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Japan vs. China Essay

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Japan vs. China

The region known as East Asia has long been in area of conflict, where often times one power, or group of powers has dominated the people, politics, and economy in a very authoritarian fashion. At first it was the Chinese Imperial system which dominated East Asia, as the strongest and most wealthy Asian power during the pre-colonial period. Japan was in a state of isolation, and the other countries of the region were dependent on China for many things. However, with the coming of the colonial powers from Europe and North America, China’s regional power was all but destroyed (4). During that time period, Japan began a process of rapid industrialization and modernization in order to counteract western colonialism and …show more content…

Instead they focused inward, in an attempt to modernize their society (2). It wasn’t until the mid 1970’s that China really began to play a role in regional politics again.

Historically, Japan has a better development record then China, however there are many different unique historical issues that it faces as well. During the time period of the pre-colonial era, Japan was isolated by its Emperors and by the fact that it was indeed an island nation. The arrival of the Americans in the middle 1800’s re-opened Japan to the outside world (3), allowing it to interact with its immediate neighbors on a more regular scale. However, instead of being controlled by foreign powers like China, Japan began on a rapid period of industrialization, lead by the former Samurai (3). These men realized that if they didn’t want what happen to China to happen to Japan, they needed to become equals with the Western powers so that they would have the military and economic strength of fight off any attempt to colonize their island nation (5). This rapid industrialization pushed Japan to the forefront of the region, making it without a doubt a regional power in East Asia. This status of dominance continued until the end of the Second World War, when Japan was defeated by the allied powers. This defeat was not just militarily, but it also

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