He keeps strong respect for history throughout (with maybe an exception being for things history recorded as wrong, such as Spanish imperialism and the Inquisition).Īs much as I wish action was the next important element, more of the story is focused on the romance of our protagonist and a Japanese woman he meets in the court of Toranaga. No one walks away clean here we see the good and the bad. Clavell is free to explore the racism from each perspective without siding with any as “correct,” and he avoids glorifying the Japanese by electing to show us the bad sides of their culture as well. The Japanese are barbarians to the Europeans, and the Europeans are all barbarians to the Japanese. One interesting trick Clavell was able to do by having characters from several different countries, is that everyone views the others as barbarians based on their own values.
Though, there are many fictitious elements, so everything should be taken with a grain of salt. The historical details Clavell explores are exhaustive. Shogun becomes a glimpse of the world stage of 1600, told through the lens of the far-from-home Blackthorne. First, there is the historical depth concerning not only Japan but Spain, Portugal, and England during the period and the conflicts those countries found themselves tangled in, which the foreign characters bring with them to Japan. There are several key elements of Shogun‘s epic story. How can he and his crew survive this strange land and return home? Story There, he is swept up into the plots of warlords and a culture completely alien to him.
John Blackthorne is an English pilot to a Dutch ship, the Erasmus, and brings his battered ship and crew to the shores of Japan. 9/10 Rich history and characters drive this epic.
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