Japan Culture Vs America

Improved Essays
Japan is a beautiful and interesting country. It is also very old country. When it comes to comparing it to America, there is not much that both countries have in common. Not only is the culture different, but so is the government, the problems it faces and their ideals. First and foremost, Japan does not have the same type of government as us. In America, we have a federal presidential republic. In a federal republic, there are partially self governing states or regions with a constitution under a federal government, and the presidential part means that we have a president. Japan has a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. In a constitutional monarchy, there is a king or queen, or in Japan’s case, an emperor. This figure must follow the …show more content…
It was founded in 660 B.C, but it was settled at least 100,000 years ago. During the Nara period (710-794), Japan really began developing their culture. They created a constitution and a centralized Imperial state system (a government where the emperor has complete power). This is also when the first historical records were written down. From 794 to 1185, Japan was influenced by China greatly and slightly by the other western asian countries, such as korea and India. They expanded the border. In 1185, aristocratic rule collapsed and Japan entered a medieval age known as the Feudal Era. During this time, whoever ruled was whoever was the strongest. One clan of samurai would be in control, and the strongest samurai, or the shogen would act as daimyo. They used a code of conduct that all samurai followed called bushido to maintain order. Then whenever there was unrest, another clan would overthrow the ruling clan. The feudal era lasted from 1185-1603. In 1590 a general named Hideyoshi killed his daimyo, became the daimyo and unified Japan. During the Edo period (1603-1868), Japan developed its culture, economy and power; it became one of the top powers in asia. From 1868 to 1912, Japan built up its power until world war one. During the war, America had control over Japan and established social reform. Women were given the right to vote, workers gained the right to form unions and to strike and freedom of speech, assembly and religion were …show more content…
Japan has many traditions that date back thousands of years, whereas America is a relatively new country and does not have as much culture and traditions as other countries. What we do have in common is keeping up with the latest trends, watching sporting events, and our love for food. In Japan, many people travel just for food. Many towns and cities reputations are about food. They have strange delicacies and dishes based on what season it is. Religion is a part of everyday life for most Japanese people. You can find several shrines and temples throughout the country, and there are countless religious festivals that occur throughout the year. The shinto religion is the indigenous religion of Japan. Shintoism is about worshiping nature and the changing of seasons. This is partly why cherry blossoms and bonsai trees are important to them. Japanese people value honor, respect, and manners above all else. Japanese people also have a very high work ethic, and are proud of their jobs. In fact, it is common for Japanese people to introduce themselves with their name and where they work. This high work ethic does a lot of good for their economy. One thing about Japan that is completely different from America, is that people do not go out drinking. Alcohol is typically only served with a meal, and it is common courtesy that you do not pour your own glass. Vending machines are so popular there, that there

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Samurai's Impact On Japan

    • 850 Words
    • 4 Pages

    First in the 1100s, the Heian emperors lost control of parts of Japan. The samurai then helped the emperor's rule by taking up both military and political jobs. According to Kallie Szczepanski, a historian who has a master’s in history at Boston University, “As a result, the emperor soon wielded power only within the capital, and cross the country, the warrior class moved in to fill the power vacuum. After years of fighting and establishing a shogunate rule in many parts of the island nation, the samurai effectively held both military and political power over much of Japan by the early 1100s”(Kallie Szczepanski 1). In 1160, the samurai clans of Minamoto and Taira fought for control.…

    • 850 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Second Sino-Japanese War

    • 2170 Words
    • 9 Pages

    The Second Sino-Japanese War, 1937-1945, is widely considered to begin with the Marco Polo Bridge incident of July 1937 and end with the Japanese surrender in September 1945. I would argue that to understand the motives as to why Japan invaded China, it is essential to grasp their previous history of conflicts and tensions, beginning with the Japanese claim of Taiwan from China’s Qing Dynasty after the First Sino-Japanese war in 1895, right through to the invasion of Manchuria in 1931. This conflict between the two marked a culmination of near a half century of growing Japanese imperialist policies, aimed at the creation of a new order in East Asia through dominating Chinese politics and militaristically in order to exploit their natural resources.…

    • 2170 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Diplomacy between Tang Dynasty and Japan The Tang Dynasty(619-907AD) ended the chaos that existed after the reign by e dynasty and united China. It was founded by Li’s family in the capital of Chang an. The Tang dynasty was one of the greatest dynasties in Chinese history (ushistory). Diplomacy was one of the most successful parts during the Tang Dynasty. Culture, language, education and religion were exchanged rapidly between China and Japan (taschool).…

    • 1161 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Empire Time Frame Essay

    • 1277 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The new nation was developed under the ratification of constitutional monarchy which was implemented by the Meiji Emperor. The key changes that promoted democracy and modernization of Japan state were the shifting of power to the Japanese population. Consequently, the new system of governance was characterized by land ownership, protection of citizen’s rights, and the capacity to form unions. Likewise, the modernization of China was contributed by the increased revolutionary movements that aimed at the expulsion of the imperialists. The aggressive nature of the British and Japanese led to national unity, a concept that led to a forceful removal of these foreign individuals.…

    • 1277 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Japan Dbq Analysis

    • 366 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The political revolution of the modernization stage allowed Japan to strengthen its internal government and external interests. Prior to Japan’s attempt to introduce an advanced government, the emperor overthrew the Shoguns and restored his supreme power, which is also known as the Meiji Restoration. Under the emperor’s reliable, centralized government, rather than numerous Shoguns, Japan united. The new government acted as the catalyst that emboldened Japan’s will to modernize and led a successful transition and transformation. Japanese envoys and scholars were sent to European nations, such as Germany, to “study the institutions of the civilized nations, adopt those most suited to Japan, and gradually reform” the government “to attain the status equal to that of the civilized nations.” (Doc 6) Japan used…

    • 366 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The reason that they were the highest, rather than craftsmen or merchants was because they produced food that the upper classes were depended on. They were very respected, and were considered an honored class. However, being a Japanese peasant had its lows as well. You could not choose to be a peasant, and could only be born one. Despite the Medieval peasant together with freeman and villains, lived on a manor in a village.…

    • 1229 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Efforts focused more on this goal and as such the once thriving samurai class was disbanded in 1876 and class equality was established. In 1872 Japanese efforts grew stronger as under a system of conscription peasants were allowed to become part of the modernization process. All men of the various social classes were required to give three years of military service. By the 1890’s, Japan became militarily capable for territorial expansion and giving herself the power of an imperial state. This can be seen when Britain and Japan formed an alliance to defeat China in the Boxer…

    • 2069 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Hideyoshi died in 1598 and was succeeded by Ieyasu as of the five regents ruling Japan. In 1600, Ieyasu unified and took control of Japan in the Battle of Sekigahara, and was made shogun by the emperor. By 1606, Christians were still being persecuted by the Japanese state and more anti-Christian decrees have been ordered, forbidding Christianity in Japan. In 1614, Ieyasu issued the Christian expulsion Edict,edict orders all missionaries to leave Japan and all Japanese to register themselves as members of one of the Buddhist…

    • 809 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Japan's Tokugawa, or Edo, period existed from 1603 to 1868, until it underwent many rapid key developments, transforming the traditional Japanese government, society, and culture into the modern Meiji Restoration of 1868. The Meiji Restoration overturned the long-reigning Tokugawa shoguns and pushed Japan into a modern era. During the Tokugawa period there were many blossoming developments that prompted the modernisation of Japan to take place such as the decline of the Bakufu (military government) which led to democracy, the changing role of the samurai allowed for social mobility, the arrival of the black ships introduced industrialisation to Japan and Commodore Matthew Perry’s arrival resulted in the Militarisation of Japan. These were…

    • 1085 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Samurai Influence

    • 740 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In 1,160 the samurai gained control of all of Japan and ruled as a government that used feudalism. Feudalism is when powerful landowners like the Daimyo and their warriors ruled Japan. Since most of the power was with the Daimyo the Yamato emperors power decreased a lot. Feudalism lasted for 700 years. To conclude the samurai changed in many different ways over…

    • 740 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays