The Last Samurai

1) Japan. The end of XIXcentury,Capt. NathanAlgren(main character), an Americanmilitary officerhired bythe Emperor of Japanto trainthe countrysfirst hostof the rising sunto contemporary artof warfare. The Emperoris trying toeradicate theancientImperialwarriorclassof samurai, in preparation fora morepro-Western organisation policiessupportingforeign trade. Meanwhile,as a result ofcollisions with thesamurai,Algrenfinds himself in the center ofthe confrontationof ii worlds andcivilizations,wherethe save way tosurviveisguided byits proclaimconceptof honor. ) Nathan Algren What do you want? Katsumoto To know my enemy. Nathan Algren Ive seen what you do to your enemies. Katsumoto Warriors in your country do not kill? Nathan Algren They dont cut the heads off defeated, kneeling men. Katsumoto General Hasegawa asked me to overhaul him end his life. A samurai cannot stand the shame of defeat. I was honored to cut off his head. Katsumoto And who was your general? Nathan Algren Dont you ha ve a rebellion to lead? Katsumoto People in your country do not like conversation? Nathan Algren He was alieutenant colonel.His name wasCuster. Katsumoto I know this name. He killed many warriors. Nathan Algren Oh, yes. Many warriors. Katsumoto So he was a good general. Nathan Algren No. He wasnt a good general. He was arrogant and foolhardy. And he got massacred because he took a iodin battalion against two thousand angry Indians. Katsumoto Two thousand Indians? How many men for Custer? Nathan Algren Two hundred and eleven. Katsumoto I like this General Custer. Nathan Algren He was a murderer who flee in love with his own legend. And his troopers died for it.Katsumoto I think this is a very good death. Nathan Algren Well, maybe you can have one just like it someday. 3) Differences amongst the two culturesof these countriesare very strongas wecan see inthe dialogue, Nathan Algrenprotagonistdoes not understandwhat Katsumoto,the rebel leadersays,butonly inthe beginning andat the end ofthe filmauthorquiteclearly showshow Englishman understood the ancient culture ofJapan. In this filmthe bestscenesis aheroicdeath,lets say,three hundredJapanese who encounteredby continuousfire from theguns andhowitzers.Herewe are talking aboutpersonalvalor and military honor,above all,including devotion totheir rulerorlord. The humanpersonality, which remains independent and free, even inthe moment of death,whenmade a conscious choicebetweenfame and infamy,isthe main m ofvalue. And this,directorshowedthe viewers byeyesof the protagonist,a foreigner. The fact that hehas mastered theculture which he didnt know at all andin the enddecided to befor it. 4) Finally, I want to say that the main principle of survival in the harsh environment of foreign life is adaptation.And I chose this film because there are clearly shown and gradually as the main character throughout the film get used to the Japanese environment. The protagonist, taken prisoner by samurai, gradually turns into a sam urai. Contemplation of people indifferent to his own death, talks with rebel leader Katsumoto (Ken Watanabe), stating that the person who saw the perfect shape of a flower, has lived a life not in vain, a clear rhythm and strict rest of life around make from American captain a new man.He understands why his former enemies absolute hero not the one who kept the army and strategic positions, but the one who led a pulling out of 211 troops against the two thousandth. And he understands why Katsumoto smiles happily when he heard that all 300 soldiers were killed Spartanat Thermopylae he understands why widow of killed by him Samurai nursed him after being wounded killed for a fair fight can not be an enemy. And, realizing this, Olgren wears the captain samurai armor, stands in order of their late(a) opponents and comes with a sword against guns and howitzers.Predetermined outcome of the battle, but it absolutely does not matter death only worthy end of life as a single ceremony of honor. Therefore, before the final battle, the protagonist offers a simple truth, which requires a long way to me fate can not be change or submit- the fate amenable to recognition only. University of International Business and Economics The Last Samurai Intercultural communication Student Farrukh Khamraev ID IUP2010070 Date November 29,2011 Beijing, 2011