Many of the works of Kurosawa Akira convey the idea that humans have an inability to see the world objectively. Due to the fact that humans can only discern truth from their own biased perspectives, they act in self-interested ways whether they are actually trying to or not. As a result, Kurosawa seems to believe that people expend all of their energy to protect their own positions and increase their own power. In the first place, humans tend to act selfishly because they feel as if it is the only way to get ahead in this competitive world, but they would even act this way if they were attempting to do good because they are inherently delusional. Our goals and moral values are self-defined by the judgments that stem from our own individual perspectives, so people in positions of authority will inevitably use their power in self-interested ways, whether they are actually trying to act in the public interest or not. This causes Kurosawa to question the justice of unchecked authority, seeing that it inevitably leads to selfish abuses of power.
First of all, Kurosawa is quite pessimistic about the righteousness of humans. In Rashomon, for example, one of the characters says that "everyone is selfish and dishonest, making excuses." Kurosawa does not seem hopeful that humans can escape from this selfishness. When a samurai in Ran decides to split up his fief among his sons, hoping that they'll rule together cooperatively, one of the sons says that trusting "in our undying fidelity is nothing but madness and senility." As the sons proceed to fight one another to gain power over the whole realm, it is clear that this selfishness stems from the belief that one's position of power is always in jeopardy. As a result, one must secure one's power at all costs to pre-empt the ambitious usurpers. In Throne of Blood, for example, the samurai's wife convinces him that he must kill his close friend to prevent him from seizing power. She paints a portrait of the world in which "parents will kill children and children their parents to advance themselves in this world," and as a result the samurai kills his dearest ally.
Kurosawa believes that humans cannot leave their selfishness behind because of their inability to see the truth clearly, which leads them to have distorted morals and values. We are lead to believe that every account of the murder in Rashomon is a lie when one of the characters says that "it's human to lie, most of the time we can't even be honest with ourselves." Rather than attempting to see the objective truth, humans "just want to forget the bad stuff and believe in the made up good stuff, it's easier that way." This clearly shows that people choose to conceive the world in ways that are convenient and self-beneficial, whether they are trying to or not. In Ikiru, the main character justifies his meaningless work as a bureaucrat by saying that "I was a mummy for my son." He considered it to be righteous to accumulate money and power for the sake of his son. Maintaining the comfort and security of one's family is one of the primary justifications for acting in ways that are selfish and wrong from an outside perspective. In The Bad Sleep Well, the vice president who was misusing public funds and taking kick-backs was unwilling to step down from his position of power because his family would suffer and have to give up their luxuries if he did. The executive is able to live free from regret because he has such a distorted perspective of righteousness, and these delusions are what allow him to act in ways that are not in the public interest. In Rashomon, when one of the characters ponders whether anyone is good, saying that "maybe goodness is make-believe," Kurosawa questions the entire basis of authority, asking whether there are any righteous actions that are definitely good for the people.
Kurosawa observes that all unchecked authority and unquestioning obedience begets selfishness, evil, and inefficiency. In The Bad Sleep Well, loyalty and devotion to superiors leads executives to kill themselves in the interest of the corporation at large. If they had questioned the authorities, however, they may have realized that their suicides simply protected the power and positions of their bosses to the ultimate detriment of the corporation and society at large. The main character believes that exposing his evil deeds is "the only way he'll ever make up for what he's done." Kurosawa conveys the belief that the only way to keep authorities in check is to open all of their actions to public oversight and scrutiny. In Ikiru, for example, the main character is able to get the park built because the deputy mayor was subject to a public election, and ignoring the request would have looked bad and may have jeopardized his position of power. As the deputy mayor shrugs off the initial request to build a park and instead starts talking about geisha and luxurious entertainment, it is clear that his priorities are selfish rather than selfless.
More specifically, Kurosawa takes a highly critical stace toward government bureaucracy because of the subservience and the deadening mentality that it breeds. The main character's accomplice in The Bad Sleep Well believes that "corruption continues unchecked, and the fat cats brazenly steal public funds" because "a good official never implicates a superior, no matter what the cost." They find it incredible that these officials refuse to hate their superiors even after being "offered up as scapegoats." When one of the officials explains that "unmasking a superior is impossible," the main character believes that "he's not human, the bureaucracy transformed him." Kurosawa conveys the idea that the unthinking subservience engendered by bureaucratic values strips people of their humanity. Even the vice president, who acts so selfishly when dealing with his underlings, is willing to kill himself to protect his boss. Ikiru clearly conveys the theme that bureaucrats have been deadened by their subservient work and are only interested in ensuring their own positions of power. Nobody even thinks to report the section chief when he is absent for an extended period, and everyone is flabbergasted when he asks the deputy mayor to reconsider his position on building a new park. Typically, they give unconditional devotion to their bosses in order to protect their positions in the bureaucracy. Their individual initiative is suppressed, as "doing anything but nothing is radical" according to bureaucratic values. In addition, Kurosawa conveys the idea that bureaucrats are only motivated to advance their own positions of power, as one of the characters says that "only a bureaucrat schemes to replace his boss as soon as he's out." Ultimately, the work deadens their spirits and makes them slow, inactive, and inefficient. This is clearly shown by the run-around given to the group of women, who are continually given new papers to fill out and new offices to go to until they are back where they began without anything accomplished. One of the characters even says that "to clean a garbage can, we need a garbage can of paperwork." The section chief in this film was able to risk his position and question his bosses because he knew that he was going to die soon, and even after his co-workers realize this they cannot change their ways and get something done for the public interest, as they keep giving the public the run-around.
Kurosawa takes a strong stance against authority and against the bureaucracy in particular. First of all, he conveys the idea that our conceptions of the public good are subjective, and that there are no absolute values that the public should be striving to fulfill. Beyond this passing idea, Kurosawa portrays the powerful as completely selfish and motivated by power. He shows that the only checks that prevent abusive authorities are public oversight of their activities and self-government. The ability to criticize our leaders and expose their bad deeds is essential, yet in the bureaucracy loyalty and obedience "to the bitter end" is shown to breed selfish abuses of power.
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