The Last Samurai Research Paper

The Last Samurai vs. Historical Events

In the late nineteenth century the Meiji government began changing their policies and the ways of life that the samurai were use to living. As a result the samurai began an uprising, protesting against the government and fought to reclaim their previous ways of life. This uprising was called the Satsuma Rebellion (Gordon). In 2003, director Edward Zwick attempted to emulate the Satsuma Rebellion in a Hollywood style film called The Last Samurai. In his film Zwick focused too much on movie appeal in Hollywood that he over romanticized the samurai and changed the real story behind the historical events.

Because Japan had been in a time of peace for quite some time, the need for samurai as warriors was obsolete. Samurai had no need to fight or keep up in training. Occupying their time with other things, the samurai turned their attentions to higher learning and entertainment within the cities. In the film, samurai were depicted as men dedicated to the art of swordsmanship through vigorous training and discipline (The Last Samurai). The reality was that the

When these privileges were taken away from them, the beginning of the Satsuma Rebellion began.

In The Last Samurai, the viewers were lead to believe that the samurai were fighting for the honor of their country and the love of a beloved Japanese tradition. Historically speaking, the samurai were fighting to keep their status alive. With the title of a samurai they received free government funded stipends, a higher rank among the civilians, and privileges not available to others. One of these privileges was the right to carry a sword not being exclusive the samurai class, and being made a public