Japanese Discovery Of America Summary

Japan’s decision to isolate themselves from the world created the conflict. Their decision however, was greatly influenced by the Europeans, who constantly tried to take advantage of the

The United States began to reach outward for trade, showing interest in Japan. Almost forcing the country to begin to trade with the U.S.

in the region. America’s presence in Guam and the Philippines and its support of China posed

Before America entered WWII, the U.S. and Japan were trading partners. However, Japan had been involved in the Pacific Theater of WWII, conquering land across Asia and the Pacific Ocean, before the U.S. joined the war. As a result, American resources had aided Japan in imperializing other nations. Critical of America’s relationship with Japan, Dr. Seuss released a political cartoon, shown above. In the cartoon, a man wearing a sweater labeled “Japan” shops at a store run by a bird, which dons a hat with a U.S. flag design. The Japanese man orders “kerosene, some excelsior and a blow torch”, claiming his mother wishes to “bake a cake” (Seuss, “Gimme some kerosene, some excelsior and a blow torch. Ma wants to bake a cake”). Using these details,

The first couple decades of the twentieth century Japan and the United States had increasing tension and conducted negotiations to reduce threats of conflict. Asia was the center point for both countries, and each wanted a piece of it. Competition for economic and commercial opportunities were ongoing growing with tension. Starting

During the later half of the 19th century, Japan was rapidly growing their imperial power across Asia. As soon as Japan was seen as an imperial country, the United States started to reevaluate its trade relationship with Japan. The United States stopped all sale of material that would have been beneficial towards Japanese expansion , angering Japan. Later, on December 7, 1941 the Imperial Japanese Navy had attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. On February 19, 1942, president Franklin D. Roosevelt issued the Executive Order 9066, ordering the internment of people of Japanese heritage. The executive order was determined by economic issues, national security threats and, the most influential, racism towards Japanese.

Life, like war, compares to the game of chess. There are two sides, and they take turn moving their pieces in play. There is always a strategy for the final goal, victory, or the game could end in a stalemate. An endless possibility of moves exists for each player, keeping in mind the possible future actions of the opponent. This makes the game complex and difficult because each player does not know the intent, or exact move of the opponent. Each player must rely on instinct and judgment of their opponent to estimate the next action of the opponent. One must also account for the losses of pieces and the sacrifices needed in order to achieve victory. A game of chess between the United States and Japan started in July

For the Japanese to arrive to America, the journey was a long one. They came to look for a better life, with many open opportunities. There hopes included to have a life with a new civilization where no one has been before. When the Japanese came for a better life they came as farmers, railroad workers, fishermen, etc. Many troubles came and began to realize their social status from other Americans, they were not always welcomed.

Accepting Japanese Americans terminated the bad treatment of Japanese Americans, so America was not discriminatory towards Asian Americans anymore. It also proved America to be a multicultural society instead of an all-white society,

United States, a time called the Meiji Period caused newly learned ideas to change the Japanese

In order to maintain independence and respect, Japan adopted militarism and an offensive military strategy. The 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was an example of Japan’s change from a small feudalistic military that kept to itself to an offensive, aggressive military reliant on military power.

Throughout the work, Fujitani draws evidence from, and references, a plethora of different sources that add validity to his statements and accounts of not only what the Japanese and United States did, but also why they acted the way they did. In a time of war, both countries took different actions that were not readily understood. Japan

We explained to them about the electric telegraph and soon after we even connected them with California's telegraphs.10 Many Japanese women started to wear western dresses or even sweaters and slacks.11 Japan changed politically as well. Japan became divided up into 47 profectures, which are similar to American states. Japan has carried over America's democratic ideas of social freedom, economic independence, and democratic liberties and privileges Japan's government soon began the executive, legislative, and judicial branches seen in America seen after the war.13 These changes all became possible soon after the war with great financial aid from the Us.14 Japan's progress in America's modernization program was so fast, we had to begin recognizing Japan as a world power.15 After Japan's modernization program, Japanese life began to change less dramatically, but never stopped.

The culture of a place is an integral part of its society whether that place is a remote Indian village in Brazil or a highly industrialized city in Western Europe. The culture of Japan fascinates people in the United States because, at first glance, it seems so different. Everything that characterizes the United States--newness, racial heterogeneity, vast territory, informality, and an ethic of individualism-- is absent in Japan. There, one finds an ancient and homogeneous society, an ethic that emphasizes the importance of groups, and a tradition of formal behavior governing every aspect of daily living, from drinking tea to saying hello. On the surface at least, U.S. and Japanese

Another element of the American culture is the egalitarianism. The high regard of equality can be seen in the pursuit of equal opportunities, in the refusal of authority and paternalism, the requirement of participation as well as in the preference of informal behavior. (Stahl/Langeloh/Kühlmann, 1999: 57)