메이지기의 기독교배격서 『耶蘇一代弁妄記』의 집필의도 및 原典의 수용양식 고찰—『Peter Parley’s universal history』, 『五洲紀事 』와의 비교를 중심으로—

Abstract

“Yaso Itsidai Benmōki”, published in 1874, written by Tajima Shōji, summarizes the main anecdotes of the Bible, inclucing sentences of refutation in some places. The purpose of this book was to prevent the general public from devoting to Christianity. The preface of “Yaso Itsidai Benmōki” is a statement of refutation against the column “Memorial Addressed to the Tenno” on May 18, 1872, the Japan Weekly Mail, an English newspaper in the Meiji Era. This preface is a Japanese translation of what was written by an anonymous Westerner who claimed himself as a follower of the Church of England. Such a record of controversy is a case that shows that Japan, at the time of 1872, had been criticized by critics from the West for the prohibition of Christianity. At the same time, this material is also an example of a Westerner who believed that Western nations should not impose Christian faith on Japan. In this paper, we also compared the texts of “Yaso Itsidai Benmōki” and “Peter Parley’s universal history” and “Goshū Kiji”. Through this work, it was possible to confirm that, by quoting the “Peter Parley’s universal history”, the “Yaso Itsidai Benmōki” refers to the “Goshū Kiji”, which is the Japanese translation of the “Peter Parley’s universal history.” In addition, the authors of the “Yaso Itsidai Benmōki” wrote about the contents of the “Peter Parley’s universal history”, omitting complicated geographical matters, and adding emotional expressions as in the form of popular novels. This is assumed because the book is intended to be read easily even by women and children, as described in the legend of the “Yaso Itsidai Benmōki”. It was also possible to confirm that this kind of trial was sometimes the cause of the distortion of the original content.