Chikamatsu Monzaemon, born in 1653, is one of the most influential theatrical authors to come out of Japan. He was so influential, in fact, that several of his plays were banned for potentially influencing people to carry out acts like those portrayed within the stories that he told, like the ones that took place in Love Suicides at Amijima. The World History Encyclopedia’s article on Chikamatsu, written by Graham Squires, proves this by stating “These plays were so popular that in 1723 the government banned more plays on the topic to discourage real couples from taking their own lives in imitation of those on the stage” (Squires, 2022). This influence, combined with the potency of the narrative that he told, gave Chikamatsu the nickname of “Japanese Shakespeare.” To Westerners, this title may seem extremely prestigious; it goes without saying that Shakespeare is one of, if not the most influential writer to come out of Europe, with his works still admired and revered as some of the best literature ever written. However, this direct comparison to Shakespeare is arguably disrespectful and reductive to the impact and legacy that Chikamatsu has. In fact, comparing these two authors to each other is not even valid, since even the works they have in common, like Love Suicides at Amijima and Romeo and Juliet, are completely separated from each other when looking at the plots, characters, and themes within each story.
It is true that on paper that the plots of both Love Suicides at Amijima and Romeo and Juliet are very similar on paper. The basic premise of both stories is that a man, either Jihei or Romeo, is pining after a woman that he loves, either Koharu or Juliet, but for one reason or another, neither man can have the woman that he loves. In both stories as well, there is a suitor that either woman is going to be wed to soon in the future, either Tahei or Paris. Both plays naturally end with both leads killing themselves to prove their love, with the suitors, in one way or another, getting some sort of “comeuppance” by the end of the story. However, besides this very simple summary of both stories, the actual events that take place are entirely different. For starters, Jihei’s plan from the outset was to kill both himself and Koharu because he could not marry her. In fact, he is so deadest on this plan, that he is even willing to perform the act without any semblance of consent from Koharu. From the Donald Keene translation of Love Suicides at Amijima, the Chanter, a character or force that is describing what is happening, says that “His heart pounds wildly as he unsheathes his dirk, a Magoroku of Seki. “Koharu’s side must be here,” he (Jihei) judges, and stabs through an opening in the latticework. But Koharu is too far away for his thrust, and though she cries out in terror, she remains unharmed,” (Chikamatsu, Trans. Keene, pg. 11). The fact that Jihei is willing to do this so readily, and without the prior knowledge of Koharu, is extremely different to anything that is planned out by Romeo. While Romeo of course kills himself in his story, this is not his original intention; in fact, he succeeds in marrying Juliet, but only kills himself when he believes that he has lost her towards the end of the story. Romeo’s plans to kill only ever involve himself; he never had any intention of harming Juliet throughout the story. Of course, Juliet still dies at the end of the story, but that is by her own hands as well. The reasoning for why neither of the leads can be together is different in both stories as well. While it is easy to say that Romeo and Juliet are unable to be together because they are from rivaling families, there are more complexities that separate them; mainly, Romeo’s exile at the beginning of Act 3, with the Prince of Verona stating in response to Romeo killing Tybalt “And for that offence, immediately we do exile him hence… Let Romeo hence in haste, else, when he is found, that hour is his last. Bear hence this body and attend our will. Mercy but murders, pardoning those that kill,” (Shakespeare, Act 3 Scene 1). This expulsion is the true reason for why Romeo and Juliet can’t be together, as this is the incident that forces Capulet to have Juliet marry Paris. Jihei’s circumstance is completely different, however. First off, Jihei is married, which recontextualizes his “love” of Koharu as a dangerous obsession, rather than true love, in stark contrast to Romeo and Juliet. Jihei is also simply too poor to marry Koharu; this is why Tahei is his rival in marriage, since Tahei can afford to take Koharu away from the brothel that she works in. This makes Jihei’s circumstance extremely less sympathetic to Romeo’s, since he is unable to marry for societal and duty reasons, while Romeo can’t be with Juliet for dramatic reasons.
The characters in both plays are also completely different from the direct analogs they have in the other story. Jihei is a much crueler and violent character than Romeo is ever shown to be. In Act 1 of Love Suicides at Amijima, when Jihei sees Koharu speaking with the samurai, he says to himself “Then was everything a lie? Ahhh-I’m furious! For two whole years I’ve been bewitched by that rotten she-fox! Shall I break in and kill her with one blow of my sword? Or shall I satisfy my anger by shaming her to her face?” (Chikamatsu, Trans. Keene, pg. 10). In fact, towards the end of Act 1, Jihei also stomps on Koharu’s face just before he leaves to return home. The Chanter describes the scene for the audience, recalling “He kicks her sharply on the forehead and bursts into tears,” (Chikamatsu, Trans. Keene, pg. 15) Jihei’s final act of violence is seen at the very end of the play, when he finally kills Koharu; while of course the murder is meant to symbolize their eternal love for each other, with Jihei killing himself shortly after, the way that the act is described in the play is extremely graphic to the point of being grotesque. All of these actions aren’t comparable to anything that Romeo does in his story, especially when speaking strictly about Juliet. In fact, Capulet even lets Romeo stay at his party despite being a Montague, stating that “A bears him like a portly gentleman; and, to say truth, Verona brags of him to be a virtuous and well-govern’d youth. I would not for the wealth of all the town here in my house do him disparagement,” (Shakespeare, Act 1 Scene 5). Romeo, through his actions and descriptions, is almost certainly an archetypical protagonist, while Jihei simply does not match up with any of his character traits, making him a much less sympathetic and relatable character. The female leads in either story are also completely different, although their differences come more from their agency rather than their personalities. Simply put, Koharu simply lacks agency throughout the entire story; most of the decisions made on what happens to her are made by other characters, particularly Tahei, and especially Jihei. And while there is some of that with Juliet’s role in the story, she makes several important decisions that heavily impact the plot. The decision to wed Romeo was one that she made herself, and while she didn’t come up with the plan to save herself from marrying Paris, she did actively seek out Friar Lawrence’s assistance in aiding her. Most importantly when discussing the agency in these stories, Juliet’s death was carried out by herself; no one else influences her decision to kill herself other than her own sadness at Romeo’s passing.
Of course, what really separates these stories are the themes that both stories are portraying through the characters and plot; if these themes were ultimately the same, these differences would matter less, but of course, the story that Chikamatsu was trying to tell was completely different from Shakespeare’s. While both stories are sad, Romeo and Juliet is ultimately a story of love, and the sadness that comes from seeing that love come to ruin. This is seen at the end of the play, when both lovers are discovered dead, with the Prince of Verona saying at the very end, “A glooming peace this morning with it brings; the sun for sorrow will not show his head. Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things. Some shall be pardon’d, and some punished, for never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Romeo,” (Shakespeare, Act 5 Scene 3). We are meant to feel sad at the passing of both lovers and lament the fac that they never got their “happily ever after.” This is in stark contrast with what Chikamatsu is trying to portray with Love Suicides at Amijima, in such a way that Chikamatsu’s play seems like a response to Shakespeare’s optimism surrounding love. The entire scenario of the play, from Jihei’s anger and violence towards Koharu in Act 1, to the reveal that he is married to the violent portrayal of Koharu’s death at the end of the story, is meant to disturb and shock the audience, and make them feel disgusted at what they have just seen. Chikamatsu’s play is extremely pessimistic when it comes to the topic of love, since Jihei’s “love” towards Koharu is completely perverted to what the average person would describe the word as. These plays are trying to do completely different things with the stories that they are presenting; Shakespeare is trying to make the audience feel sadness and remorse for our protagonists, while Chikamatsu wants the audience to feel shocked and disgusted.
Even though Chikamatsu’s play is like Shakespeare’s work, that does not mean that he deserves to compare to Shakespeare in any regard. In fact, Donald Keene, the translator of the version of Chikamatsu’s play throughout this essay, agrees with this sentiment, stating “…the genius of Chikamatsu is not that he was a “second Shakespeare,” but that his plays are “the first mature tragedies (written) about the common man,” (O’Keefe, 2019). It is dangerous for the West, particularly those descended from Britain, to start comparing the work from other cultures’ to that of their own, since that creates a precedent that removes the uniqueness from that authors work, and removes the cultural identity that that piece of literature holds.
“Works Cited”
O’keefe, A. (2019, December 20). “Four Major Plays of Chikamatsu”: Japan’s Shakespeare sheds light on the common man. The Japan Times. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2019/12/21/books/book-reviews/four-major-plays-chikamatsu-japans-shakespeare-sheds-light-common-man/
Romeo and Juliet. (2023, December 1). https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/1513/pg1513-images.html#sceneV_30.3
Squires, G. (2022). Chikamatsu Monzaemon. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/Chikamatsu_Monzaemon/
近松門., & Keene, D. (1998). Four major plays of Chikamatsu. In Columbia University Press eBooks. http://ci.nii.ac.jp/ncid/BA35030817
Sprockets and Springes 