Watsuji was born inHimeji,Hyōgo Prefecture to a physician. During his youth he enjoyed poetry and had a passion forWestern literature. For a short time he was the coeditor of a literary magazine and was involved in writing poems and plays. His interests in philosophy came to light while he was a student at First Higher School in Tokyo, although his interest in literature would always remain strong throughout his life.
In his early writings (between 1913 and 1915) he introduced the work ofSøren Kierkegaard to Japan, as well as working onFriedrich Nietzsche, but in 1918 he turned against this earlier position, criticizing Western philosophicalindividualism, and attacking its influence on Japanese thought and life. This led to a study of the roots of Japanese culture, including JapaneseBuddhist art, and notably the work of the medievalZen BuddhistDōgen. Watsuji was also interested in the famous Japanese writerNatsume Sōseki, whose books were influential during Watsuji's early years.
In March 1925, Watsuji became a lecturer atKyoto Imperial University, joining the other leading philosophers of the time,Nishida Kitarō,Tanabe Hajime andNishitani Keiji. These three philosophers were members of theKyoto School. While Watsuji joined their department, he is not typically considered a member of the School owing to the intellectual independence in his work.[4] In July, he was promoted to associate professor of ethics.
In January 1927, it was decided that he would go to Germany for 3 years for his research on the history of moral thought. He departed on 17th February and finally arrived in Berlin in early April. In the beginning of summer, he read Heidegger’s newly publishedBeing and Time.[5] He then went to Paris. He left Paris in early December and arrived in Genoa on the 12th of that month.
From January to March 1928, Watsuji travelled to Rome, Naples, Sicily, Florence, Bologna, Ravenna, Padua, and Venice. He then cut his trip short and returned to Japan in early July. His stay in Europe only lasted for roughly a year.
In March 1931, Watsuji was promoted to full professor at Kyoto Imperial University. He then moved to theTokyo Imperial University in July 1934 and held the chair in ethics until his retirement in March 1949.[6]
DuringWorld War II his theories (which claimed the superiority of Japanese approaches to and understanding of human nature and ethics, and which argued for the negation of self) provided support forJapanese nationalism, a fact which, after the war, he said that he regretted.
Watsuji's three main works were his two-volume 1954History of Japanese Ethical Thought, his three-volumeEthics, first published in 1937, 1942, and 1949, and his 1935Climate. The last of these develops his most distinctive thought. In it, Watsuji argues for an essential relationship betweenclimate and other environmental factors and the nature of humancultures, and he distinguished three types of culture: pastoral, desert, and monsoon.[7]
Pilgrimages to the Ancient Temples [古寺巡礼] (Iwanami Shoten [岩波書店], 1919), reprinted inCW2:1-192.
Katsura Imperial Villa: Investigating the Background Behind Its Style [桂離宮——様式の背後を探る] (Chûô Kôronsha [中央公論社], 1958), reprinted inCW2:192-386.
Originally published asKatsura Imperial Villa: Reflections on Its Construction Process [桂離宮——製作過程の考察] (Chûô Kôronsha [中央公論社], 1955), it was significantly rewritten after receiving criticism from the architectural historian Ôta Hirotarô.
‘Eyes of theHaniwa Statue’ [人物埴輪の眼] (Sekai [世界], January 1956), reprinted inCW2:387-392.
A History of Japanese Ethical Thought, Vol. 1 [日本倫理思想史(上)] (Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten [岩波書店], 1952), reprinted inCW12:1-514.
CW13
A History of Japanese Ethical Thought, Vol. 2 [日本倫理思想史(下)] (Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten [岩波書店], 1952), reprinted inCW13:1-496.
CW14
Royalist Thought and Its Tradition [尊皇思想とその伝統] (Iwanami Shoten [岩波書店], 1943), reprinted inCW14:1-294.
The Way of the Imperial Subject in Japan [日本の臣道] (Chikuma Shobô [筑摩書房], 1944), reprinted inCW14:295-312.
Published together withThe National Character of the United States [アメリカの国民性]. The book was ordered banned from sale bySCAP during theUS Occupation.[10]
The Symbol of National Unification [国民統合の象徴] (Keisô Shobô [勁草書房], 1948), reprinted inCW14:313-396.
1961:Climate and Culture: A Philosophical Study trans. fromFūdo (風土) byGeoffrey Bownas (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press)
1969:Japanese Ethical Thought in theNoh Plays of theMuromachi Period trans. from chapter 4 ofNihon Rinri Shisōshi (日本倫理思想史) by David A. Dilworth (Monumenta Nipponica 24:4, 467-498)[1]
1971:The Significance of Ethics As the Study of Man trans. from the introduction toRinrigaku (倫理学) vol. 1 by David A. Dilworth (Monumenta Nipponica 26:3/4, 395-413)[2]
1996:Watsuji Tetsurō's Rinrigaku: Ethics in Japan trans. from the first half ofRinrigaku (倫理学) vol. 1 by Seisaku Yamamoto & Robert Carter (Albany: State University of New York Press)
1998: Various essays inSourcebook for Modern Japanese Philosophy by David Dilworth and Valdo Viglielmo with Agustin Jacinto Zavala.
2009:Mask and Persona trans. fromMen to Perusona (面とペルソナ) by Carl M. Johnson[3]
2009:The Psychology ofIdol Worship trans. fromGūzō Sūhai no Shinri (偶像崇拝の心理) by Carl M. Johnson[4]
2011:Purifying Zen: Watsuji Tetsurō's Shamon Dōgen trans. fromShamon Dōgen (沙門道元) by Steve Bein (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press)[5][permanent dead link]
2011:Pilgrimages to the Ancient Temples inNara trans. fromKoji Junrei (古寺巡礼) by Hiroshi Nara (Portland, ME: MerwinAsia)[6][permanent dead link]
2021: “Professor Koeber” trans. K.M.J. Shuttleworth and Sayaka Shuttleworth.Journal of East Asian Philosophy 1: 75–99.[7]
2021: “Middle School” from Attempt at an Autobiography trans. K.M.J. Shuttleworth and Sayaka Shuttleworth.European Journal of Japanese Philosophy 6: 267–322.[8]
2021: “America’s National Character” trans. K.M.J. Shuttleworth and Sayaka Shuttleworth.Philosophy East and West 71 (4):1005-1028.[9]
2023: "A Consideration of National Character" trans. K.M.J. Shuttleworth.Journal East Asian Philosophy 2. 199-215.[10]
2024: "Watsuji Tetsurō’s Memory of Natsume Sōseki: A Translation of 'Until I met Sōseki' and 'Sōseki’s Character'" trans K.M.J. Shuttleworth.Journal of East Asian Philosophy.[11]
^David A. Dilworth, et al.,Sourcebook for Modern Japanese Philosophy: Selected Documents (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press); cited in Robert Carter, "Watsuji Tetsurō",Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2004.
^Davis, Bret W. (2022),"The Kyoto School", in Zalta, Edward N.; Nodelman, Uri (eds.),The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2022 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, retrieved2023-03-14.
Mayeda, Graham.Japanese Philosophers on Society and Culture: Nishida Kitarō, Watsuji Tetsurō, and Kuki Shūzō. Lanham: Lexington Books, 2020.ISBN978-1-4985-7208-8.
Mayeda, Graham. (2006).Time, Space and Ethics in the Philosophy of Watsuji Tetsurō, Kuki Shūzō, and Martin Heidegger. New York: Routledge.ISBN0-415-97673-1.
