Why Is Japan A Highly Urbanized Society

Starting in the early 1930’s, the Japanese began to display their great imperialistic dreams with ambition and aggression. Their goal was to create a "Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere" where they controlled a vast empire in the western Pacific.1 In September of 1939, Japan signed the Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis Treaty, allying themselves with Germany and Italy in an effort to safeguard their interests in China from the Soviet Union. Japan’s only major obstacle left lay in the significant size of the United States Pacific Fleet. To rid themselves of this, Japan attacked the United States Pacific Fleet in hopes of crippling it enough to prevent any further hindrance from the

Although Japan changed in many ways from 1853 to 1941, there were also many factors that remained the same throughout the history of Japan. One such continuity was the maintained existence of a figurehead ruler controlled by other political authorities. The feudalistic emperor of Japan was the supposed “highest, most powerful authority” in the land, but was actually controlled by the military leaders- the shogun. Similarly, the militaristic emperor of Japan decades later continued to remain a figurehead ruler controlled by military and government officials. In addition, Japan continued to remain reliant on exports in order to maintain its economy. As a result of Japan’s small geographical size, the island nation had few natural resources and was forced to rely on exports to survive economically. The nation also grew increasingly reliant on other nations to provide materials and supplies that it could not provide for itself. This complete reliance on other nations was seen illustrated when the Japanese military was provoked to attacking another superpower- the United States, in response to the 1940 United States embargo

In the present, Japan is a military and economic superpower with strong influence. However, it was not always like this. In the early 1700s, Japan isolated itself from the world and greeted foreigners unfortunate enough to shipwreck in Japan with hostility. In the 1850s, the United States attempted to make contact with Japan to establish a treaty. The U.S. knew even though Japan was hostile, it was weak compared to a western power. Although the U.S. was stronger than Japan, it was nowhere close to being as strong as other western powers such as Brittan or France and was struggling to keep up. Japanese hostility, U.S. power struggles, and Japan’s isolation all led to the inevitable Japanese and U.S. conflict.

Just Before entering World War II, Japan had a lot of different issues to try and solve. It had started to depend more for materials like oil for new machines being made to make the creation level of merchandise faster, which makes for a more productive economy. They required oil from outside sources in light of the fact that their property did not have all these things enormously, since the nation was an island its regular assets were made up of rice and fish. Even with these troubles, Japan started to manufacture an effective realm with a strong mechanical establishment and a decent armed force and naval force. The military got to be included in the legislature, and this started to cause them harm. The general public started to see indications of control originating from a rough place this put the individuals in a controlled state, their fundamental rights were gradually being taken away. In the mid 1930 's, the Japanese Army had numerous little, detached fights with their neighboring people groups. The Japanese individuals spread their control to make their country bigger. In 1937, the contentions started again with the Chinese in the territory close. These contentions prompted a full-scale war known as the second Sino-Japanese War. This was viewed as a bleeding war, it proceeded until the last annihilation of Japan in 1945. This demonstrates the inward shortcoming of the Japanese individuals, with high

The Japanese’s foundation of strength and character relied on an ever present honor system. This character not only went into their everyday lives but also their military. The Empire of Japan‘s militarization benefitted the people by embodying the best characteristics and highest morals of the Japanese people, thereby encouraging people to keep faith in their

Where the cherry blossoms bloom in the new spring, the rancid but familiar smells of fish permeate the nearby market, and people bustle across streets throughout the city, Japan is not only a unique and fascinating nation, but it also contains one of the richest and fascinating histories in the world. This history is heavily dependent on the nation’s past feudalist society, especially the shogunate and the samurai. This world centered around the warriors of medieval Japan did not come about spontaneously. Years, decades, and even millennia led up to the military’s rise in power. Eventually, this class dominated even the emperors’ rules. However, the lack of modern use and advancements led to the decline of feudalism and eventually, its extinction. Although gone, this integral part of Japan’s history is forever embedded in modern day by influence.

In the American schooling system, children begin primary school around the age of six, this is called elementary school and most students stay there for five to six years before they go on to secondary school which involves middle school and high school. After graduating high school some students may go on to “higher education” known as college, but any schooling done after high school is no longer mandatory.

The long, battle-weary, four hundred year period from the late twelfth century through the Kamakura period (1185-1333), Muromachi period (1336-1573), and well into the sixteenth century is referred to as Japan’s medieval period. The imperial government’s authority was deteriorating, the provinces were in chaos as warrior clans fought amongst themselves, and regional military chieftains challenged the imperial government for the right to rule. Medieval Japan saw the development of feudalism and a militaristic society led by samurai clans. The Gempei War, Shokyu War, Mongol Invasions, Kemmu Restoration, and The Onin War are five key turning points in Japan’s transition from a centralized imperial government to feudalism. These conflicts also demonstrate the evolution of the samurai ethos.

During the late 18th century to the early 20th century, east Asia had been imperialized by western powers. Imperialism in east Asia during the period 1750-1945 was beneficial because of the economic growth, technological advancements, and political structure that progressed positively as a result of western imperialism. For example, Japan had been forcefully imperialized by the United States during the mid-19th century, however, the aftermath of this occasion was ultimately beneficial to the Japanese. Japan became imperialized because the U.S. needed a refueling and coaling base in order to trade with other east-Asian countries. Also, they needed a secure place to refuel in the east as Hawaii by itself wouldn’t be able to handle the trading

Despite much domestic and international hysteria that Japan could now be drawn into foreign conflicts, and potentially even launch a war, closer scrutiny reveals it still has a long way to go to cast off its pacific post-War legacy. “The United States supports recent changes in Japanese defense policy, including the adoption of collective self-defense and new bilateral guidelines for U.S.-Japan Defense Cooperation,” (Crook,

There were other nations besides European ones that were also experiencing economic gains, cultural influence, and societal growth. This nation was Japan, and from 1603 to 1867, this nation was specifically called Tokugawa Japan. Before Tokugawa Japan, there was civil disorder within the lives of the people living there. For example, daimyos, who were feudal state rulers who had owned a vast amount of land and had a major influence on the economy and state affairs of Japan, had to hire private armies to defend their entities (Tignor et al, 505). These private trained armies were known as samurais, and were a distinctive aspect of Tokugawa Japan. This wasn’t the only set of problems that Japan

You see, while other countries and continents had their own “Dark Ages” and “Golden Ages”, Japan was isolated from the rest of society, allowing them to have their own “Golden Age” and upgrade their inventions, in which some proved to be very clever (like the Nekote, which are claw-shaped finger attachments that could prove lethal in hand-to-hand combat, and the tekkan/hachiwari, weapons that were useful against heavily-armored enemies with a hook at the bottom for disarming

Japan’s goal during the nineteenth century was to “catch up” to match the strength of Europe. By beginning their transformation, the Japanese adopted a new form of government. Feudalism became insufficient so Japan formed a government that utilized a written constitution. This new government allowed the establishment of modern military forces. Western technology was integrated which allowed Japan to revamp their economy from an agriculture based to an industrialized machine in less than fifty years. By the end of the Meiji Restoration, Japan no had no more fears of being imperialized. Instead, they set out to practice imperialism themselves. From 1894 to 1895 Japan fought China in the Sino-Japanese War and forced China to agree to terrible terms. At the turn of the century Japan was ready to become a world power. When Russia came into conflict with the Japanese

Back in Middle Ages, the people of both Japan and Europe both dealt with the same problem: Feudalism. Overall both where very similar: both had a weak ruler and had someone under them ruling the country, both had a superior military and both economies depended on the people. Although as you get deeper you find out each is set up in its own way. Europe had kings that ruled the countries yet all followed what the Pope said. Japan had an emperor yet the shogun had all the power. Europe had knights that wore plated armor and had huge heavy broad swords. As for Japan had the samurai who wore leather and very little iron with very light swords called a katana. Europe’s economy depended on serfs and peasants while Japan’s depended on peasants and

The Meiji Restoration provided a catapult of overhaul within Japan. During the Tokugawa era, Japan was split amongst hundreds of feudal domains, and the emperor was little more than a symbol compared to the rule of the bafuku government. The advent of Western dominance in the late 19th century demonstrated the regime’s vulnerability to foreign pressure, and incapability to deal with it. The Meiji restoration aimed to modernize, strengthen government control, and achieve unity of ideas across the nation ─ all factors of which the Tokugawa regime could not properly demonstrate.