With Jacket
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Without Jacket
The reason for undertaking this writing project was by discovering a feudal lord in 18th-century Japan whose governing reflected his caring for the welfare of his citizens. What gave me the ultimate impetus to start writing was the fact that the late John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, had knowledge of Yozan and his accomplishments.
Kennedy has been quoted as saying Yozan was the one Japanese he admired, and this work is an attempt to examine what aspects of this 18th-century figure he held in admiration and possibly gave him the desire to enter politics and eventually pursue the office of the presidency. Through an objective comparison of the two political figures, there are definitely similarities in background, policy, and the underlying beliefs and philosophies the two men shared, and therefore it was written in a way the reader can identify the many parallels in terms of what they experienced as leaders and how they viewed society.
This work is a celebration of the achievements and legacies of two great leaders representing the East and West, the modern nuclear age where minorities still faced clear social barriers and feudal Japan in which only the samurai enjoyed full citizenship.
The work draws the. parallels between two sociopolitical pioneers who continue to be respected and talked about by their respective countries, and it is also an introduction of Yozan Uesugi to the American audience whom John F. Kennedy cleared admired as a political figure and influenced his politics.
