Opening with 'Heaven did not create one man above another,' Fukuzawa argues in a series of plain-spoken essays that only practical learning separates the wise from the foolish. He urges commoners and samurai alike to seek independence of body and mind, since a nation's independence rests on its people's.
Books mentioned in An Encouragement of Learning (6)
Kojiki by O no Yasumaro: “A man who can recite Japan's Kojiki from memory but does not know today's price of rice should be called ignorant in the learning of everyday life. [auto-translated]”
The Elements of Moral Science by Francis Wayland: “In a book called The Elements of Moral Science, written by an American named Wayland, there is a discussion of the freedom of a person's body and mind; the gist of the argument is that each person's self belongs to himself. [auto-translated]”
Rangaku Koto Hajime by Sugita Genpaku: “Japan's civilization first came from Korea and China, then was polished by our own people's efforts into its modern shape; Western learning has distant roots, reaching back to the Horeki era (see the printed book Rangaku Koto Hajime). [auto-translated]”
The Subjection of Women by John Stuart Mill: “Today it seems almost natural that men attend to affairs outside and women manage the home, but Stuart Mill wrote The Subjection of Women, attempting to break this age-old, seemingly fixed custom. [auto-translated]”
Twenty-Four Paragons of Filial Piety by Guo Jujing: “Stories urging filial piety have been very numerous in Japan and China since ancient times, beginning with the Twenty-Four Paragons of Filial Piety, and the other writings are too many to count. [auto-translated]”
Greater Learning for Women by Kaibara Ekken: “The book Greater Learning for Women says: 'A woman has three obediences: in youth she obeys her parents, once married her husband, and in old age her sons.' [auto-translated]”