Shogun

Discuss Blackthorne’s assimilation into Japanese culture. How does the novel make the customs he adopts sound appealing? How does Clavell give readers a vicarious kind of acculturation alongside Blackthorne?

Discuss the tension between the various religions and sects. What is the range of conflicts and their resolutions?

Discuss sexuality and romance in the novel. How do Mariko and Blackthorne change as a result of their relationship? How do the more open and tolerant sexual mores of Japan mirror or contrast with samurai code?

What role does the doctrine of karma play for Toranaga and his followers?

Consider the novel’s structure and Clavell’s uses of flash forwards and flashbacks. How does this disruption of chronology affect the reader’s experience? How does it shape our views of Toranaga as a political mastermind?

Compare several scenes of seppuku in the novel. How do they differ? How are they similar? Why do we not get to see Yabu’s seppuku but only hear Omi’s report of it?

Why did Clavell decide to make Toranaga a falconer? What does this hobby reveal about his character?

Discuss disguise in the novel. Toranaga dresses up as Kiri to escape; groups of samurai don each other’s colors or the outfits of peasant bandits to stage attacks. How do these deceptions fit with the demands of the samurai honor code?