8. Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources, using advanced searches effectively; assess the strengths and limitations of each source in terms of the task, purpose, and audience; integrate information into the text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and overreliance on any one source and following a standard format for citation including footnotes and endnotes. CA
Japanese Westernization
For nearly over 250 years, Japan lived among peace and prosperity under the Tokugawa Shogunate government. But it was not until after the arrival of the Portuguese in 1542 that Japan finally took on the form of isolationism. The Portuguese were the first Europeans to arrive to Japan due to one of their ships sailing off course and landing on the Southern tip of Japanese Archipelago. Fascinated by the Portuguese firearms, the Japanese accepted trade with the Portuguese. This initiated the Nanban, Southern barbarian, period of active commercial and cultural exchange between Japan and the West (Thomas). Over the next century, Japan initiated commerce with more than a few European countries, which included the Netherlands, England, and Spain. Along with firearms, the Portuguese introduced Christianity, which eventually led to the enforcement of isolationism in 1641, where the government banned commerce with all foreign countries and abolished Christianity. But because the Dutch did not practice Christianity, they were not inducing a civil disorder, therefore the Japanese permitted limited trade with only the Dutch.
Japan eventually led to Westernization due to the pressure within and outside of Japan. Its limitation on trade caused economic problems within Japan from the collapsing of the feudal system. Famines, along with several natural disasters, caused the wealth of the ruling samurai classes to fall. As a result, they attempted to regain back the fall through an increased taxation on the lower class, which caused major uprising. Besides it’s financial situation, Japan was pressured to trade by many foreign powers. But it was not until 1853 when the United States Navy sent a war fleet to Edo Bay to demonstrate their military power. Due to Japan’s lack of technology and military power, Japan was then forced to open its ports to foreign traders and sign the Treaty of Kanagawa. This opened Japan’s eyes, without any modern technology they were behind all world powers, therefore weak. The end of the Edo period and the start of the Meiji Restoration in 1868, was the major shift between tradition to modernization. Westernization in Japan altered many factors such as government, culture, and society.
The Tokugawa Shogunate, was the final era of traditional Japanese government that existed from 1603 to 1868. This period was also recognized as the Tokugawa bakufu and the Edo bakufu, bakufu meaning military government. Under the Tokugawa Period, the government was strictly based on feudal military dictatorship. The Tokugawa Political system, also known as the bakuhan taisei, consisted of the emperor, the shogun, the daimyo, and the samurai. The Bakuhan Taisei split feudal power between the shogunate and the han. Han meaning domain, referring to the 250 domains that existed during the Edo period. Each domain had to a certain extent power and were allowed their own government in exchange for security from the Shogun. As well as the han, the Shogun also had its own government except that their level of power was above the han including the emperor. The Shogun had both the military power and the power to eliminate, annex, and transform domains. Although the emperor was the legitimate ruler of Japan, the Shoguns controlled Japan while the emperor had the only authority to appoint the shogun, but had essentially no say in state business.
The Meiji Restoration, meaning “Enlightened rule” was the start of Japan’s alteration. This revolution brought about the modernization and westernization of Japan (Encyclopedia Britannica). Under the Meiji period, the form of government altered from being a strictly feudal military dictatorship to Oligarchy, in which all control of the country was returned to the emperor. The first goal of the new government was to annihilate the old feudal reign. This was attained in 1871 when the domains were eliminated and replaced by a prefecture system, in other words every domain was placed under the control of a state-appointed governor. The Meiji restoration increased industrialization, which led to the development of an army which was newly formed as the Imperial Japanese Army. Furthermore, the emperor additionally seeked to abolish the four divisions of society. In 1868, all lands were confiscated and placed under “imperial control” leading to the economic stability among the lower class. Japan abolished feudalism and adopted a constitution.
Japanese culture was one of the many factors that was altered by Westernization. During the Edo period, one of the well-known traditional japanese clothing was the kimono. The word kimono, literally means “ a thing to wear” and symbolizes the tradition and beauty of Japan. It is a floor-length robe worn daily by men, women, and children. They are T-shaped, wrapped around the body and are detained by a sash tied in the back. Since the kimono has a basic pattern, it could fit people with different body types by adjusting the neck and waistline(Schwebius). Because kimonos were traditionally worn everyday, they were suitable for any type of weather. During the winter, kimonos were layered to provide warmth and over the summer, they were made of cotton to be more comfortable. There are various types of kimonos ranging from formal to casual. Formal Kimonos are made of silk whereas casual kimonos are made of cotton. The design on the kimono can reveal the type of occasion, social status, and inclusive women’s marital status. Some of the types of kimonos include the Furisode, which is the most formal and has the long sleeves demonstrating an unmarried woman, the Mofuku, which is worn by both genders for funerals, the Tomesode, used by married women, the Uchikake, worn only by brides, and Yukata, a summer kimono worn for events and festivals. During the Edo period, kimonos developed as an art form becoming more valuable that they were utilized as family heirlooms.
During the Meiji period, kimonos were slowly fading out due to the cause of new influence of government, the collapse of the silk production, and the influence of fashion magazines. When the new government was adopted, the government encouraged the Japanese people, government officials, and the military to take up western clothing. Silk production fell due to the continuous popularity of artificial fabrics. It was not until after the Edo period that fashion magazines started becoming popular. Fashion magazines showed women how to dress and established new styles. Eventually, people stopped wearing kimonos every day and were now only being used for special occasions such as weddings, funerals, tea ceremonies, and summer festivals.
During the Edo period, religion played an important part by influencing the Japanese diet. The Buddhist dietary practice of abstaining from meat meant that many Japanese people turned to fish as a dietary staple (Avey).Thus, establishing sushi as one of the most popular Japanese dishes. The idea of sushi was introduced to Japan in the ninth century and become popular as Buddhism advanced. Although the true origins of sushi are quite mysterious, there are legends about how sushi came to be. In an ancient Japanese wives’ tale an elderly woman started hiding her pots of rice in osprey nests so that nobody would steal them. She realized that after some time the rice had begun to ferment and that the fish scraps had fallen from the osprey’s meal had mixed into the rice and were kept preserved. The process of using rice to prevent the fish from spoiling commenced in Southeast Asia, but the Japanese were recognized as the first to prepare sushi as a complete dish.
The meiji revolution brought a new culture that emerged from the mix of traditional Japan with the new trends brought in from the West. Along with modernizing Japan’s technology, Japan’s cuisine was also greatly altered. With the influence of religion, during the Edo period, the Japanese diet was limited to only seafood and vegetables. But when the Edo period ended, the new key ingredient that was incorporated into the traditional diet was beef. The custom of eating beef was rare and attaining ingredients for Western Style was difficult as well as understanding the new cooking methods, so the easiest way to incorporate beef was in the gyu-nabe beef hot pot. Beef was simply substituted for goose meat, and ground sansho pepper, the preferred spice for goose meat, was initially used in gyu-nabe (Maenobo).
In the beginning of the Edo period, Shintoisms was the only religion in Japan until the arrival of Buddhism. Before Buddhism, early Japanese were devoted to the spirits of nature and there was no formal shinto religion. They developed rituals and stories that allowed them to understand the universe. By creating such spiritual world, it helped them in a way to have more control of their lives. After the arrival of Buddhism, shinto faiths started to take on some elements of the Buddhism religion. Shinto shrines became Buddhist temples and with the ruling aristocracy’s influence, Buddhism began to spread significantly. By the 17th century, Buddhism was the main religion. Because it was heavily favored by the ruling class, the Japanese people were forced to register at a Buddhist temple. The meiji restoration brought new changes in religion thought. The new government’s goal was to provide religious support, a religious theory, and to support religion through the government. Shinto was completely separated from Buddhism and eventually became the official state religion of Japan.
Society was also another factor that was altered by Westernization. Society in the Edo period, was strictly based on class hierarchy. The daimyo were on the top, the samurai were next, then the farmers, artisans, and traders were below. The daimyo and the samurai were almost the same because the daimyo can be trained as samurai. There was frequent uprisings during the Edo period among the social classes because of taxes being charged on the lower class. The tax system at the time of the Edo period was only making an economic instability among the rich and the poor, making the poor even poorer and making the ruling class even wealthier. One of the major differences between the samurai and the lower class was the right to bear arms, but this ancient right was extended to every male in the nation after the meiji period.
In conclusion, the end of the Tokugawa Period and the beginning of the Meiji Restoration marked the major shift between traditional to modern Japanese government, culture, and society. Although it changed a lot of Japan’s traditional trends it also brought about a major improvement to Japan. After the Meiji Emperor took power, Japan quickly came to rise and became one of the top world powers.
No comments:
Post a Comment