Seven Samurai

Shichinin No Samurai

The film The Seven Samurai is a classic example of late 16th century samurai engaged in warfare. Throughout the film we are able to get a real sense of what values samurai hold, as well as some techniques used in battle. The film also provides some insight into how a samurai might define himself as a samurai. Though the seven samurai came from different backgrounds and are vastly different people, they share one common trait which is the label of samurai.

Throughout much of the first half of the film we are able to see the separation between the regular townspeople and the samurai. The townspeople are stationary and live more or less by daily routine, whereas the samurai are mobile and are defined mainly by how good they are with a sword. This is evident relatively quickly in the film as two samurai fight to the death in the streets. The townspeople and farmers live a meager existence that is dictated by the growing and harvesting of annual crops. Both the portrayals of samurai and farmer mirror the socio-cultural landscape of the time. The vast majority are poor and unprotected by laws or any sort of authority. Random violence is widespread and common to the point where it is not unusual to see people getting killed in the streets. I got the feeling that being a samurai fits into this scheme almost as a means of survival. They are able to continue living day-by-day because of their proficiency with a sword.

Still, it is not entirely correct to classify a man who is good with a sword as a samurai. A farmer may be a good swordsman but if he does not make his living by using weapons then he would not be considered a samurai. Whereas farmer or merchant is an occupational title, samurai could well be thought of as an occupational title also. The samurai have devoted their lives to the mastery of weapons usage, particularly the sword. This could be the most dominant shared characteristic among samurai.

However, the samurai have many more values that they hold sacred. Most of these pertain to combat situations or general practices of war. The samurai are very selfless beings. They are prepared to die in battle and have no qualms with death. This may be because they have been desensitized by the amount of death that has occurred at their own hands and see a much more blurred line between life and the afterlife.

Though they are paid with only three small meals a day, the samurai will not give up and will not defect from the farmers which they have been hired to protect. They worry more about maintaining their status as samurai than they do about their own lives. They would much rather die fighting as samurai than disgrace themselves by fleeing during battle. The whole notion of samurai selflessness is evident in a quote made by one of the samurai: "He who only thinks of himself, destroys himself." This would suggest that a truly honorable samurai is devoted to his duty rather than to himself.

The samurai are surprisingly rule abiding given the utter chaos of the period of time in which the film takes place. They do not take at all from the farmers they are protecting when they could easily become like the bandits and take large stores of food. They all seem to follow a samurai "code" of loosely defined general samurai characteristics of which they keep each other in check at times. They adhere especially to the rules of war. In the second half of the film a bandit scout is captured and the farmers are anxious to send him to his grave. They want to allow one of the farmers who lost his family to the bandits to get his vengeance. Just before he is killed a samurai steps in and instructs the farmers, "He's a prisoner of war and he's begging for mercyÐ'--we musn't kill him." War is a state that samurai live their lives in and thus they hold its laws above all others.

It seems as the film proceeds that the samurai in this movie are represented most notably by their cunning warfare tactics. To ensure victory they use some techniques that are staples of a successful warfare defense, as well as some more clever techniques that show off their samurai knowledge of warfare. It is clear that the bandits have vastly more trained and experienced fighters. In fact, many of the bandits could be among the samurai if they were to use their skills to foster benevolence rather than maliciousness. The samurai realize this advantage for the bandits and are forced to apply their own advantages in order to have a chance against this imposing force.

The samurai and farmers have two clear advantages

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