Previous
Robert Childan
Nobusuke Tagomi is a mild-mannered bureaucrat who works in the Pacific States of America as a trade representative for the Japanese government. For much of the novel, he is concerned with orchestrating a meeting with the mysterious Mr. Baynes—it becomes clear that the two are involved in some kind of politically subversive activity. When they finally meet, Tagomi protects Baynes from a squad of Nazi Kommandos. He murders two of the men, which profoundly affects his outlook on life. More than any other character in the novel, Tagomi goes on a sort of moral quest: in the aftermath of the shooting, he struggles to locate an Inner Truth in his morally ambiguous reality. Ultimately, Tagomi concludes that “there is no understanding…yet [he] must go on living day to day anyhow.” Tagomi therefore links two of the novel’s most important themes: in recognizing that there is a lack of clear moral truth, Tagomi resolves to focus on quotidian, intimate life as opposed to large-scale historical action. In many ways, this recognition makes Tagomi the novel’s moral center—and that is reflected in the way he works against Nazi policy, even refusing to sign an extradition order for Frank after his Jewishness is revealed.
Nobusuke Tagomi Quotes in The Man in the High Castle
The The Man in the High Castle quotes below are all either spoken by Nobusuke Tagomi or refer to Nobusuke Tagomi. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 2 Quotes
The cipher was the metaphor type, utilizing poetic allusion, which had been adopted to baffle the Reich monitors—who could crack any literal code, no matter how elaborate. So clearly it was the Reich whom the Tokyo authorities had in mind, not quasi-disloyal cliques in the Home Islands. The key phrase, “Skim milk in his diet” referred to Pinafore, to the eerie song that expounded the doctrine, “. . . Things are seldom what they seem—Skim milk masquerades as cream.”
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 12 Quotes
Evil, Mr. Tagomi thought. Yes, it is. Are we to assist it in gaining power, in order to save our lives? Is that the paradox of our earthly situation? I cannot face this dilemma, Mr. Tagomi said to himself. That man should have to act in such moral ambiguity. There is no Way in this; all is muddled. All chaos of light and dark, shadow and substance.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Nevertheless, Mr. Baynes thought, the crucial point lies not in the present, not in either my death or the death of the two SD men; it lies—hypothetically—in the future. What has happened here is justified, or not justified, by what happens later. Can we perhaps save the lives of millions, all Japan in fact?
But the man manipulating the vegetable stalks could not think of that; the present, the actuality, was too tangible, the dead and dying Germans on the floor of his office.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 14 Quotes
Mr. Nobusuke Tagomi thought, There is no answer. No understanding. Even in the oracle. Yet I must go on living day to day anyhow.
I will go and find the small. Live unseen, at any rate. Until some later time when—
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Laying his coat over a chair, Frank collected a handful of half-completed silver segments and carried them to the arbor. He screwed a wool buffing wheel onto the spindle, started up the motor; he dressed the wheel with bobbing compound, put on the mask to protect his eyes, and then seated on a stool began removing the fire scale from the segments, one by one.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 15 Quotes
And what will that leave, that Third World Insanity? Will that put an end to all life, of every kind, everywhere? When our planet becomes a dead planet, by our own hands?
[Baynes] could not believe that. Even if all life on our planet is destroyed, there must be other life somewhere which we know nothing of. It is impossible that ours is the only world; there must be world after world unseen by us, in some region or dimension that we simply do not perceive.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Man in the High Castle LitChart as a printable PDF.
"My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." -Graham S.
Nobusuke Tagomi Character Timeline in The Man in the High Castle
The timeline below shows where the character Nobusuke Tagomi appears in The Man in the High Castle. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
...an old Civil War poster he has ordered. When he receives a call from Mr. Tagomi, one of his most important clients, Childan must inform him that the poster has not...
(full context)
Chapter 2
From his office near the top of the Nippon Times Building, Nobusuke Tagomi looks out on the Golden Gate Bridge and frets about his upcoming meeting with a...
(full context)
Tagomi calls in his secretary, Miss Ephreikian. He tells her that he has consulted the I...
(full context)
Tagomi asks Miss Ephreikian to call in his assistant, a young American named Mr. Ramsey. Tagomi...
(full context)
Tagomi informs Miss Ephreikian and Mr. Ramsey that Mr. Baynes is here to sell the Japanese...
(full context)
...in racist language, as a “chink”). After a stressful day of sorting through objects for Tagomi, Childan is on his way to present the options. Childan feels that he has done...
(full context)
As he tries to imagine Mr. Tagomi’s client, Childan recalls how he got his start in such a lucrative antiques business. Years...
(full context)
Childan worries that Mr. Tagomi’s client might not be Japanese—which would be an issue, because Childan has selected objects specifically...
(full context)
Chapter 3
...Imperial Government has come to meet him, and he assumes (correctly) that this is Mr. Tagomi. Tagomi presents Baynes with his gift, boasting that it is “among the finest objects d’art...
(full context)
Chapter 4
Returning to his shop after his appointment with Mr. Tagomi, Childan is surprised to find a well-dressed, white visitor. The visitor produces an Imperial business...
(full context)
Chapter 5
As Tagomi drinks tea with Baynes, he reflects on the “absurd[ity]” of the I Ching: “we ask...
(full context)
Before Baynes leaves, he informs Tagomi that there will be a third man—“an elderly retired businessman” named Mr. Yatabe—joining their conversation...
(full context)
Believing that Baynes is Swedish and not German, Tagomi confides his anti-Nazi sentiment. He believes the Nazis are “barbaric” and racist, and he particularly...
(full context)
Chapter 6
In his office, Tagomi receives a report that Mr. Baynes is not a Swede—the young man who attended their...
(full context)
Mr. Ramsey informs Tagomi that Chancellor Bormann has died. Tagomi cancels everything on his schedule and heads over to...
(full context)
Tagomi begins to feel ill as he hears about the fourth candidate, Baldur von Schirach. Von...
(full context)
Tagomi has a kind of panic attack, and he feels so dizzy and nauseous that he...
(full context)
Gingerly, Tagomi makes his way back to his office, where he takes a meeting with another trade...
(full context)
...Japanese government fears and loathes all the possible new German leaders. Shaken by this knowledge, Tagomi half-heartedly writes a letter of condolence to the German ambassador, but he leaves it to...
(full context)
Tagomi gets a call from Baynes, who asks if Mr. Yatabe has arrived yet. When Tagomi...
(full context)
Chapter 10
...nowhere to be found, Bormann’s death has thrown the entire German government into chaos, and Tagomi is getting increasingly impatient with the whole situation. Baynes reflects on the absurdity of the...
(full context)
...of the Nazi party; his wildly popular radio speech has clinched the deal. Baynes calls Tagomi again to inquire about Mr. Yatabe, but Tagomi again says—with an edge in his voice—that...
(full context)
Baynes wonders if he should just tell Tagomi everything he was supposed to tell Mr. Yatabe; Tagomi cannot act at a policy level,...
(full context)
Tagomi, having woken up feeling anxious, consults the I Ching. The oracle gives him Hexagram 51,...
(full context)
Chapter 12
At his office, Tagomi is finally able to meet Mr. Yatabe. As Tagomi looks at Mr. Yatabe, however, he...
(full context)
...emperor would never do such a thing, as Heydrich represents the worst of German society. Tagomi is baffled by this moral puzzle—to save Japan, the Japanese must give power to atrocious...
(full context)
Mr. Ramsey, Tagomi’s assistant, announces that there is a group of SD (police) men in the downstairs lobby....
(full context)
While Tagomi waits with his gun pointed at his office door, Tedeki is on the phone with...
(full context)
Two white men, both part of the Kommando squad, barge through Tagomi’s door. Without thinking, Tagomi shoots them both dead. As one of them dies, Tagomi realizes...
(full context)
In great distress, Tagomi turns to the oracle. Tedeki observes that Tagomi, likely raised as a Buddhist, is deeply...
(full context)
Chapter 14
Shaken by the shooting, Tagomi reflects “there is no understanding. Even in the oracle. Yet I must go on living...
(full context)
As he strolls, Tagomi wonders if he can ever return to his office—and even if he eventually can, he...
(full context)
Tagomi wonders if perhaps separating himself from the gun will allow him to return to his...
(full context)
However, when Tagomi tries to exchange the Colt .44, Childan grows cold and refuses to take it. Before...
(full context)
As he leaves the store, Tagomi dismisses Childan’s obsession as “Anglo-Saxon fanaticism.” Before he can get far, however, Tagomi becomes envious...
(full context)
Tagomi takes a pedicab to a small park. He sits on the park bench and stares...
(full context)
Tagomi begins to study the triangle more intently. He muses that it is made of metal,...
(full context)
Suddenly, the light illuminating the triangle disappears and Tagomi looks up to find two white policemen in blue suits. Tagomi is upset that he...
(full context)
Tagomi walks out of the park, but he is surprised to see that there are no...
(full context)
Desperately, Tagomi heads into a dingy diner. White people are sitting on all the stools, and not...
(full context)
Realizing that he entered this alternate reality though the little silver triangle, Tagomi decides he must find the triangle again. He remembers that he left the jewelry in...
(full context)
In order to determine whether he is still in the strange alternate reality, Tagomi summons two little Chinese boys. He pays them a dime and asks them to see...
(full context)
When Tagomi arrives in the Nippon Times Building, the whole mess from the day before has been...
(full context)
Tagomi’s secretary informs him that a man from the German consul, Mr. Reiss, is there to...
(full context)
Tagomi tells Reiss that he believes Germany is “about to descend into greater vileness than ever.”...
(full context)
Reiss accuses Tagomi of taking out general frustration on this specific situation; Tagomi dismisses this claim as nonsense....
(full context)
While he is transported to the hospital, Tagomi wonders if he has ruined his career forever by snapping at Reiss. Tagomi speculates that...
(full context)
