrained by others' was so much important for persons. Through such consciousness, traditional jiyuu may have changed little by little, and the new meaning of jiyuu may have been understood gradually.
In the memoir of Yanagida, it would be still important that a young man was drunk and slept in front of the entrance of maybe a handsome house, he knew by chance the word, jiyuu which defended his bold behavior, though. And there we can look on the age when the new word, jiyuu began to touch people.
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