Top 10 Feudal Japan

1. Feudalism: Just like the feudal system in Europe: Shogun-hereditary divine emperor (hereditary king crowned by pope,) samurai (knights,) daimyo (lords and barons,) buisido (chivalry-code of conduct).

2. Prince Shotoku: Ruled during the Yamato Period. Sent people to China to bring back their culture to organize Japan; wrote 17 article constitution.

3. Agriculture: A mainly agricultural society, but the production of food on the small, wet island of Japan was hard so food=power.

4. Kanji characters: Japan took the idea from China and made it their own; allowed them to become civilized and record their history.

5. Confucianism and Buddhism: Also taken from China, these beliefs become part of Japanese government, code of conduct, and daily life; Buddhism combines with Japan's ancestor worship to form Shinto.

6. The Tale of Genji: First novel written in Japanese, some say the first novel written ever; author was a woman, Murasaki Shikibu, who invented a new kind of Japanese script to write with called kana.

7. Code of the Bushido: Code of conduct even more strict than those in Europe written during the Kamakura Shogunate period.

8. Influence of Korea: Many Koreans moved to Japan after their relations broke down around 500; the sudden flow of immigrants caused a lot of confusion in Japan, but they brought with them pieces of their culture, such as ancestor worship and other ideas that Korea got from China.

9. Poetry: Comes as a result of literacy and other civilized traits gained by adapting Chinese concepts; poetry flourishes as a common form of expression and develops Japan's unique style.

10. Nara: The first capitol city of Japan; marked the beginning of Japan's classical period and showed the beginnings of a Japanese pattern of administrations and institutions.

Quotes:

"Do not think you will necessarily be aware of your own enlightenment. "-Dogen (1200-1253), Japanese Buddhist monk and philosopher

"A flower falls, even though we love it; and a weed grows, even though we do not love it"-¬Dogen

"It is truly regrettable that a person will treat a man who is valuable to him well, and a man who is worthless to him poorly."--Hojo Shigetoki (1198-1261), notable samurai during the first Shogunate.

Summary:

Feudal Japan was an important point in Japanese history because it helped begin and develop Japan's government, religion, and art and literature by taking and expanding upon concepts

found in China. The government in feudal Japan was based off of the Chinese Confucian government, the only modification being that the rulers were nobles instead of scholar gentry because Japan was previously uneducated. This was important because it gave way to a pattern of how the Japanese ran their administrations and institutions, as illustrated by the capitol they established at Nara during this time, where evidence could also be seen of Japan's new and unique religion. The religion in early Japan was ancestor worship, and after the assimilation of Chinese culture led by Prince Shotoku in the Yamato Period it mixed with Buddhism to become Shinto. This was important because it made the Japanese people more civilized by leading,

along with Confucianism, to the code of conduct (similar to chivalry in Europe) known as the Code of Bushido, which affected the way people lived their daily lives. Another thing that changed peoples' lives was the introduction of art and literature to feudal Japan, which was

based entirely off of what they took from China because in early Japan the only concern was for food. After the people were more organized and the kanji style of writing was introduced,

people had both the time and ability to express themselves through writing. Most of this took place in the form of poetry, called waka, and the first novel was written by Lady Murasaki Shikibu who also invented a new way to write called kana. This was important because it was the first time in history that Japan had a civilized culture of its own which greatly impacted what

Japan is like today.