Transcript Japan PowerPoint

JAPAN
Geography

Japan is made up of islands that
are really undersea mountains
and volcanoes.
 Only
about 20% are flat coastal
plains, and that where the
majority of the population
resides.
 Rely
on the sea for their food.
The Ainu

A culture that developed in Japan,
possibly moved to Japan from eastern
Russia (Siberia).
 Spoke
a different language, looked
different than other eastern Asian
cultures.
 After
fighting, and losing, battles for
land, they were driven to the island of
Hokkaido, where the language and
culture eventually almost disappeared.
Clans

The people, who became known as the
Japanese, primarily lived in small fishing
villages ruled by clans (extended families)
 Everyone
else in the village had to obey
and respect the members of the clans.
 Head
of the clan is the chief. The chief
and both political power and religious
duties.
Descended
spirits
from the Kami, or nature
Shinto

Eventually the rituals of the first Japanese
developed into the religion, Shinto.
 Everything
in nature has kami (spirits), which
help them live and protect them from harm.
 Build
shrines and perform ceremonies asking
for blessings from the kami
 Approximately
80% of the Japanese
population practice some form of Shinto.
Influence from China and Korea


Initially, being a series of islands apart from the rest
of Asia, Japan had very little influence from them.
500s Japan decided to send representatives to learn
from China and Korea about their cultures.
 WRITTEN
LANGUAGE
 Began writing in Chinese, and speaking in
Japanese. Used Chinese character to eventually
develop their own written language.
 Chinese was official language of Japanese
government for a while.
Influence from China and Korea


Philosophy

Prince Shotoku, acting as regent for his aunt, Empress Suiko, sent
scholars to China to bring back ideas from Chinese society.

Confucianism taught Japanese about how families should
behave (wives obey husbands, children obey parents and older
brothers)
Religion

Prince Shotoku was a Buddhist, and wanted to spread the
religion around, which showed up from Korea 50 years
before.

Built a grand Buddhist temple, Shitenno-Ji
Heian Japan

Emperor Kanmu moved the Japanese
capital to Heian (Kyoto) in 794, and
this marked a new period of
Japanese history known for its art,
literature, beauty, and the rise of the
Samurai class.
Nobility

The Nobles who followed the
emperor to Heian created an
imperial court, to serve and
advise the emperor.
 Lived
away from poorer
citizens, lived life of privilege.
 Loved
beauty and elegance,
supported the arts.
 This
period marked a
“golden age” of arts n
Japan.
Heian Fashion

Wore silk robes and kimonos, and accessorized
in gold jewelry.
 Women’s
gowns often 12 layers of silk that
were cut to show off all of the different
layers at once.
 Carried
decorative fans that were painted
with flowers, trees and birds; and had long
silk cords and flowers attached.
 Dress
indicated their social status
Heian Literature

While most men wrote in Chinese,
Heian women wrote in Japanese, and
took great care in choosing their
words to be as beautiful as possible.
 Women
wrote in diaries about their
lives in court.
 Most
of the greatest works of early
Japanese literature were done by
women.
Lady Murasaki Shikibu

One of the greatest writers in Japanese history

Noble and servant to Empress Akiko

Wrote The Tale of Genji, often considered the
world’s first full-length novel, and one of the
best.
 About
love.
a prince, Genji, and his quest for
 Colorful
characters that seem real,
language is clear and simple, but elegant

Japanese court-life described in great detail;
especially in regards to customs and attitudes.
Poetry

Most popular forms of Japanese poetry
during the Heian period were “Kanshi” and
“Waka” (both referenced in The Tale of
Genji).
 Structure
outlines how many syllables
each line can have
 Nobles
held parties where they would
take turns writing and reading poetry to
each other.
Visual Art

Most popular forms: painting, architecture and
calligraphy

Paintings: bright, bold colors.
 Often
illustrate stories, show nature scenes or court life.
 Frequently
paper.
painted on doors and furniture rather than
Calligraphy

Calligraphers spent hours copying poetry
carefully in their decorative writing to make
them look as beautiful as they sounded.
Architecture

The Heian admired Chinese
architecture, and modeled
their city after the Chinese
capital, Chang’an.
 Chinese
styles modeled in
their temples, especially.
 Featured
wooden frames
with ends that curved slightly
upward, and thatched roofs
(straw-like).
 Wood
left unpainted and
natural
Byodo-in Temple, 1053
Architecture

Other buildings were preferred to have simple, airy
designs; made with wood and tiled roofs.
 Large,
open spaces inside
 Surrounded
them with elegant ponds and gardens.
Traditional Japanese teahouse
(Kamakura and Muromachi periods)
Performing Arts

Roots of Japanese drama came out of the
Heian period
 Musicians,
Most
jugglers, plays and acrobats.
popular plays mimicked other people.
Performing Arts
Noh

Plays developed into “Noh” dramas in the 1300s,

Usually based on stories from traditional literatue, with
a supernatural being transformed into a human as a
hero, and narrating the story
 Integrates
masks, dance, and costumes; requires
highly trained actors
 Still
popular in Japan today.
Japanese Buddhism

Many of the nobles in Heian loved to incorporate
elaborate rituals into their religion, though most
Japanese didn’t have the same time or money to do so.

PURE LAND BUDDHISM
 Popular
with the common people
 Chanted
Buddha’s name over and over to achieve
an enlightened state
Japanese Buddhism

ZEN BUDDHISM
 Believed
that neither faith
nor good behavior led to
wisdom.
Those
seeking wisdom
must practice selfdiscipline, meditation,
and quiet thinking.
Samurai and Shoguns

Outside of Heian, powerful nobles began to
fight each other and rebels over land.
 Land
was destroyed, farming became
more difficult; more peasants became
bandits and thieves.
 Japanese
rulers seemed unaware of what
was going on outside of their court.
 The
Daimyo (landowners) began to hire
Samurai to protect their property.
Samurai

Samurai “to serve”= trained
professional warriors
 Wore
light armor
 Fought
bows
 Usually
with swords and
came from noble
families; inherited position
from fathers
Samurai

Required to serve their lord, and therefore be loyal to the emperor.

Few lords could afford to supply armor and weapons for their
samurai, and therefore paid them in land or food.

Only most powerful samurai received land, and they profited
from the peasants who worked the land and paid them in
money or food.

Samurai who did not receive land were paid in food– usually
rice.
Leadership Changes in Japan

Many nobles outside of Heian were unhappy with how
the country was being ran, and many clans decided to
start fighting for power.

After about 30 years of fighting, the Minamoto clan
won.

Minamoto no Yoritomo, the leader of the clan, took the
title “Shogun”


A shogun is a military general who rules in the emperor’s
name.
Emperor officially became only a figurehead in Japan,
rather than having much real power.
Samurai Under the Shogunate

With a shogun in charge, Samurai became
more important to Japanese society.

Commoners must respect Samurai; possible
punishment of death if they didn’t

Samurai could not take part in activities that
were considered beneath them, such as
theatre, trade and commerce.
Bushido Code

Samurai Code of Rules– “The Way of the Warrior”

Must be brave and honorable warriors

Men and women of samurai families learned to fight, although
only women went into combat

Women could protect home

Live simple and disciplined

Participated in peaceful rituals that required concentration

Many were Zen Buddhists, requiring self-discipline and meditation
Bushido Code

Honor was most important to a Samurai

Most important to their sense of honor is loyalty to
their lord, or Daimyo.

If they lost honor, they were expected to commit
suicide in a ritual called Seppuku

Though the samurai are not part of Japanese society
today, the values of Bushido and the Samurai
(especially of loyalty and honor) are still very
important in Japan.
Problems Face Japan Society

Foreign Invasion

The Mongols invaded from China, under Kublai
Khan’s leadership in 1274.

Nobles and army were able to defeat the Mongols with
the help of a storm that sank many of their ships.

This happened again in 1281 when the Mongols
invaded a second time with twice the amount of
warriors.

Japan called the storm “kamikaze” or “divine wind”

Many nobles unhappy with the lack of credit they were
given.
Problems Face Japan Society

Internal Rebellion

The emperor began to fight the Shogun for control of government

Daimyo also began to fight the Shogun for power

By 1400s, the shoguns lost most of their power, but the emperor was also
still just a figurehead

Each Daimyo controlled his own territory, collected their own taxes, and left
no powerful central authority.
Japan’s Reunification

Oda Nobunaga

Powerful leader that sought to reunify Japan

Introduced guns to Japan (from Portuguese traders),
and easily defeated opponents.
Japan’s Reunification

Tokugawa Ieyasu continued Oda’s efforts to
unify Japan in 1600.

Made shogun by the Emperor in 1603

Ruled all of Japan from his capital, Edo (Presentday Tokyo)

The Tokugawa Shogunate lasteduntil 1868.

Period of trade with many other countries, Christain
missionaries arrived in Japan.
Isolation

Shogun in the 1630s feared the open contact with the rest of the world.

Closed Japan off from the rest of the world.

Banned guns for fear of peasants defeating Samurai

This isolation and limitied technology stretched the Samurai period until the 1800s.