Jack Fletcher is a fictional character from the "Young Samurai" series, by Chris Bradford. Jack is set in Japan in the year 1602 two years after the arrival of the first Englishman to arrive in Japan, William Adams, who Jack is loosely based off of. During his first year in Japan, Jack is hunted by a ninja by the name of Dragon Eye who is looking for his father's rutter, a navigation handbook of written sailing instructions. He learns the Japanese culture and even their way of combat as a samurai. Jack faces discrimination because of his foreign background is constantly taunted because of this by other students. One student in particular, Kazuki, is Jacks's main rival and constantly bullies him and berates him with racist comments. As the months go by, Jack learns the ways of the samurai including bushido, their code of honor. The discrimination Jack faces is very trivial compared to the punishments to other foreigners and Christians in particular. As Jack progresses in his samurai training, he is nominated to be a representative of the School of Two Heavens at the tournament of two schools. The other school is run by a man who believes that foreigners are a plague to Japan and this reflects upon his students who go out of their way to make snide remarks towards Jack. Jack struggles, but manages to achieve victory for his school. Although, Jack proves himself in the tournament he still faces discrimination from other students. After what Jack thought was peace, the ninja comes back for the rutter and Jack, still barely able to defend himself is recommended to learn the school's most sacred sword technique, the Two Heavens.
Don't wanna be here? Send us removal request.
Statistics
We looked inside some of the posts by caucasiansamurai-blog and here's what we found interesting.
Average Info
Notes Per Post
1
Likes Per Post
1
Reblog Per Post
0
Reply Per Post
0
Time Between Posts
3 hours
Number of Posts By Type
Text
12
Photo
3
Link
2
Last Seen Tumblr Blogs
Fun Fact
Post activity is at the highest at 4:00 pm EDT; notes peak at 10:00 pm EDT.
Text
What Would I Change In My Life?
I wish my father was still here. Although, if that happened I probably never would’ve become a samurai and met all of the most important people in my life. This is my life now and I need to accept it, there can be no turning back now.
0 notes
Text
Meaningful People In My Life
The most meaningful people in my life are my father, Akiko, Masamoto, and Yamato. My father taught me courage and instilled a thick skin mentality that is important for a foreigner like me to survive in Japan. Akiko’s taught me that kindness and compassion can go a long way. She’s helped me countless times and I feel like I will never be able to repay her kindness to me. Masamoto has trained intense discipline in me. Through his intense training and strict discipline, I’ve been able to defend myself from attacks from bullies like Kazuki and performed things I’ve never thought possible. Yamato has taught me that loyalty is the most important virtue of bushido. His undying loyalty to his family and especially his father is what makes him so important to me because he’s put his family’s name on the line to defend me and because of this I would do that same for him. These people have impacted my life in ways indescribable and I can never thank them enough.
0 notes
Text
What is Success?
In my life, success is just trying to stay alive to experience its treasures and I have succeeded. For a samurai, success is measured in how many battles you’ve survived because failure means death. If not by the enemy, then by ritual sacrifice known as seppuku. If you’re still alive, it means you’re successful. If you can enjoy the simple things in life, it means you’re successful. Success is only achieved when the mind and body can overcome hardship.
0 notes
Text
Fate or Free Will?
Our lives are controlled through fate. Life is something you cannot control and is extremely unpredictable. I’ve learned from living on Japan and the people here that fate guides our actions and it’s frustrating at times. When I was younger I always dreamed of sailing the seas with my father. At first, climbing the rigging was terrifying, I didn’t want anything to do with sailing, but I felt something that told me to keep going and here I am now, an Englishman shipwrecked on Japan training to be a samurai. I really didn’t have a choice in this and that’s how our lives are, unpredictable like a storm at sea.
0 notes
Photo
Mr. Red is being excluded and discriminated.
0 notes
Text
Quotes and Commentary
“Bushido means ‘way of the warrior’, Jack. It is our unwritten and unsaid. It is our way of life. Bushido is only known through action.” This is an important part of Jack’s new life in Japan as a samurai. It shows that things are changing for him and that he has to adapt to his new lifestyle if he wants to survive. “Seven times down, eight times up...” This quote shows that no matter how many times you fail, you have to get back up. Jack takes these words to heart and throughout his training he may make mistakes, but he comes back stronger and more determined each time. “Death is more universal than life.” Jack is plagued by the fear of death and his teacher teaches him that everyone dies and that one should let go of the stigma of death and live life to its fullest because life is short and can be snuffed out in an instant. “Learn today so that you may live tomorrow.” In Jack’s time and with his current lifestyle as a warrior, life is often very short and death very unexpected and the things they learn will benefit them in their life not only in battle, but also so they can experience life to its fullest.
0 notes
Text
Day 52 in Japan
I am writing this from Masamoto’s academy, “the School of Two Heavens”, before we left what Father Lucius said started to make sense. Assassins attacked and I managed to defend myself using what I learned from Masamoto’s duel and my lessons with Yamato. Sadly, I could not defend others. Because of the chaos around us, Dragon Eye managed to kill the cook and Chiro, Hiroko’s favorite maid. Masamoto praised me for displaying bushido, the samurai’s code of honor and said I could sharpen my talents at his school. Now I’m here and I’m being judged and ridiculed more than ever because I am gaijin. Even the teachers treat me differently. One of the students, decided to start a fight with me just because I took his seat. And just the other day I heard rumors going around that the shogun of the nearby province was expelling Christians and executing themThis would never have happened in England. The next day, was the start of our training and it was extremely difficult and rigorous. Apparently, word travels fast at the school because every teacher knew that I had gone toe to toe against the most infamous assassin, Dragon Eye. Some were impressed while others said I was just lucky. I can’t say I’m surprised because I’m still shocked to be still standing. During my stay here, I’ve made some friends and they seem to not care too much that I’m a foreigner. Yori is very quiet, but everything that he says is well thought out and intelligent and Saburi seems to be quite the opposite. He is loud and very outgoing, which makes him the target to punishment from the teachers. Hopefully, what I learn from this school will allow me to defend myself and my father’s diary from Dragon Eye, for now I just want to sleep because I have to wake up in the morning for training.
Painting of Emperor Ieyasu Tokugawa who issued the Christian Expulsion Act of 1614
0 notes
Text
Nature of Man
Human nature is essentially good. Although I face discrimination from other students and even my adoptive brother because I am a foreigner, they will also take up their swords in my honor and I would do the same for them because we are comrades. The samurai code of honor, something I must maintain in my new lifestyle and it teaches respect, honor, honesty, loyalty, righteousness, and courage. I believe that the essence of man is manifested in this code of warriors and that being inherently bad is just false. “To fall so low as to kill, lie, and steal, one must be high enough to fall,” this is something our meditation teacher told me yesterday when I asked how ninja could do such terrible deeds for money and I agree with it. Humans can only fall low when they’ve experienced the highs.
0 notes
Text
Secondary Sources
http://www.musashi-miyamoto.com/ http://www.chrisbradford.co.uk/about.html http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/main_pop/kpct/kp_tokugawa.htm http://www.history.com/topics/samurai-and-bushido
0 notes
Text
Historical Sources
http://www.pbs.org/empires/japan/timeline_1600.html http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Tokugawa_Ieyasu https://archive.org/details/WillAdamsTheFirstEnglishmanInJapan http://users.wfu.edu/watts/w03_Japancl.html
0 notes
Text
Day 37 in Japan
Yamato and I have been getting very competitive in our training. He still goes overboard when we spar though and says it’s because I’m a gaijin, a foreigner. I’ve managed to learn the form used when sword fighting and there’s so much to think about. How your hand is positioned, too far from the body and your hand could be cut off, but too close and it makes handling the bokken awkward. Father Lucius called me into his room and told me with his final breaths that even though we had our differences, he respected me, but before he died he told me that someone wanted to kill me. Father was held a funeral according to his Catholic traditions and my Japanese lessons would carry on with Akiko. Yamato is still very hostile towards, but my swordsmanship is improving and as I improve our sparring gets closer. I would’ve landed a point on him if it were not for his foul play. He deliberately kicked me and hit me in the stomach so I couldn’t move. Akiko says that we’ll head for Masamoto’s school for samurai in a few weeks. I am very excited, but I just want to leave and go home. Whatever Father Lucius said still worries me and I don’t know why.
0 notes
Photo
Cover of the Young Samurai series
0 notes
Text
Day 21 in Japan
My Japanese lessons with Father Lucius have been going nicely.He’s pressing to look at my father’s diary in exchange for a Japanese to Portuguese dictionary he’s compiled.Nevertheless, I am now able to communicate with Akiko and the other members of the household and it looks like they appreciate it. Masamoto’s youngest son Yamato is still very unfriendly towards me. Just the other day, he challenged me to a duel with bokken, wooden swords, and I foolishly accepted. Now, I have several bruises and Yamato seems even less friendly. Akiko has been the most helpful and kind towards me. Even when Yamato bullies me for being a foreigner she always tries to dissuade him from getting violent with me outside of lessons. Now that I’ve begun to learn Japanese she’s also been giving me lessons and trying to help me improve communicating with my writing. So far, I’ve learned how to write hello, goodbye, thank you, and tea which was the first word I learned to say. Masamoto also seems to be very happy I’m learning Japanese. He’s not home often, but he checks up on me from time to time. We still need Father Lucius to help translate, but I’m beginning to understand more. The people on this island have strange customs but I’m learning to adapt to them and soon I will be off this island back on the sea and with my sister in England. I really hope she’s alright I can’t bear the thought of her getting shipped to an orphanage.
0 notes
Text
Day 7 in Japan
I’ve shipwrecked in the Japans and the people taking care of me are very nice, and everyone wears a dress even the men wear it. They bathed me and made me wear their strange clothes. It’s quite comfortable, actually. The baths here are warm and refreshing, unlike England where you could catch a cold because the baths were so cold. The garden is exotic and taken care of with such gentle and precise detail. I ran into the village and saw the girl from my fevered dreams. Her name is Akiko and she’s been teaching me their language. From my short time here I’ve learned that these people rely on armored men for protection that they call samurai. Although they have guns, these people still use swords and they wield them with grace and deadly accuracy. Apparently, the owner of the household is one of these samurai. I witnessed a duel between him and another samurai he won without even using a weapon, while the other man used a large sword. His name is Masamoto and is one the village’s most respected warriors. He wears a blue and gold kimono and has a heavily scarred face. After his duel, Masamoto took me with him to see a Portuguese priest who was fluent in Japanese. Father Lucius, a Jesuit priest, translated our conversation and wanted to know who and why I was here in these islands. I told them my story and Masamoto wanted to know more about my attackers. At the time, they appeared to me like shadows, but thanks to Father Lucius and Masamoto I now know that they were assassins called ninja hired to kill my crew. The question now is, why?
0 notes
Link
1 note
·
View note