hoping for some insite

I'm writing a bit of Fanfiction in the Highlander world. I want the
character, an American named Thomas Davidson, to arrive in japan
from the Asian mainland, west of japan. I plan on him being there
from 1840 till ruffly 1854. In that time I want him to be expossed
to as much of the samurai ideals and phylosophy as possable. I know
that this was in the period of isolation but, I was hoping that
someone might be able to help me with ideas as to how he could

1) arrive in the country and not be imediatly executed

2) endear himself to someone who would teach him the ways of the
samurai

3) Perhaps be involved in the battle of battle of Tonegawa (1844)

4) perhaps meet Tokugawa Iesada

I can only think of the 'old standby' answers:

1. He shipwrecks and is knocked out, and some nice fishermen find and hide him OR
He shipwrecks and somehow ends up saving a samurai who is being attacked by
bandits (this would be cheezy enough to end up in a highlander episode, which then
answers #2 and #3 for you.)

4. YOU'RE the author, make it up ;)

-----Original Message-----
From: Erik Larson [mailto:skippyefa@...]
Sent: Tuesday, January 13, 2004 10:55 AM
To: samuraihistory@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [samuraihistory] hoping for some insite


I'm writing a bit of Fanfiction in the Highlander world. I want the
character, an American named Thomas Davidson, to arrive in japan
from the Asian mainland, west of japan. I plan on him being there
from 1840 till ruffly 1854. In that time I want him to be expossed
to as much of the samurai ideals and phylosophy as possable. I know
that this was in the period of isolation but, I was hoping that
someone might be able to help me with ideas as to how he could

1) arrive in the country and not be imediatly executed

2) endear himself to someone who would teach him the ways of the
samurai

3) Perhaps be involved in the battle of battle of Tonegawa (1844)

4) perhaps meet Tokugawa Iesada

"I want the character, an American named Thomas Davidson, to arrive in Japan
from the Asian mainland, west of Japan. I plan on him being there
from 1840 till roughly 1854. "

Have you ever heard of Ranald MacDonald? He was an American/Canadian/native
American who came to Japan in the 1840's. Somehow he managed to traverse
Japan from north to south winding up in Nagasaki. There is a new book on
him. I can't recall the author or title of hand. What I read about him from
other books his adventures sound quite interesting.

There was also a British doctor who lived in Okinawa for some time prior to
1853. His name was Bernard Bettlehiem. You can find his story as well as
MacDonalds in "Yankees in the Land of Gods" by Peter Booth Wiley.

1) arrive in the country and not be immediately executed

As far as I recall no intruders into 19th (pre 1853) Japan were executed.
Most were incarcerated and later repatriated through Nagasaki.

2) endear himself to someone who would teach him the ways of the
samurai

Doubt it. Most of the people that befriended the two mentioned above were
peasants and fisherman. Besides at this time many "samurai" were starting to
question the need for the samurai class and the so-called ways of the
samurai. Read Toward Restoration by Harry Harootunian and The Western World
and Japan by George Sansom.

3) Perhaps be involved in the battle of battle of Tonegawa (1844)

Well if its a work of fiction why not. However any such act by a foreigner
in Japan at that time would be considered very serious.

4) perhaps meet Tokugawa Iesada

Most unlikely. By this time the Shogun lived a fairly secluded life in Edo
castle. permission to see him was limited to a few senior advisors.

On Jan 13, 2004, at 8:55 AM, Erik Larson wrote:

> 1) arrive in the country and not be imediatly executed
>

Arrives as part of a European delegation, sailing into Japan with a
ship with HUGE cannons.

- For the rest, you can get a few ideas from William Adams biographies;
and eventually from (ahem...) Clavell's Shogun.
cepo


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

All-
First let me say I count myself among the grumps who advise you to do
your own research, it will in the end make for better writing...
Were it my character he would arrive as an American ships-doctor on a
Dutch(British) vessel making a regularly schedulled visit to Deshima.
He accompanies the Captain and others on a visit to the Shoguns court,
along the way he aides an important personage who is ill or injured. He
befriends the personal Physician of this "Great name", who is also an
accomplished swordsman(or swordsmith IE; Kaboku). The doctor
apprentices under the American learning western medicine, the American
studies the new culture he finds himself immersed in. He witnesses the
battle as a physician/corpsman. I think of Kitabatake Akiie when I
think of Tonegawa, wasn't the 1844 "battle" just a gang war? As
attendant upon a "great name" he might come to the attention of the
Shogun himself...

-t