"What is Enlightenment" by Immanuel Kant

Although “What is Enlightenment” by Immanuel Kant and “Life of a Sensuous Woman” by Ihara Saikaku show simple differences, they relate to one another more than one may see. “What is Enlightenment” by Immanuel Kant was based around self-incurred tutelage. Enlightenment was the process by which the public could rid themselves of intellectual bondage after centuries of slumbering. Kant proposed the needs for enlightenment. Ultimately, Kant wanted the public to think without question, “treated in accordance with their dignity” , and act judicially.

Ihara Saikaku was widely focused on a women who purses life at her own choosing, like indulging in sexual behavior, but led to a life of fulfillment that soon diminished. In this culture, there were expectations placed on gender, which was required by the people of society to follow it.

Kant discusses the topic of tutelage, the main reason for laziness; therefore, men thought it was irrelevant to further their education/knowledge, which led to his second reason of cowardness.

Kant states that the general people in the community were too afraid to fall, but ultimately was an excuse behind their laziness and cowardness. Lastly, Kant believed that select few of the ‘smarter group’ put themselves first which deprived the public from education; therefore, the elites in society complemented cowardice of the society by suppressing them and leading them back to “harness of the cart to which they were tethered”, Kant states. In the perspective of the reader, the general public really seems quite lazy, resulting in pure selfishness to only do things that would benefit them.

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The people of the society did not obey anything, but stayed in the comfort zone of what would have been the norm at the time, like “domestic cattle”. Kant states such requirements for enlightenment; freedom, enlightenment will follow enlightenment. Freedom is what he calls “paramount for enlightenment”, ot is important because it allows one to freely speak, without the fear of being penalized and restricted to speak.

Kant states that for there to be enlightenment, the leaders must be enlightened before the public. He ultimately wanted the government to comply with the wishes of the people, instead of forcing them into the dark; a government that should not intimidate the citizens, like “Life of Sensuous Women” did. Kant blames the public for tutelage, but reiterates that enlightenment is “the escape of men from self-their incurred tutelage”. In comparison to “Life of Sensuous Women” by Ihara Saikaku, there shouldn’t be limits on one’s choices. The story by Saikaku highlight that a women who lives in a strict society doesn’t have any freedom; whereas, Kant pushes that freedom is needed for one to enjoy life. Kant believed freedom should be more understood but in Saikaku’s reading, there is a whole society that has a set norm that is intended to be fulfilled; while Saikaku believed that there shouldn’t be limits on what someone can do or be, without crossing the norm that is supposed to be practiced. Kant generally speaks that “enlightenment is a mans release from his self-incurred tutelage” which is the ability to make mistakes and do things without direction from one another.

Both writers, Kant and Saikaku go against the social norms and guidelines that control the behavior in society; being different than the rest. Society tends to follow along with whatever everyone else is doing because that is the easiest; a great example of Kant proving that many people are too lazy to explore and be who they want to be, while Saikaku believed that life should be lived how one wants to live it. Kant explains tutelage is the inability for one to trust and use their own reasoning; a doctor diagnosing you and prescribing medicine, a trainer training you, etc. Because of this, society has trouble veering from their self-constructed formalities. A lot of literature, like the ones we’ve read so far, shun and discourage anything that differs from they already have been guided to believe, like a social norm. In “Life of a Sensuous Women”, Saikaku truly captures one of the most prevalent way that man shuns difference, gender and sexuality. The female narrator is treated like an object that is inhumanely manipulated simply for being a woman who is ‘not capable’ of anything more than being a sex slave or toy. While this concept is inhuman, the people of this time were displaying their tutelage towards women, since they had been guided towards that way of thinking by societal standards, similar to how Kant talks about tutelage in his writing. Both took place in different cultures, hence why there is a wide comparison, while also having many similarities.