Chang, Duk-soo had to educate himself lo overcome poverty and ignorance when he was young. There was a strong supporter Akimotlo Toyonojin(秋本豊之進) beside him. He, as self-made person, had to work his way through a college despile of extreme poverty, and passed the 1st examination for higher public official in Japan and became the Minister of Pyeongyang-bu in Korea during the period of Japanese ColoniaL Thanks to his supporter, he could get a correspondence materials of Waseda Univ. for middle school students(中學講義錄) and pass the 1st examinalion for public official as Korean. A poor boy was able to reach a step toward a successful career for himself. For some reasons, he, however, was not assigned as a officer, so he decided to go to Japan to study further.
He was admitted at Waseda Univ. in March 1912. He attracted increasing attention because of his excellent academic performance and oratory skills. He participated in a speech contest by representing Waseda univ. and played a role as a deputy premier at a mock assembly. It was the first time and the only for a Korean. He graduated second from the Faculty of Political Economics, Waseda univ. in Jul 1916. He was faithful to his college life, both theory and practice, and prepared himself for becoming ‘a politician’ in Korea during the period of Japanese Colonial.
While studying in Japan, there was a big change in his consciousness. He was seriously conscious of the National question in Korea around 1914, In his first vvriting, “A true feeling of Korean youth”, the existence of Korean people as a community life where each member was alive and breathing was first revealed, He turned his criticism towards Japan, saying Korean people were enslaved by Japan’s assimilationism and the stratocracy by the Japanese Government-General of Korea, To solve the ethnic issues of colonial people, he did not forget the duties of Korean people as well as held Japan responsible for that.
It is difficult to know what made Chang, Duk-soo be conscious of ethnic issues, but the drcumstances of the occasion can be understood. First, Japan"s political upheaval during the early period of Taisho(大正政變) was likely to make him look back on the domestic political situation. It was likely that the ability of people in Japan in the political upheaval prompted him to think Korean people had to take the initiative in solving the domestic problems. It was likely that his critical mind was amplified and strengthened through his relationship with other Korea studenls in Japan. As his accommodating Transcendentalism of Emerson made his Christian Utopianism transform to social practice, he became conscious of ethnic issues and furthermore, tried to seek after the solutions. The ethnic issues of which Chang, Duk-soo became conscious changed his life completely and he participated in a illegal secret society.