Japan
What words do you
associate with
Japan?
Write down 5 words
that you think of....
Thinking about
Japan's relationship
to its history...
Is Japan a modern
country?
If so does it still value
tradition?
How do you know?
Japan Themes:
These "central themes" are distinctive, and recurrent, so that they
are touched on again and again under different categories, until
a picture of Japanese cultural and society is understood.
Of the many possible themes, six are suggested here as illustrating
Japanese history, culture and the coutry's relation to the world:
Theme 1: Cultural Borrowing/
Japanization of Foreign Ways
All societies borrow from others,
but the Japanese are different in
the degree to which they have
engaged in deliberate, aggressive,
and selective borrowing from
others. The borrowing is then
followed by Japan's adapting of
the foreign ways to meet the
country's needs (Japanization)
What things has Japan borrowed throughout history?
From whom?
Theme 2: Social Closeness and the Primacy of Society
Japan's insularity encourages a sense of social closeness, reflected in the
structures of the family, community, and workplace, as well as in the
sense of Japanese national identity (nationalism).
The primacy of society (putting society before the individual) as a central
value characterizes the Japanese ways of making decisions, setting goals,
and resolving conflict.
Define nationalism
Theme 3: Relations between the
Inward (domestic) and Outward
(international) Economy
Japan's lack of natural resources
greatly affected the relation between
the inward economy, which was
predominantly agrarian until well into
the twentieth century, and the
outward economy, which flourished
at times and lagged behind at other
times.
What % of Japan's land is farmable? What effect
might this have on the economy?
Theme 4: Preference for
Political and Social Stability
An inclination (tendency)
toward political and social
stability (or a
disinclination toward
disorder) is reflected in
the continuity of political
institutions which
survived after power had
in fact moved to other
people.
Who ran Japan for much of its history?
Theme 5: Pursuit of Change/ Preservation of Cultural
Values
Japan has long encouraged aggressive pursuit of change at
the same time that it has tenaciously preserved its
distinctive customs and culture.
Is Japan a modern country? Is it a traditional one? How do
you know?
Theme 6: Japan and
the World
In Japanese history
periods of reclusive
isolation have
alternated with times
of active engagement
both with Asia and
the world. Japan has
continually searched
for its proper place in
the global order
Periods of Study:
1. Japan before 1600
· feudal
· clan-based
· daimyo, shogun and samurai
· Emperor had some power, but most with shoguns
·
·
· KAMAKURA: 1185-1333
· military-dominated government (bakufu)
2. Togukawa: 1600-1868
-first few years interacted with foreigners/ trade
-then very isolationist
-decline of samurai
-visit by Admiral Perry: foreign influence/ unequal treaties
3. Meiji Restoration: 1868-1912
-influence of the West
-industrialization
-modern economy
-social change