The Positive Effects Of Modernization In Japan From 1850-1950

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

By the nineteenth century Western nations had developed superior military technology than other countries. Western countries were able to control other nations by coercing them into unfair trading treaties which would leave the country economically dependent on them. The countries rarely resisted successfully due to their insufficient military power. This occured often Asia with only Japan and Thailand remaining independent. Only Japan thrived however and became an imperial power. Japan was an isolated country until the United States forcibly opened it to trade. Japan experienced a regime change following a tumultuous time in which western nations coerced Japan into trade treaties. The new government favored capitalism and industry which lead to Japan industrializing impressively fast through “top down” government mandated modernization. Western imperialism forced Japan to modernize in order to remain a sovereign and successful state. Modernization in this case was synonymous with becoming more like the West. Imperialism drastically changed Japanese economic interaction as well as Japanese culture and class system because modernization included becoming more like the West in most aspects but their treatment of women remained the same because the West did not treat women very differently.

Evidence of the cultural change that Japan experienced after WWII happened first in family dynamics. Children where no longer taught the ideas of a constitutional monarchy, but of democracy (O’ Donnell 3). From the state houses to school buildings, this form of government was implemented throughout the land and replaced the former concepts of the time. This change influenced the elderly the most. For years and years, these men and women were educated on the

Japan was ultimately beneficial over its time span of its existence because of its many advances and benefits to the people who were a part of the empire. Though there were negative and harmful aspects of its rule, the good of the empire outweighed the bad. The Japanese were among the last to develop a complex society and completely isolated itself from outside influence. An era occurred where they began to borrow many things from China. They adopted their writing and imitated their literature. By the late 1800s, however, an imperial restoration occurred with Commander Perry in charge . In order to stop westernization in Japan, the country adopted western culture. The Empire of Japan emerged and was more reformed than ever. By rapidly expanding under the slogan Fukoku Kyōhei (“Enrich the Country, Strengthen the Army”), Japan began its journey to beginning a world power. Japan began to seek profits overseas increasing their exposure to the outside world and their cultures. With all of these advancements, the overall success and benefit to its people of the empire of Imperial Japan came from its militarization.

The Meiji Restoration allowed Japan to modernise and adopt the ideas, technologies, and social, political

The people of Japan knew that the time for change had come, and in 1868 a group of samurai overthrew the Shogunate. This eventually led to the rise of the Meiji Restoration in 1889. The western countries were much more advanced compared to Japan during the industrial revolution and if they were to become a global power, Japan would need to advance as well. The Meiji Restoration was brought up upon western ideology, which led to new advanced technology along with rapid social and economic growth and the formation of a national military. The Meiji restoration had occurred in the 19th century because Japan needed a change in order to advance during the industrial revolution. The restoration was the change, that eventually led Japan to become an international force. For decades the high tariffs of the unequal treaties affected my pay and my life. Though this new restoration has brought more jobs and better pay for us

In 1850-1935, Japan has become an industrial power and replaced its traditional, feudal government with a regime in which ministers appointed by the emperor combined with parliament. The interwar years were not a time of crisis for Japan, however. During the 1920s, new cultural developments, an expanding economy and a brief commitment to liberal democracy produced important currents as well. In the 1930s, Japan turned to a more adventurous foreign policy in response to economic challenge and political change. Japan participated in the global economy by changing its government to benefit the economy, the emergence of open trade and still continuing to depend heavily on imports of raw materials.

The Allies broke up the Japanese army and forbid the officers from having political roles in the new government the United States was going to create. McArthur also, economically wanted to increase the power on farmers and reduce rich power, because they supported the idea of Japanese expansion. For the transformation of the Japanese economy McArthur wanted to shape the Japan’s economy into a free market capitalism structure. The United States wanted to restore Japan’s economy, because that way they will refuse to Soviet communism. Furthermore, Japan was given a new constitution, this constitution cased greater changes. Some of the changes that occurred with this new constitution is that Japan was to repudiate the idea to wage war, give woman suffrage, and most importantly is that there would be an emperor, but give more power to the

After being imperialized by western countries, the Japanese came out of their closed-door policy and decided to implement western technology. Japan had made efforts to import foreign technology, hire foreign advisors, and implement the technology into their own japanese factories. They used these methods to try to catch-up to the western world as quickly as possible. For the most part, this strategy had worked for the Japanese as they were able to rapidly develop into a strong nation. With the Japanese being imperialized by the U.S., they had been able to copy a lot of the advanced products the U.S. had brought over.

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

In the 1900s, Japan faced a lot of economic obstacles. Due to its location on four moving tectonic plates, Japan experiences earthquakes more often than most other countries, Banks, at the time, struggled to keep economic activity stable after earthquakes and even attempted to regulate the flow by granting companies the ability to sell their products without having a drastic change in price. Following the discussion of earthquake bills and such, news was brought to the attention of the Japanese government that a bank in Tokyo had finally gone bankrupt. This sent many into a frenzy trying to get a hold of their money from banks, and in turn, many banks closed. However, this Japanese bank was indeed, not bankrupt, it was only struggling,

Between the years 1867 and 1912 in Japan, the Emperor Meiji was in command of the Japanese empire. Meiji was a revolutionary emperor that succeeded on the overthrow of the Tokugawa shogunate (the last Japanese feudal military government). Meiji’s command dramatically transformed Japan from being a feudal country into one of the greatest powers of the modern world. He changed Japan by popularizing modernization, westernization and improving the education system of the country. Nationalism provided the new young innovative and contemporary conservative generation of japan motivation to grow in the areas concerned; and implemented ideals that encouraged the notions of the west (westernization), that being industrialism and a new educational system, bringing them into the modern day. This new outlook

The Tokugawa Shogunate was the last feudal regime of Japan which was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1603, following the battle of Sekigahara, and lasting for nearly 300 years until the Meiji restoration in 1867. During this period there were many achievements, such as the unification of the country under the Tokugawa family’s rule, the solidification of the social class system in japan’s society in order to preserve stability and the establishment of a closed door policy. This essay will focus to establish how these achievements affected Japanese society and ultimately how successful this period was for Japan. The first major achievement which shall be discussed, is the unification of the country under the Tokugawa family’s rule, Through the re-unification of Japan, Tokugawa Ieyasu completed a process of unification, the beginnings of

Between 1968 and 1912, Japan was going through a reformation called Meiji Restoration in order make the country strong as western countries. It had caused changes in many parts of Japan such as society, government, military, etc. Some of these changes still can be seen in the Japanese society today such as emperors are honored by Japanese citizens and seen as a special figure. Since this reformation had a great impact on development of Japan, it can be consider as a very important part of Japanese history.This study will seek to answer the question: To what extent did the Meiji Restoration succeeded to reform and strengthen Japan? In order to answer the question, the investigation will analyze military reform and economic reform caused by

Japan is an unique oriental country in many aspects, especially in politics and economy, both western practices and traditional nationalism are coexisted in this country. The period 1890-1940 was just followed the Meiji restoration, and was typical in the history of Japan, at that time, Japan was on the way from a feudal country to a capitalistic country, called modernization. Many western practices were being more and more adopted, however, at the same time, traditional rules still had strong influences in Japan. Under this background, this report will discuss the Japanese cultural factors during 1890-1940 that influenced the disclosure