47 RONIN A Samurai Story from Japan The story of the forty-seven ronin is a very famous one in Japan It is a true story about real people, but many of the facts are now lost in time Soon after the ronin took their revenge, the story was retold in plays, known as Chushingura Since then the story has been retold in song, story, drama, television plays, visual art, and many lms Each time the story is retold, the details change But one thing does not change – this story is still as famous in Japan today as it was 300 years ago The story begins in Edo (now modern Tokyo) in spring 1701, in the Shogun’s palace Lord Asano is taking lessons in palace ceremony from Lord Kira, one of the lords in the Shogun’s palace Kira has only hard words for Asano, and by the end of that terrible day, Lord Asano is dead Asano’s samurai are now ronin – samurai without a lord or master They have no home, no place in the world They have only loyalty to their dead lord This is the true story of the forty-seven ronin … OXFORD BOOKWORMS LIBRARY True Stories 47 Ronin A Samurai Story from Japan Stage (400 headwords) Series Editor: Jennifer Bassett Founder Editor: Tricia Hedge Activities Editors: Jennifer Bassett and Christine Lindop NOTES ABOUT SAMURAI Samurai Warriors, famous ghting men in the old days in Japan They lived by a special set of rules, the samurai code of honour (bushido in Japanese) Ronin Samurai without a daimyo (a lord or master) In Japan today ronin are more often called roshi Seppuku Ritual suicide – killing yourself by cutting your stomach open with a knife This was part of bushido, the samurai code of honour, and for samurai, it was better to commit seppuku than to live a life without honour Daimyo A lord, a powerful ruler of a region in Japan in the old days Daimyo often had their own armies of three or four hundred samurai to guard their castles and land Shogun The military ruler of Japan in the old days, under the Emperor JENNIFER BASSETT 47 Ronin A Samurai Story from Japan Illustrated by Dragon76 OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS Great Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX2 6DP, United Kingdom Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and in certain other countries © Oxford University Press 2014 The moral rights of the author have been asserted First published in Oxford Bookworms 2014 10 No unauthorized photocopying All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, by licence or under terms agreed with the appropriate reprographics rights organization Enquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the ELT Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above You must not circulate this work in any other form and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer Links to third party websites are provided by Oxford in good faith and for information only Oxford disclaims any responsibility for the materials contained in any third party website referenced in this work ISBN: 978 19 478612 A complete recording of this Bookworms edition of 47 Ronin: A Samurai Story from Japan is available in an audio pack ISBN: 978 19 478604 Printed in China Word count (main text): 6,079 words For more information on the Oxford Bookworms Library, visit www.oup.com/elt/gradedreaders ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Illustrations by: Dragon 76/Dutch Uncle Agency The publishers would like to thank the following for their permission to reproduce photographs: Alamy Images p.42 (Grave of Asano Naganori at Sengaku-ji temple/pf); Getty Images p.1 (Three samurai warriors in armour, circa 1880/Kusakabe Kimbei/Hulton Archive) e-Book ISBN 978 19 463010 e-Book rst published 2014 CONTENTS STORY INTRODUCTION NOTES ABOUT SAMURAI PEOPLE IN THIS STORY Samurai The death of Asano The plan The long wait The attack The revenge The punishment Sengaku-ji GLOSSARY ACTIVITIES: ACTIVITIES: ACTIVITIES: Before Reading While Reading After Reading ABOUT THE AUTHOR ABOUT THE BOOKWORMS LIBRARY PEOPLE IN THIS STORY In the old days, important men in Japan were often called by their court titles, not by their real names In this story real names are used Lord Kira Yoshinaka, a lord in the Shogun’s palace (court title: Kira Kozuke-no-suke Yoshinaka) Lord Asano Naganori, the daimyo of Ako Castle (court title: Asano Takumi-no-kami Naganori) Oishi Yoshio, captain of Lord Asano’s samurai (court title: Oishi Kura-no-suke Yoshio) Daigaku, Lord Asano’s younger brother Chikara, Oishi’s son Riku, Oishi’s wife Hayami } Kataoka } Hara } Mimura } Horibe } Ten of Lord Asano’s samurai (later, ronin) Okuda } Yoshida } Isogai } Terasaka } Hazama } What revenge the ronin want? Do they want Lord Kira … a) to leave Japan? b) to die? c) to pay them money? The story begins with a death Is it going to end with … a) one death? b) two deaths? c) many deaths? ACTIVITIES While Reading Read chapters to 3, and then complete these sentences with the right words ceremony, crime, loyal, revenge, spy Lord Kira was the teacher of at the palace It was a to draw a sword in the Shogun’s palace It was the samurai way to take for a lord’s death The ronin were to their lord in life and in death The cook in Oishi’s house was a for Lord Kira Read chapters and Read these short extracts, and answer the questions ‘We must stop any servant from leaving the mansion.’ (page 26) Why was it important to that? ‘The bed-clothes are still warm.’ (page 32) What did this mean? On the ground in front of Kira, Oishi carefully placed a long knife (page 34) Why did Oishi this? Before you read chapter 6, can you guess what happens? All the ronin die Forty-six ronin die The ronin not die; they go to prison ACTIVITIES After Reading Match these parts of sentences together, and choose the best linking word to join them 1 Lord Asano was angry with Lord Kira … 2 He drew a sword and attacked Kira, … 3 The punishment for this crime was death, … 4 Lord Asano’s samurai were now ronin, … 5 They planned to attack Lord Kira and kill him, … 6 Lord Kira was afraid of an attack by Asano’s ronin, … 7 On the night of the attack Oishi and his men looked for Lord Kira everywhere in the mansion, … 8 Lord Kira did not want to commit seppuku, … 9 The ronin carried Kira’s head on a spear to Sengaku-ji … 10 when / and they wanted revenge for their lord’s death 11 and / but at last they found him in the wood store 12 because/so Lord Asano committed seppuku 13 but / and it was two years before they could attack 14 because / so Kira called him ‘stupid’ and ‘slow’ 15 so / but he put many Uesugi guards around his mansion 16 and / but placed the head in front of Lord Asano’s grave 17 because / so Oishi cut o his head with a sword 18 and / but it was a crime to draw a sword inside the palace Here is a conversation between Hara and Kataoka, when Hara visits Oishi in Kyoto Put their conversation in the right order, and write in the speakers’ names Hara speaks rst (number 3) ‘He sees a samurai without honour.’ ‘This happens – when Kira is no longer afraid of us ronin, what’s he going to do?’ Hara ‘Why is Oishi spending all his time in the town with all kinds of bad men?’ ‘It’s clever because it’s hiding something Think about it, Hara What we ronin all want?’ ‘Clever? What you mean, ‘clever’? How is that clever, Kataoka?’ ‘Right again! And then, when there’s only a small number of guards round his mansion, we can …’ ‘Nobody Ah! I begin to understand! So what happens next, Kataoka?’ ‘Because he’s clever.’ ‘We want revenge on Lord Kira, of course We’re going to attack his mansion, nd him, and kill him.’ 10 ‘Right, Hara! And who is afraid of a samurai without honour?’ 11 ‘… attack! You’re right, Kataoka – it is clever!’ 12 ‘Yes, we are And Lord Kira knows that So he’s watching Oishi, our captain And what does Kira see?’ 13 ‘He’s going to send the Uesugi guards home.’ Complete this crossword with words from the story Use the clues below to help you 1 Oishi was the of the ronin 2 In old Japan, the were famous ghting men 3 The ronin wanted for Lord Asano’s death 4 A samurai was a , a ghting man, and he served one of the great Japanese lords 5 The favourite weapon of the samurai was the _ 6 For a samurai, it was better to die than to live a life without _ 7 In the Shogun’s palace Lord Asano wore special clothes 8 Ronin were samurai without a lord or 9 Lord Kira lived in a , a very big, grand house 10 Oishi was at home in Ako on the day when Lord Asano died Look back at the crossword and nd a hidden word of ten letters What is it? The hidden word is The hidden word from the crossword can mean di erent things to di erent people at di erent times Talk about your answers to these questions 1 In Japan in 1702, after Lord Kira’s death, what did this word mean to the ronin? 2 In today’s world, what can this word mean to … a) a murderer? b) a thief? c) a child in school? d) somebody parking their car in the wrong place? What did you think about the people in this story? Choose some names, and nish the sentences in your own words Lord Kira / Lord Asano / Oishi / Riku / Chikara 1 I felt sorry for because 2 I liked because 3 I didn’t like because 4 I was angry with when 5 I was afraid for when 6 was right to 7 was wrong to ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jennifer Bassett has worked in English Language Teaching since 1972 She has been a teacher, teacher trainer, editor, and materials writer, and has taught in England, Greece, Spain, and Portugal She is the Series Editor of the Oxford Bookworms Library, and has written nearly forty original and retold graded readers Her Bookworms titles include The Phantom of the Opera, One-Way Ticket, The President’s Murderer, The Omega Files, Shirley Homes and the Lithuanian Case, Shirley Homes and the Cyber Thief, Les Misérables, all at Stage 1, and William Shakespeare at Stage Three of her adaptations, Rabbit-Proof Fence (Stage 3), Love Among the Haystacks (Stage 2), and Les Misérables (Stage 1), have won Language Learner Literature Awards from the Extensive Reading Foundation , and ve of her other titles have been nalists for the Awards She has also created a new subseries called Bookworms World Stories, which are collections of short stories written in English from around the world With H G Widdowson, she is series co-adviser of the Oxford Bookworms Collection, volumes of unadapted short stories for advanced learners Jennifer lives and works in Devonshire, in south-west England She loves travelling and has visited Japan several times On one of her visits she saw the temple at Sengaku-ji, and this began her interest in the famous story of the forty-seven ronin oxford bookworms library Classics • Crime & Mystery • Fact les • Fantasy & Horror Human Interest • Playscripts • Thriller & Adventure True Stories • World Stories The OXFORD BOOKWORMS LIBRARY provides enjoyable reading in English, with a wide range of classic and modern ction, nonction, and plays It includes original and adapted texts in seven carefully graded language stages, which take learners from beginner to advanced level An overview is given on the next pages All Stage titles are available as audio recordings, as well as over eighty other titles from Starter to Stage All Starters and many titles at Stages to are specially recommended for younger learners Every Bookworm is illustrated, and Starters and Fact les have full-colour illustrations The OXFORD BOOKWORMS LIBRARY also o ers extensive support Each book contains an introduction to the story, notes about the author, a glossary, and activities Additional resources include tests and worksheets, and answers for these and for the activities in the books There is advice on running a class library, using audio recordings, and the many ways of using Oxford Bookworms in reading programmes Resource materials are available on the website The Oxford Bookworms Collection is a series for advanced learners It consists of volumes of short stories by well-known authors, both classic and modern Texts are not abridged or adapted in any way, but carefully selected to be accessible to the advanced student You can nd details and a full list of titles in the Oxford Bookworms Library Catalogue and Oxford English Language Teaching Catalogues, and on the website THE OXFORD BOOKWORMS LIBRARY GRADING AND SAMPLE EXTRACTS STARTER • 250 HEADWORDS present simple – present continuous – imperative – can/cannot, must – going to (future) – simple gerunds … Her phone is ringing – but where is it? Sally gets out of bed and looks in her bag No phone She looks under the bed No phone Then she looks behind the door There is her phone Sally picks up her phone and answers it Sally’s Phone STAGE • 400 HEADWORDS … past simple – coordination with and, but, or – subordination with before, after, when, because, so … I knew him in Persia He was a famous builder and I worked with him there For a time I was his friend, but not for long When he came to Paris, I came after him – I wanted to watch him He was a very clever, very dangerous man The Phantom of the Opera STAGE • 700 HEADWORDS … present perfect – will (future) – (don’t) have to, must not, could – comparison of adjectives – simple if clauses – past continuous – tag questions – ask/tell + in nitive … While I was writing these words in my diary, I decided what to I must try to escape I shall try to get down the wall outside The window is high above the ground, but I have to try I shall take some of the gold with me – if I escape, perhaps it will be helpful later Dracula STAGE • 1000 HEADWORDS … should, may – present perfect continuous – used to – past perfect – causative – relative clauses – indirect statements … Of course, it was most important that no one should see Colin, Mary, or Dickon entering the secret garden So Colin gave orders to the gardeners that they must all keep away from that part of the garden in future The Secret Garden STAGE • 1400 HEADWORDS … past perfect continuous – passive (simple forms) – would conditional clauses – indirect questions – relatives with where/when – gerunds after prepositions/phrases … I was glad Now Hyde could not show his face to the world again If he did, every honest man in London would be proud to report him to the police Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde STAGE • 1800 HEADWORDS … future continuous – future perfect – passive (modals, continuous forms) – would have conditional clauses – modals + perfect in nitive … If he had spoken Estella’s name, I would have hit him I was so angry with him, and so depressed about my future, that I could not eat the breakfast Instead I went straight to the old house Great Expectations STAGE • 2500 HEADWORDS … passive (in nitives, gerunds) – advanced modal meanings – clauses of concession, condition When I stepped up to the piano, I was dent It was as if I knew that the prodigy side of me really did exist And when I started to play, I was so caught up in how lovely I looked that I didn’t worry how I would sound The Joy Luck Club BOOKWORMS • TRUE STORIES • STAGE Mutiny on the Bounty TIM VICARY It is night in the south seas near Tahiti, and the ship HMS Bounty has begun the long voyage home to England But the sailors on the ship are angry men, and they have swords and guns They pull the captain out of bed and take him up on deck He tries to run, but a sailor holds a knife to his neck ‘Do that again, Captain Bligh, and you’re a dead man!’ he says The mutiny on the Bounty happened in April, 1789 This is the true story of Captain Bligh and Fletcher Christian, and the ship that never came home to England BOOKWORMS · TRUE STORIES · STAGE Ned Kelly: A True Story CHRISTINE LINDOP When he was a boy, he was poor and hungry When he was a young man, he was still poor and hungry He learnt how to steal horses, he learnt how to ght, he learnt how to live – outside the law Australia in the 1870s was a hard, wild place Rich people had land, poor people didn’t So the rich got richer, and the poor stayed poor Some say Ned Kelly was a bad man Some say he was a good man but the law was bad This is the true story of Australia’s most famous outlaw ... Hayami } Kataoka } Hara } Mimura } Horibe } Ten of Lord Asano’s samurai (later, ronin) Okuda } Yoshida } Isogai } Terasaka } Hazama } Samurai In the old days in Japan, the samurai were warriors,... but he was afraid for his master Every day Asano came back from the palace with an angry face, and angry words ‘How is this going to end?’ Hayami said to Kataoka, another of Asano’s samurai ‘Four... Hara laughed ‘I’m teaching boys how to shoot with bow and arrows,’ he said ‘That’s not a job for a samurai! ’ said Kataoka ‘But we’re not samurai now, we’re ronin, remember?’ said Hara ‘And a ronin