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Essay on medieval samurai culture
Samurai during the tokugawa era
Essay on medieval samurai culture
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More handpicked essays just for you.
Essay on medieval samurai culture
Samurai during the tokugawa era
Essay on medieval samurai culture
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Recommended: Essay on medieval samurai culture
Okay so were going to start off with codes. Which is in other words the set of rules and directions they must follow by. Japan, samurais, followed the code of Bushido which was much more strict than the Europeans code. “Gi”-Integrity, a samurai must be trusted to make the right decisions for the clan even if that meant he was left alone in doing so. “Yuuki”- bravery and courage.
I will be explaining the social position of Samurai, and Knights from Document A. According to Document A the SAmurai were the 4th highest on the social pyramid. They were above peasant farmers, but
Nihal Lalwani BBE 29 October 2014 8 History Essay Term 4 Assignment Tokugawa Japan (1600-1868) and Medieval Europe (590-1500) both grew in two separate sides of the world but both of them are similar in ways such as how they were run, their architecture, their warriors and the society. In discussing whether these two civilisations are similar, the research has led me to believe that these two civilisations are partly similar. There are many similarities between Japanese and Medieval European Castles such as what were they used for and how they worked. Medieval European Castles are similar to Japanese castles as they are used for similar reasons and architecture such as the castles had high walls for protection against arrows, both of them were used as outposts by respective lords of each civilisation (Friar, 2003. P.47).
Throughout the history of Japan from the twelfth century until the nineteenth century, the military was comprised of samurai. The samurai were equivalent to European knights; both warrior classes fought for honor, wealth, and self-interest. The samurai gained status and were well respected in the Japanese society where leaders rose to power through military superiority. Japan had relied on the samurai as their military force for seven centuries, and yet the Meiji leaders, facing the challenge of foreign military threat, decided to abolish the samurai class. That was because the Meiji leaders took over the Tokugawa during a time when Japan was combatting superior foreign military forces, and the Meiji perceived that their current military force
The societies of Tokugawa Japan (c.1603-1867C.E.) and medieval Europe (c.1000-1500C.E.) had two things in common; a feudal system. A feudal system is something that features hierarchies or social structures. The feudal system normally starts with a religion, which is at the very top of the social pyramid, then it’s the King or monarch for Europe and the shogun for Japan, then there are the nobles for Europe and the daimyos for Japan. As we go down the pyramid there are the warriors, like the knight in Europe and the samurai in Japan, then there are the peasants. The peasants were included in both eras and are at the lowest part of the pyramid.
The Samurai VS The Knight Knights and samurais both had the job to serve their country, nation, etc. In short a knight was a warrior who owed loyalty & military service to their lord for land, and a samurai were warriors who also owed loyalty and military service to their daimyo (Lords interpreted in the Japanese feudal system) for land and regular payment. Now even though knights and samurais had some form of power, in Japanese feudalism, the samurais had more power compared to the knights, hence I can conclude that they were more superior, but there’s a lot more to this entire comparison than just that! Anyhow, let me explain how samurais were more superior than knights.
Samurai were warrior class who lived by an unwritten code called “Bushido.” They fought for the large landowners called Daimyo, they worked for the Daimyo’s protection and against other powerful landowners. The Samurai was taught the values and traditions, and had to be educated in literature and writing. Therefor samurai were also trained in meditation and fighting techniques such as archery, swordsmanship, and martial arts.
The samurai follows his feudal lord’s orders and never disobeys him, along with knights. However, the samurai shared a greater bond between his feudal lord than a knight
(History.com, “Edo”) The people of Edo followed a strict caste system, greatly impacted by the Chinese Confucian values. The Feudal Japanese Society, people of Edo, was divided into four different castes: the Nobles, the Samurai, the Peasants, and the Chonin. The nobles included: the emperor; the figurehead of society, the shogun; the most powerful military lord, and the daimyos; lords who controlled their own region of Japan. The samurai were the professional warriors who were bound by a code of loyalty and honor to a daimyo.
The importance of the Samurai peaked during the Kamakura and Muromachi periods, when, during the decentralized system of feudalism, wars between daimyos were common. During these periods, lords used Samurai to enforce authority and expand territory, and, in return, lords supported Samurai so that they could devote their lives to the martial arts. During the Tokugawa Shogunate, however, this support began to decline. Due to the unification of Japan, there were no battles between lords, and due to Japan’s isolationism, there were no battles between Japan and foreigners. Samurai had little purpose, and gradually fell into disuse.
Warfare affected the development of the medieval Japanese state by creating and sustaining a hierarchy of powerful elites that would later form the basis of medieval Japanese statehood which was largely based on relationship to the top of the hierarchy, preservation of peace, loyalty and defence against external aggressors. The existing, more stable formation was more open to foreign ideas and also fought wars in defence of the medieval Japanese population. Chronic warfare led to the ruling elite factions realizing that much more needed to be done to ensure a stable society and also to protect their interests. With establishment of armed forces fighting for the imperial court such as the Samurai, a new consciousness emerged with warriors at the centre of it, leading to some nationalist pride and patriotism that led to the formation of the mediaeval Japanese
People think that the samurai’s code was extremely strict because the samurai was strong and powerful and had excellent leaders. The samurai’s code was not as strict as professors believe. First the code will be explained, second the people the samurai fought will be shown, and lastly reasons the warriors code contradicted their actions. One of the most common rules or code is respect and honor.
From the Kamakura Period of the late twelfth century to the Meiji Restoration in the nineteenth century, the samurai have held prominent positions as noble warriors in Japanese society. They have come to be famous in modern, Western pop culture as the fierce, stoic guards of feudal Japan, but their practices and rituals extended beyond wielding katanas and donning impressive armor. Samurai practices were rich and complex, with strict codes, ritual suicide, and a history of influencing culture and politics (“Samurai”). Samurai code was influenced by traditional Japanese culture, Zen Buddhism, and Confucianism. Bushido, or “Way of the Warrior,” was the code of conduct the samurai class were expected to uphold.
The story takes place around one thousand one hundred years ago during the Heian period of ancient Japan. Those were the days where the capital was still located in the city of Kyoto, an unnamed samurai was in service of the Lord Regent Fujiwara Mototsune. Our protagonist, who was not given a name, but is identified as “Goi” a lowly court position. Goi was frequently mocked by his peers due to his unkempt appearance, red nose, and simple demure, often times the other samurai would ridicule and make pranks at his expense. Even though routinely mocked by his peers Goi would only question them, asking “Why did you do that?” and being calm about the situation.
what really fascinates me is that the samurai weren’t a rare elite force; however, they were an entire social class and they were about 10 percent of Japan’s population at that time. What really grabbed my attention is the way the dress up, they were stylish and at their time they were rock stars in their style of clothing. The samurai dressed up to move with speed, to have freedom of movement and travel. The weapons were unique