Samurai

In many ways feudal Japan was different comared to feudal Europe. Japan had a lot of war. Although, Japan had no central power. Feudal Europe had a contract Japan did not have. Japan’s training of their samurai made it so they trained more warriors in a quicker and shorter time period. Both Japan and Europe’s warriors had armor but, Japan had more advanced armor. Training was not an easy thing to do for the warriors. Japan in many ways is different contrasted to Europe. The social classes of…

Bushido, or the “way of the warrior,” calls forth the ghosts of Japan’s hallowed samurai class. A class so determined to preserve honor, they would rather stab their own stomachs in ritualistic suicide than live a shamed existence. Bushido is a code of conduct for the samurai of premodern Japan. The word samurai originally meant “one who serves” and referred to men of noble birth assigned to guard members of the Imperial Court. A strong virtue of Bushido was a strict hierarchy that emphasized…

was a Japanese general, who later became a famous shogun and daimyo. He was also one of the Four Heavenly Kings who severed Tokugawa. He was known as the warrior who surpasses death because he fought in 100 battles and was never defeated by another samurai. Honda Tadakatsu wore a helmet with deer antlers and carried a special sword called the Dragonfly Cutter. If a dragonfly landed on the sword it would cut in half. Honda Tadakatsu was one of Tokugawa leyasu’s finest generals and fought in…

“which is extravagant as well as extraordinary which embodies a Samurai aesthetic like "Basara" in Nanboku dynasty era and "Kabuki-mono" in the end of Sengoku era. [1]” .One of the people that influenced Hisashi was Taro Okamoto who was born in 1911 but unfortunately he passed away in 1996, Okamoto was a son of a cartoonist. Okamoto had worked as…

economy feeds of business, it is equally as important to be able to collect revenue from its people. Three cities thrived during the Tokugawa period: Edo, Kyoto, and Osaka. “Edo boasted over a million people by 1700, half of whom were the bureaucratic samurai: this made it, potentially, the largest city in the world at the time. The tax money collected by the daimyo and the Tokugawa regime fueled Edo’s economy.” (Langrill) In addition to Edo, both Osaka and Kyoto had between three and four…

centuries of the Heian Golden Age changed the course of Japan’s history because of the emergence of the intertwining elements such as well-renowned female writers, the rise of the Samurai, and focusing more on native avocation instead of China. During the Ōnin War (1467-1477) the nobility, religious groups, and the samurai caused destruction in the streets of Kyoto. Not until the 16th century, did Japan’s second great unifier, Toyotomi Hideyoshi reconstructed the damage from the Ōnin War such…

Naganori of Ako took the head of the Lord Kira Yoshinaka in an honor killing over the death of their master. At the time they were hailed as heroes by most. They brought back the meaning of Samurai loyalty to their master, and the Samurai way. According to the preface over the years this aspect of the Samurai was lost in society. Chushingura was first performed three years after Yoshinaka’s death. This is a play that is a thinly vailed reference to the real life happenings.…

Japan’s isolationist policy, and peace that were established by the Tokugawa shogunate eventually led to a highly prosperous merchant class. Regarded as the lowest rank in the social hierarchy, some of the townspeople were even more affluent than the samurai, who occupied the highest status. In addition to this, there was an increased literacy rate among all the classes. The merchants thus sought to learn about elegant pastimes, such as the tea ceremony, dance, and theater, with their increased…

The most important feature of the medieval period is that the samurai (warrior-administrators) replaced the court government in managing local government. Because the court government had no police force, bands of samurai gained power when the Heian government neglected the administration of the provinces. Samurai strength rested on strong group loyalty and discipline. These bands managed large areas of rice land in eastern Japan, around modern Tôkyô. In 1185 a new government was founded by…

Niijima is not very well known. She is not known here in the western world and she is known barely in her home country of Japan. This, to me, is a sad thing because Yae is one of the most remarkable women I have ever heard about. The daughter of a samurai, a teacher, a nurse and a warrior Yae should be better known than she is because her tale is one of strength, determination, grief, and forgiveness. A woman who took no guff and one that is finally being recognized for what she did. And I fee…