Social And Economic Effects Of The Middle Ages

Many people cannot agree on whether the European Middle Ages were “Dark Ages” or an “Early Renaissance”. A Dark Age is a time during which a civilization undergoes a decline, while a Renaissance is a new period of growth or activity. Even though there is an equal amount of evidence for both the Dark Ages and the Early Renaissance, some pieces were more effective than others. The European Middle Ages was an Early Renaissance because citizens started to begin new lives as different roles, the feudal system was slowly being forgotten, and the Magna Carta was published.

While differing ecomically and politically in their responses to western penetration, Japan and China had similarities in the way of geography. China only allowed Europeans to trade with it in a limited number of ports and cities, which limited the amount of goods Europeans were allowed to transfer overseas. Japan isolated itself as a whole from trade for an entire decade, and when it did open it was cautious towards westerners. Additionally, both were bordered by the ocean at least to a certain extent – Japan was surrounded entirely, being an island, by water, and a large percentage of China’s borders was water. It is because of this that the third similarity arose – both did trade by ocean. China with Britain, simply because it was the easiest, cheapest, and most efficient form of travel between the two, and Japan because there was obviously no choice considering Japan is an island. These geographical similarities arose purely from the coincidence that both were bordered by the ocean, which created the necessity for boats and by the time the opportunity for trade

As individual European countries scrambled to gain more territory to add to their Empires, Japan feared the changes that visiting countries brought. When other countries visited Japan with imports to trade they also brought with them a new religion, Christianity. Japanese Emperors feared the chaos that a new religion would bring and decided to shut the rest of the world out. Only the Dutch were allowed to trade with the Japanese as a need remained to be informed of the rest of the world and medical advances.

During the sixteenth century, both the Ottoman and Tokugawa Japanese empires had political and economic similarities and differences. Politically, these empires were alike because both had centralized bureaucracy but different because they had very distinct ways of keeping order within their empires. Economically, they were similar because both depended on trade yet different because of their willingness to trade. After close analysis the Tokugawa Japanese empire was more successful economically.

When people think of “Medieval”, they often relate this to Europe. However, there was once a Medieval Japan too, and this time stretched from 1185-1868 CE. During this period, Shoguns ruled Japan, and they defined it as “Medieval” because, just like Europe society in Japan at this time was feudal in structure. Medieval Europe lasted from the 5th to the 15th century, and was often referred to as Christendom, because most civilians were Christians. Although they didn’t have any direct contact with one another, there were many similarities and differences in these two times. The ones this essay will focus on are; castles, health and hygiene and the social structure.

Both Japan and Western Europe practiced feudalism and they were both unusually successful in industrial development. They are both also proven adept at running capitalist economies, so the political accomplishments of both Japan and Western Europe have matched their economic achievements.

In the 1300's, an Italian scholar named Petrarch used the term, "dark ages" to describe Europe in the middle ages.People think that Petrarch used this term to describe Europe in the middle ages, because it seemed as if everything was turning/going bad. Not everyone agrees with him, some people think that the middle ages in Europe was in a growth age instead of a dark age. There were good events, like economic growth and education got more significant. But, there were lot's of bad things like, government order and the Black Death, so it is a debatable topic.

Another title that the Middle Ages deserve is the label Dark Ages because during the Middle Ages, there was constant chaos and destruction that plagued Western Europe. After the collapse of Rome, the invasions did not end there. The invasions continued throughout the Middle Ages by different groups and tribes. For example, during the ninth and tenth century, the Moor invasions have taken over the South and the Hungarians invaded the Eastern provinces. Both invasion groups sacked villages, held captives, burned down religious buildings, and left a path of destruction while many citizens that escaped took refuge in the mountains or deep forests (doc 1). Also during the invasions of the Moor and Hungarians, the Northmen struck terror in England. The plundered, burned towns, and returned home with boats filled with gold, people, and resources (doc. 3). However, that was not the end of all the chaos during the Middle Ages. During the 14th century, the black death hit Western Europe, which ended up wiping out 1/3 of the population and a body count of over 25 million by the end of the sixteenth century (OI). Consequently, because of the constant chaos and destruction from invasions and plague, little to no development was possible. This slowed down Western Europe's advancements and growth. The

In the 1300's an Italian scholar named Petrarch came up with the name "Dark Age" to describe the time Europe was going through during the Middle Ages in 500AD-1500AD. Throughout the Middle Ages Europe was going through some rough times, but there were also moments of growth. For example the Black Death was a time of darkness but there were positive times like when universities were built. Although the dark ages were looked at as a negative occurrence, more events show a sign of growth.

Europe was in a dark age during 500 AD to 1500 AD because of the Black Death, The Crusades, and the way the government was being functioned at the time in Europe. The debate is about whether Europe in a dark age or a growth age. Based on the evidence below Europe was in a dark age. The term dark ages came from the Italian scholar named Petrarch. He was comparing the Middle Ages to the classical era.

After the Fall of Rome, the Dark Ages occurred during the Middle Ages in Western Europe, France, Germany and Italy. The term “Dark Age” is an accurate description for Western Europe despite the formation of feudalism and the united church. The severity of disease, such as the plague, killed millions of people and lead to society not having the desire to prosper with education . These reasons, among others, demonstrate that Western Europe was truly a Dark Age.

All the documents explained the social and economic effects of the silver trade from the views of the English, Spanish, and Chinese and how it affects their own respective region. Since Tokugawa Japan was a significant and active part in silver production from 1500 to 1750 alongside Spain, a source from a merchant from this region would help give insight to the effects of the global flow of silver. A Japanese merchant who partakes in silver trade would further explain if the trade was beneficiary to the region’s social and economic status.

In this essay, I will agree with certain scholars that there was indeed a ‘general crisis’ during the 17th Century, where many countries in the world suffered from decline in several aspects such as economy and politics. This ‘general crisis’ affected Japan as well, although Japan generally fared better than other countries in East Asia during the 17th Century.

When we consider Dark Ages, what do we consider? Pitiful individuals, touchy climate, extreme wars? Accordingly, when one individual alludes to the Middle Ages as the "Dark Ages" it is regularly pondered that the chronicled time wasn't exactly right. The Middles Ages was really the direct inverse. While everything was new thoughts and cheerful minutes, this is not defended by the expression: "Dark Ages."

The Dark Age is the term used as a synonym for the Middle Age. It is a duration of time that existed between the falling of the Roman Empire and the start of Renaissance of the Italian and the Discovery Age. The Middle Ages are always referred to be dark due to resumed lack of advancement and culture in Europe in the medieval period. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the European experienced a severe social, political, and economic setback. Therefore, the Dark Ages meditate the ill consequences. However, a certain individual has had a great influence in the Middle Ages. Catherine of Siena is one of the many reasons the Middle Ages should not be referred to as the “Dark Age”.