Chikamatsu's Plays: Society, Suicide, and Urban Japan

Introduction: Chikamatsu and Urban Japanese Society

This paper examines four major plays by the Japanese playwright Chikamatsu Monzaemon in an attempt to better understand the urban society of the period that serves as the temporal background for the plays. The two aspects that will represent the focus of attention are the conflict between society and the individual, and the theme of suicide.

The four plays included in the collection translated by Donald Keene are: The Love Suicides at Sonezaki, The Battles of Coxinga, The Uprooted Pine, and The Love Suicides at Amijima. Two out of four have love-motivated suicide as a central theme, which suggests from the outset that this may have been a significant social phenomenon of the time. Chikamatsu enjoyed great popularity both in Japan and abroad, and his stories about love suicides caused quite a sensation. It has been claimed that love suicides became a fashion, both on stage and in real life. The plays under discussion can be broadly categorized as romantic tragedies and historical dramas.

The historical period under analysis is the second half of the seventeenth century. The major cities in Japan underwent significant development during this era, both economically and culturally. Greater access to financial resources had an important impact on society, enabling greater investment in entertainment and cultural events. Cultural life of the period experienced a notable boom, and authors such as Chikamatsu helped stimulate puppet theatre and kabuki into becoming major forms of dramatic art (Keene, 1997, preface).

The Love Suicides at Sonezaki: Social Status and Individual Tragedy

The Love Suicides at Sonezaki is considered a typical domestic tragedy. The plot centres on a young man named Tokubei who is in love with Ohatsu. There is a direct connection between the conflict of society and the individual and the tragic destiny of the characters. The tension arises from the different social statuses that Tokubei and Ohatsu occupy. He is an orphan working as a merchant's clerk, with the possibility of advancing his career, improving his social standing, and building his business. Ohatsu, on the other hand, is a courtesan. Both are in love, and one might assume that love should know no boundaries — but the reality of the Japanese urban social environment tells a different story (Keene, 1997, pp. 20–50).

Tokubei works in a shop owned by his uncle. Recognising his talent, the uncle arranges for him to marry one of his daughters — a seemingly well-intentioned gesture that would allow Tokubei to improve his position. Since Tokubei is unwilling to accept the proposal, his happiness clearly lies elsewhere. The conflict he faces involves choosing between advancing his social status as a clerk and following his heart by remaining with the courtesan he loves. He chooses the latter.

While it may appear that individuals alone are responsible for their destiny, Chikamatsu's play reveals the complex dynamics of human relationships. Tokubei's uncle cannot accept refusal — in pressing the marriage, he is also pursuing his own interests. He gives a significant sum of money to the young man's stepmother, who, by accepting it, effectively guarantees the marriage without consulting Tokubei, despite knowing of his refusal. This illustrates how older family members could control the destinies of younger ones according to their own values and interests. The stepmother's interference foreshadows the tragic outcome that the money will partly bring about (Keene, 1997, pp. 60–90).

Another of Tokubei's relationships proves equally damaging. Being generous and trusting, he lends the money to a friend, who later denies the debt, accuses Tokubei of extortion, beats him, and boasts of the young man's imminent ruin — even telling Ohatsu that she will become his property.

In his generosity and trust, Tokubei did nothing wrong. His conduct followed a sound ethical code. Yet this proved fatal for him. From this perspective, the individual appears too weak to withstand the crushing force of social circumstances. That defeat is symbolically expressed through the couple's suicide — a gesture that stands as clear evidence of how powerless the individual can be against society. Social status plays an overwhelming role in the Japanese society of this period; had Tokubei been wealthier, he might have avoided the pressures imposed by his uncle entirely.

The Love Suicides at Amijima: Honour, Entrapment, and Double Suicide

The same damaging impact of social status on the lives of the poor is depicted in the other domestic tragedy, The Love Suicides at Amijima. The plot is considerably more complex. The central love story involves a young prostitute named Koharu, who is contested by two men: Jihei and Tahei. She is more attached to Jihei, but he is not only married — he is also in a precarious financial situation and cannot afford to buy out her contract, which has five years remaining. Trapped and with no way out together, they agree to die by suicide. Once again, society bears down heavily on the individual: the woman is locked in a near-slave-like condition she cannot escape alone, while the man can neither rescue her nor leave his marriage (Monzaemon & Shively, 1991, pp. 20–70).

Koharu initially agrees to the double suicide but then changes her mind. Unable to confront Jihei directly, she acts in a way he interprets as betrayal. He returns to his family, but harmony with his wife has already been broken. Examining the pressure society places on individuals and the complex dynamics of human relationships, it is striking to observe the attitude of Jihei's wife. She eventually decides to leave him but does not wish to see the young prostitute die on account of her. She is willing to sell her own clothes to raise the money to rescue Koharu — an act that might appear generous but, viewed through the lens of Japanese values, reads more plausibly as an effort to preserve her own honour. Koharu, despite being the apparent source of all the trouble, remains entirely powerless over her own fate (Monzaemon & Shively, 1991, pp. 80–110).

Ultimately, the lovers carry out the suicide. Jihei cannot abandon Koharu because he is genuinely in love with her and, despite his and his wife's attempts, cannot save her. It is also worth noting that in both domestic dramas discussed here, it is the man who kills the woman before taking his own life — a pattern suggesting that social pressures destroy both partners. Jihei is trapped in an impossible situation, while Koharu, who might have hoped for rescue from someone else, chooses death over dishonour — either her own or Jihei's. Other social forces — his wife, his brother, and his rival — all play important roles in determining the tragic outcome (Keene, 1991).

Conclusion: Society, the Individual, and the Recurring Theme of Suicide

Across all four plays, social pressures — rooted in class, financial status, and codes of honour — consistently overwhelm the individual. Whether the outcome is tragedy or, in rarer cases, resolution, Chikamatsu's work reveals how deeply urban Japanese society shaped personal destiny. The recurring motif of double suicide in the domestic dramas is not merely a romantic gesture; it is a measure of how completely society could foreclose the possibilities available to individuals of low status. The plays together paint a vivid portrait of the tensions inherent in Edo-period urban life, where economic growth and cultural vitality coexisted with rigid social hierarchies and little room for those who fell outside them.

References

Keene, D. (1997). Four major plays of Chikamatsu. Columbia University Press.

Keene, D. (1951). The battles of Coxinga: Chikamatsu's puppet play, its background and importance. Cambridge University Press.

Monzaemon, C., & Shively, D. H. (1991). The love suicides at Amijima: A study of a Japanese domestic tragedy by Chikamatsu Monzaemon. University of Michigan Press.