57 pages • 1 hour read
Katsu Kokichi, Transl. Teruko Craig, Illustr. Hiroshige UtagawaMusui's Story
Nonfiction | Autobiography / Memoir | Adult | Published in 1843A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapter 8Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 8 Summary: “Reflections on My Life”
“Reflections of My Life” is a brief, two-page conclusion to the memoir written in 1843. Katsu, aged 42, believes that he was born “under a lucky star” (156). The author mentions his misdeeds: “When I think of my past, my hair stands on end” (156). Many of his associates met an untimely death. In contrast, the author remains in good health and of sound mind, having lived a full life while wearing expensive kimonos made of foreign silk, eating good food, and buying “as many prostitutes as [he] liked” (156). He also emphasizes that he has been blessed with a devoted, supportive family in addition to being healthy.
Katsu reminds the reader that he only gained sufficient literacy in his twenties and had been “unable to distinguish right from wrong” (157), living a life full of excesses. The author declares that he wants his lifestyle to serve as a warning: “Even putting these words on paper fills me with shame” (157). Katsu claims to have finally realized “what it means to follow in the path of righteousness,” which includes living in harmony and with compassion for others (157).
Chapter 8 Analysis
“Reflections of My Life” functions as a brief epilogue. Its content essentially parallels the author’s Prologue, where Katsu engages in dramatic verbal self-flagellation and uses his life to warn his descendants and other readers of what not to do. It also uses more formal language than the rest of the autobiography. Once again, Katsu feels equipped to disseminate advice on righteous living because his life has been the opposite and because he claims to be reformed.
Beyond the formal language, the tone of this epilogue is quite dramatic. It is in line with Katsu’s other theatrical antics throughout the rest of the autobiography, the most memorable of which is the attention-seeking hara-kiri and beheading attempt in front of the villagers. In two pages, the author includes several hyperbolic iterations of “my past conduct truly fills me with horror” (157).
Furthermore, when exalting his family, it is obedience and devotion that the author values the most: “I am most fortunate in having a filial and obedient son. My daughters, too, are very devoted. My wife has never gone against my wishes” (157). In contrast, Katsu’s running away from home, financial instability, street brawls, womanizing, and domestic violence targeting his wife are how he pays his family back for their devotion.
Indeed, the author claims to have been reformed on numerous occasions throughout the text, only to return to his old ways. Emphasizing good health, good clothes, good food, and access to countless courtesans challenges the apologetic tone of this chapter and serves as an act of defiance. Katsu’s words reveal that his lifestyle constitutes a full life rather than dutifully serving the shogunate like his half-brothers.
