社長が紹介する一冊「竜馬がゆく」ArayZ (Book Review)

ArayZ Web Site (ArayZ サイトにリンク）

「理科系だったからか、読書を敬遠しがちだった」と大野社長は語る。高知県出身だが、地元の英雄の偉業に対する関心・知識はあまりなく、知人らに詳細を聞かれたときに知っていた方がよいとの理由から本書を手にとった。全8巻の長編だが、「史実に脚色が加えられているにもかかわらず、竜馬以外の魅力的な人物が続々と登場してきて、段々とノンフィクションに思えてきた」と、海外出張の移動時間などを利用して短期間で読破した。

"I was apt to avoid reading, probably because I was a more scientific and engineering," said President Ohno. He is from Kochi Prefecture, but he didn't have much interest or knowledge about the local hero's achievements. He took this book because he thought that it would help him when someone asks about its details. Although the series comprises eight volumes in total, the president has read all of them in a short time using his spare time such as during the travel time of the overseas business trips. He says, “despite the fact that the original story was made more dramatic than it really was, the other attractive characters appear one after another and it seemed like nonfiction as I kept reading.”

竜馬は多くの名言・格言を残したが、大野氏を勇気づけてくれたのは、「世の人は我を何とも言わば言え 我が成す事は我のみぞ知る」で、「多くの言葉に流され人の顔色ばかり窺うより、自分の信じた道なら成功するまで突き進む生き方を！」といった意味で解釈。後ろ盾だった土佐藩を脱藩して、自分の気持ちに正直で正しいと思う生き方を選択した竜馬に、大野氏は独立した自分に重なる部分があると共感する。

Ryoma left many wisdoms, and one of that motivated Mr. Ohno were "Whatever people say, they never know what I will do" which he interpreted “if it is the way that you believed in, you should keep going until you succeed rather than changing your mind based on what others may say.” Mr. Ohno says that there is an overlapping part of himself with Ryoma who withdrew from the Tosa and chose a way of life that he believed right and honest to his will.

一方、考え方は柔軟で現実主義であった竜馬。「歴史の教科書では、具体的に何を成し遂げたのかが記述されていない。本書ではどのような人物で、どのような功績を残したのか、よく分かります」。

On the other hand, Ryoma was flexible and realistic in his mind. "The history textbooks do not describe specifically what he has accomplished. This book gives you an idea of what kind of person he was and what kind of achievements he made."