ay in Paige Avila
World History Honors
December 7, 2018
Semester Project
Japanese Feudalism
During the Edo period of Japan, from 1603 to 1868, many interesting circumstances were forced upon the citizens and leaders of the country. These circumstances included: why most of the power held in Japan fell to the shogun, the difference between the higher and lower classes of society, and the role and treatment of women during this age.
Now, you may ask why the shogun hold more power than the emperor? This is because the shoguns held absolute power over territories through militaristic means. The shoguns were the ones to really run the government. The imperial government only held normal authority and led to rise of warrior rule, while shoguns carried out actual duties of administration. The main reason Japan had an “emperor” was to “consolidate itself under an emperor in response to a powerful foreign threat”. There was a saying of “Sonno”, which meant ‘Honor the emperor’, and this “implied that attention, loyalty, and service were due to the emperor”. This contradicted loyalty shown to the shoguns.
Our second topic is the difference between the higher and lower classes of historical Japanese feudalism. The higher classes of society included: the emperor, shoguns, daimyos, and samurai. The lower classes of society included: ronin, peasants, artisans, and merchants. The higher classes were regarded as such because of “confucian ideals that emphasized the importance of productive members of society”. The lower classes were also subjected the these ideals, and this is why merchants were at the supposed, bottom of the barrel. Merchants were only to sell items and produce others had crafted, created, and grown. This led to merchants being ostracized as parasites who benefited off of others who were more productive. Furthermore, even though farmers and artisans contributed to society in their own ways, farmers also lived under a crushing tax burden, and artisans were regarded as lees important than farmers.
Our third and final topic is the role and treatment of women during the Edo period of Japanese history. Women during this age were the ones who protected and cared for the family since most men were away. Even some women were trained to be samurai, spies, or assassins. The amount of freedom a woman received depended greatly on her social status. Since women during this period in history always had a lower status than men, they possessed fewer rights; “Women lost their economical and political rights regardless of their status because their status was always below a man’s. The higher-ranking women had the the smallest amount of freedom, as they could not escape marriage”. They were mainly regarded as a means to getting an heir to a provincial family.
This report has uncovered the misunderstanding of power and unbalance of social status and ranking, as well as how equality of all women was unfair in regards to them always being ranked underneath men. The people of lower status were subjected to harsh ideals which idolized productivity to society, yet the lower classes were only rewarded with crushing taxes and discrimination. Furthermore, no matter what women did for society, they were ranked lower than men, which ignored their social status or ranking. This report has also taken into account how the imperial court led to the rise of warrior rule and the future government run by the shoguns with absolute power.
Works Cited:
“Emperor and Shogun: The Political Scene in the 1860s.” Nakasendo Way, 8 May 2014, www.nakasendoway.com/emperor-and-shogun-the-political-scene-in-the-1860s/.
Szczepanski, Kallie. “Learn About the Four-Tiered Class System of Feudal Japan.” Thoughtco., Dotdash, www.thoughtco.com/four-tiered-class-system-feudal-japan-195582.
“Role of Women in Society.” MEDIEVAL JAPAN, medievjapan.weebly.com/role-of-women-in-society.html.
“Edo Period.” Life for Japanese Women, lifeofwomenjapan.weebly.com/edo-period.html….