Jōmon period

Oku no hosomichi, is the story of a Buddhist man’s travels throughout Japan during the Kamakura Period. The book has many names in English, but here it will be referred to by the name contained with the reading: The Narrow Road to a Far Provence. The tale is but one example of many Buddhist themed stories during the Japan’s Kamakura period. Japan was one of the only countries to incorporate Buddhism into the already standing religion: Shintoism. This offers a unique look into Japan and the…

Ebola Rough Draft Ebola is one of the world’s most deadly diseases. So far Ebola has killed more than 30,215 people in the world and the number is going up by at least 15 people per day (“Centers for Disease Control and Prevention”). The Ebola virus has completely taken over Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. Other countries such as Kayas, Spain, Lagos, Dallas Texas, New York City, Port Harcourt, and Dakar have the Ebola outbreak as well. Ebola is also known as the Hemorrhagic Fever (“Centers…

Japanese Edo Period Art The Edo period had a lot of importance & impact on Japan as it helped flourish its culture by cutting off the west and isolating itself, with the help of many Schools of Japan learning new techniques in art which would become the norm for today. A lot of the impact was on the social classes, as artists started to become noticed, and recognised for the art they created. The points to discuss will be on ‘who’ to talk about. First, I’ll look at Hoitsu & Buncho from Edo as…

derivative of the popular Ukiyo-e print genre, Nagasaki-e prints were mainly created as souvenirs for the Japanese middle class. Background The Edo Period (1769 - 1868) saw the end of ancient feudal wars and a country united under the Tokagawa Shogunate who moved the new capital to Edo (Tokyo). On July 24, 1641, during a period of self-imposed Japanese seclusion (approximately 1639-1854), the Dutch settlement was moved to Deshima. Deshima was a small artificial island…

Artist Edgar Degas defined art as being: “Art is not what you see, but what you make others see” (Le French 1). In other words, any artist can create something and call it a “piece of art,” but it does not represent any significance if no one can become inspired by it or see the purpose behind it. However, what then would be considered “art” and how would you describe it? A common answer to people is that there is no one particular meaning or that the imagination is endless. Though, true, I…

and were one of the elites of Japan’s class system. Although samurais were once known as “Great”, the samurai’s downfall was inevitable because they want to keep the same traditions not trying modernize. During the eighth century, the Heian Period, around the year 800 to 1200, Samurai originally was referred to household servants. The Heian Era was a time where Japan’s government was ruled by an Emperor who ruled by military force. The Emperor had heavy taxation and those who refused to…

Saigō Takamori was born on on 1827/12/7 in the Castletown of Kagoshima, an isolated area within the Satsuma domain under the control of the Shimazu clan which had established themselves as the oldest living clan in Japan at the time of his birth. The Shimazu clan were of notable prestige in that they were the only clan that received foreign ambassadors in a time when, under the orders of the Tokugawa Shogunate (the shogunate was a council of military commanders led primarily by a single domain),…

A thousand years ago the culture of refined elegance blossomed around Japan 's imperial court. this era known as the Heian period gave rise to Monogatari one of the masterpieces of world literature spanning 54 chapters.The tale of Genji is an epic novel of romance.It is written by Murasaki Shikibu a remarkable woman who lived at the hand court.The book vividly depicts the life of the aristocrats , describing the joys and sorrows woven into tapestry of court life. It tells the tale of a noble…

Ebola is an infectious and often deadly disease that became rapidly more prevalent in Western Africa during 2014, at which time an ebola epidemic was officially declared (World Health Organization, 2015). Health professionals (such as doctors and nurses) travelled to work within the epidemic to treat the ill and prevent the spread of disease and were obligated to care for the infected patients. However, due to their moral investments in both the health of the community and their own individual…

The Plague of Progress: Mishima’s Characterization and Views of Westernization A common misconception is that change always equates to progress, yet sometimes change can strip a society of its fundamental characteristics. Japan endured similar events, surrounding World War II that resulted in an increasingly Westernized country that lost it’s integrity and beliefs. In this allegorical novel, The Sailor who fell from Grace with the Sea, Yukio Mishima uses the characters Fusako, Ryuji and Noboru…