Meiji period

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…

The second paper, by Harold John Cook (Cook 2004), states that the scientific revolution was built not by a few geniuses thinking in their rooms, but from the collective efforts of countless people, and argues for a geographical de-centering of the concept of scientific revolution. To argue for his theses, Cook documents the case of Willem ten Rhijne. Willem van Rhijne went to Japan, by the means of the East India Company, because the government of Japan wanted to enrich their knowledge about…

are socialize to see women only as beautiful objects rather than a human. In this narrative, both women and men have little individual agency for they must operates within the confides of their gender. The same can be said for the women and men in Meiji Japan. When Sanshiro board the train, he notice a woman whose features “fitted together” and when they got to the hotel, she wants to submit to him sexually. Despite her taking the initiative, she still operates with restricted agency…

The Meiji Restoration, also known as the Reign of the Meiji Emperor was a massive movement that took place in 1868, which brought about an industrialization in Japan. The movement began when the Tokugawa Shogun, who ruled Japan; who lost his power due to being overthrown, was replaced by the emperor of Japan to the supreme position. The emperor chose “Meiji” as the name for his rule as it referred to the “Enlightened Rule”. As the nation began restoring itself, it had to tackle many of its…

The turnover from the Tokugawa period to the Meiji is historically seen as a Japan entering a new age of modernization and industrialization to reach western levels of civilization. Tokugawa as a traditional, old fashioned age while Meiji metaphorically as opening itself up to new ideas and western ways of thinking. The Meiji era was a time where Japan opened itself up to western influence. This romanticized way of viewing Meiji as a triumphant time of growing industry and capitalism is, however…

one of the most famous novels in modern Japanese literature. The novel is set in Meiji era Japan, a time when Japan became a more modern and Westernized country. Although the modernization of Japan was a welcomed change, many Japanese were torn between the inevitable modernity of their country and their tradition. The modernization of Japan brought about societal changes in the role of women, but similar to the Meiji era, the representation of women in Kokoro were torn between modernity and…

During the period between 1600 and 1900 in Japan, regarding cultural and political changes and continuities, the ideology of kokutai remained constant while there were significant changes in their militarily weak country and isolated nation. Japan changed from being a weakened isolated nation to a modern imperialist country. Before this big change, Japan was under the rule of Tokugawa Shogunate. Japan did not associate with any other country because they believed foreign influence was a…

known as “Takekurabe”, which translates to “growing up”, the children of the story cross the line that separates child from adult during a period of individualism and edification. Although “Child’s Play” embraces the purity of the coming-of-age theme, it adds darker elements in order to show the realistic sides to growing up. Despite how the Meiji restoration period provides chances to practice self-interests, society forces upon the children certain roles that it expects them to partake in…

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…

religion from Buddhism and Confucianism (“Shintoism”). Shinto most literally means, “the way of kami” (Hirai). Shintoism became more popular and common in the 18th century (“Shintoism”). Japan’s transition from 18th century to now started in 1871. The Meiji government started by abolishing feudalism and replacing daimyos with prefects which watched over regions of Japan ("Industrialization…