若き米国人教師と明治初期弘前
アーサー・C.マックレー『日本からの書簡集』より
1997 年 1998 巻 30 号 p. 61-72
詳細
1997 年 1998 巻 30 号 p. 61-72
Arthur Collins Maclay, the son of Rev. Robert Samuel Maclay the founder and first superintendent of the Japan mission of the Methodist Episcopal Church, stayed in Japan from 1873 to 1878 as an English teacher at To-o-gijuku (東奥義塾) of Hirosaki, Kogakuryo (工学寮) of Tokyo, and Chugakko (中学校) of Kyoto. After leaving Japan, he went to America and became alawyer, and a well-known author and lecturer on Japan and the Orient.
A Budget of Lettes from Japan, written by Arthur Collins Maclay, was one of his activities to introduce Japanese culture to America. This book which was published in 1886, held public attention and won high praises in over seventy press notices.
His writings vividly depict the life of Japanese people in the early Meiji Era as well as his own experiences in Japan. The descriptions of Hirosaki especially show us not only a young foreign teacher's intercultural experience in the province but also many facts which have been unknown so far.
Since only a few attempts have hitherto been yet made, the purpose of this paper is to introduce Maclay's writings on Hirosaki with explanations of the circumstance and background of that time and to indicate the significance of his descriptions.
