...Assignmen2: Samurai Culture in Japan GVPT 280 The Samurai culture of Japan The Samurai culture was seen for the first time during the 12th century during the first military dictatorship. They last until 1868 when they were disbanded. The word samurai translates to “those who serve”. In the beginning, samurai was armed guards for wealthy land owners. Over the years the samurai developed into what we know of them today. An elite military group. To become a samurai, it started at an early age. They was taught and lived by a code of honor, it was called bushido or “way of the warrior. There are 7 virtues of the bushido. The virtues were morality, courage, benevolence, respect, honesty, honor and loyalty. They was taught in a very strict way. They was taught swordsmanship, horsemanship, archery and martial arts. They was taught to know suffering, not to want wealth or praise, taught it is better to die then dishonor one’s self and most of all obey his master or lord. The samurai was well educated in reading and writing. Some samurais became business men and politicians throughout their history. The samurai had their own religion which was called Zen Buddhism. Zen Buddhism is coming to enlightenment through mediation. True Zen is coming face to face with one’s self. It was also tried into their teachings at early ages. The most iconic items of the samurai was their swords and their armor. A samurai carried...
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...Samurai Warrior Few countries have a warrior tradition as long and exciting as Japan. It is a tradition found in the Samurai, the loyal and self-sacrificing knight of ancient Japan. The Samurai is a valiant warrior who can both appreciate the beauty of nature in that of a rose blossom but will also kill or die for his master in an instant. This well-rounded warrior was the ruling class of Japan for almost seven hundred years. He fought for control of his country and to keep Japan free from outside influences. (Turnbull 1) This aristocratic warrior class arose during the 12th century wars between the Taira and Minamoto clans and was consolidated in the Tokugawa period. Samurai were privileged to wear two swords, and at one time had the right to cut down any commoner who offended them. They cultivated the martial virtues, indifference to pain or death, and unfailing loyalty to their overlords. Samurai were the dominant group in Japan. Under the Tokugawa shogunate, the samurai were removed from direct control of the villages, moved into the domain castle towns, and given government stipends. They were encouraged to take up bureaucratic posts. The Hagakure, has been dubbed the book of the samurai. It was written after a century of peace around 1716. It came to be the guide of samurai ethics until the end of the feudal period. Its short passages reflect and outline the qualities that make a samurai. Yamamoto Tsunetomo expresses in the hagakure the framework and mindset of being...
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...Seven Samurai For the review I watched one of my already favorite films, Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai. There are so many fantastic elements of this film. I will break down each element from Camera work, lighting, design, costumes, acting, and story and script. The most important samurai movie is Akira Kurosawa's 1954 feature, Seven Samurai, which not only impacted the way the genre was viewed, but elevated its status. Seven Samurai was influential not only in Japan and for foreign film enthusiasts, but it led to a popular and reasonably faithful remake, The Magnificent Seven. And, although Japanese critics during the '50s were dismissive of the picture, it has since achieved an almost mythical status and was recently selected by a group of '00 critics as the Best Japanese Movie of All-Time. Curiously, for a feature that is often viewed as the standard-bearer of the samurai movie, Seven Samurai is actually an atypical genre entry. An "average" samurai film focuses on a sword-wielding, superhero-type individual who battles his way through the story, often triumphing over a seemingly overwhelming host of foes. Seven Samurai offers us flawed protagonists, some of whom are not skilled fighters, and one of whom is often drunk, belligerent, and decidedly non-heroic in his approach. The odds are impressive, yet, in large part due to the melancholy tone adopted by Kurosawa during the closing scene, the victory is hollow, and almost feels like a defeat. (The lead samurai's final...
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...knight, the warrior class of Europe. It started out similarly for a samurai, the warrior class of Japan. Despite these similar beginnings, samurais and knights were different because they trained differently, had different armor, and their view on death was different. Training was different for samurais and knights. First of all, they had different ages of advancement. For example, in Japan one could become a samurai at age 14, while he had to be at least 21 in Europe (Document C). This is different because to become a knight, a trainee would need to became a page and a squire first, while someone could just be fighting at 14 in Japan. A samurai and a knight...
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...It was once said, "A knight in shining armor is a man who has never had his metal truly tested." The meaning of this quote explains that any knight with shining armor has never truly battled or fought for freedom. More than a thousand years ago, a class of professional warriors arose. They swore oaths of loyalty to noble Lords and fought to the death to defend them in battle. They were the samurai of Japan and the European Knights in England. Some historians will argue that knights and samurai are the same, but evidence shows that they are not. They both have different types of armor and they both see death in 2 ways views of death. First of all samurais and knights have very different types and styles of armor. On Document D in the first...
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...l The History of the Japanese Samurai and Sword Brandon Stepka SOCI306 The history of the Japanese samurai and sword has always been an interesting topic to me. I will not only be discussing the correlations between the two, but also the evolution of each. Along with that, I will be expanding upon how the Japanese sword was created, how it became popular, and lastly, how it is link to Japanese culture. I would now like to start by giving you a background of the Japanese samurai. The Japanese warrior, also known as the samurai, appeared during the Heian Period (794-1185). They initially started out as warriors and protectors for wealthy landowners. This is partially where the name ‘samurai’ came about, meaning “those who serve”. The samurai truly began to grow during the Kamakura period, where the “establishment of the Kamakura Shogunate, a hereditary military dictatorship, shifted all real political power in Japan to the samurai.” This power was forged by leader Minamoto Yoritomo, who pushed vigorously to establish a high social status for the samurai. Without the acknowledgement of Yoritomo, you would not be considered a samurai; he had the final say. Now that I have given you some basic history of the samurai, I would like to give you some interesting facts that I found to be very cool. First, the Japanese samurai’s would burn incense into their helmets before battle, because of the possibility their heads would be cut off it would not smell. This...
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...death scene of Bonnie and Clyde. The 30 seconds of brutal and nonstop violence has had a lasting impact on audience for decades. Prince stated, “Penn was the first American filmmaker to conjoin multicamera filming, montage editing and slow motion systematically in the visualization of screen violence.” Though Penn was the first American filmmaker to use such a technique to depict violence, he was greatly influenced by Akira Kurosawa’s The Seven Samurai. Bonnie and Clyde, was to American cinema as The Seven Samurai, was to Arthur Penn. The intercutting of shots and the slow/normal motion effects through a montage sequence was mastered by Kurosawa and used my many filmmakers after that. The usage of this technique shows the passage of time and creates a more moving and intense scene. The acceleration and deceleration of the death sequence makes the audience tremble and uncomfortable. Without the use this montage sequence, the death scene would be like any other “boring” and “mediocre” death. Many cinematic and theme similarities can be drawn from rescuing scene from The Seven Samurai, and the death scene from Bonnie and Clyde. The Seven Samurai is about a poor town that is held hostage by bandits, and is liberated by seven samurais. The shot, which uses such techniques, can be seen in the sequence where one of the samurai rescues a kidnapped child from a thief. Kurosawa intercut shots at normal speed with slow-motion sequences to change the rhythmic balance of the film. The entire...
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...Samurai: the term given to the Japanese warriors, are staunch followers of the Bushido Code. Now the Bushido Code didn't come to the picture until the early 1600's but nonetheless, the virtues are universal and have existed long before the "code" arrived. Samurai are also men of noble birth assigned to guard members of the Imperial Court. Women are not supposed to be on the battlefield, unless there is a war which requires their presence. The Eight Virtues of the Bushido Code are: Justice, Courage, Benevolence, Politeness, Honesty, Loyalty, Honor, and Character. Justice is the strongest virtue of Bushido. Justice to a samurai is the bone that gives firmness and stature. Without bones, the head cannot rest on top of the spine, nor hands move nor feet stand. Without Justice, neither talent nor learning can make the human frame into a samurai. ’ Courage in Bushido means worthy of being counted among virtues only if it's exercised in the cause of righteousness. Courage in definition to a samurai means to do what is right. Benevolence branches out into love, magnanimity, affection for others, sympathy, and pity. These traits are the highest attributes of the human soul to a samurai. Thus it holds high importance in the Bushido Code. Discerning the difference between obsequiousness and politeness can be difficult for casual visitors to Japan, but for a true man, courtesy is rooted in benevolence: Courtesy and good manners have been noticed by every foreign tourist...
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...Samurai and Knights DBQ Imagine two places in different parts of the world doing almost exactly the same thing and none of them know of the customs. This is what happened in Europe and Japan with their armor,codes,and the feudal society. “Knighthood lies above eternity; it doesn't live off fame, but rather deeds”(OI). The similarities between the knights and samurai can be seen in their armor,training, and the feudal society of both Europe and Japan. First of all, the armor of the knights and samurai was similar. In both cases, it was used to protect the body (Doc.D). They both had helmets that covered the whole face (Doc.D).The samurai and the knights had their armor made out of 8 to 12(Doc.D). The weapons were similar too they both use...
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...This was because the uprising of the 47 Ronin spoke to an earlier time. The loyalty and honor displayed by the men who rose up and killed their master had been prevented from killing called back to the ideals of the warring states period, which people largely longed for during this time period. Many felt that such ideals had been lost by this time, criticisms which can easily be found in completely unrelated material, such as Hagakure as well as in responses to this event—one samurai notably comments on how the profound reaction to this event by samurai reveals how little samurai of the times must understand their required duties and honor (Legends of the Samurai 328-329). Of course, longing for the past did not only come from intellectuals and members of the Samurai class, but also much of the common...
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...One fact is that the samurai and knights lived by a strict code. They also had many similarities and differences. For starters they both wore protective armour and were skilled in combat. Another similarity is that they went through a strict training process that started when they were young. Some differences between the two were that the samurai originated in japan and the knights were brought up in europe. Another difference is what there armor is made up of. Samurai and Knights have many similarities and differences. Two similarities are that they are both skilled in combat and wear armour. The samurai were trained in archery and are skilled in martial arts and to ride on horseback. The knights are similar they train in martial arts and...
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...Two of the similarities was that both the warriors started their training at a young age and they trained with wooden weapons. In the first and second excerpt of Document C the author writes, “The rigorous training (of samurai)...began in childhood…[A] prospective knight’s training [began at age four or five] with learning to ride a pony.” Being a knight or a samurai must have been really serious because the warriors start training at a very young age. They spent so most time of their childhood training to fight for the ruler. Samurais and knights had similar training even though they were so far apart in the world. Both of these warriors started learning the basics of being a knight or samurai. There were both women knights and samurai, but...
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...April 20, 2010 Professor Ravina Legends of the Samurai The Faces of Bushido Bushido, however it is defined, has had a profound impact on Japanese society. Translated, Bushido means “Way of the Warrior” and so it can be defined as a type of code of conduct for samurai. Besides being simply a code applied to Japanese samurai alone, Bushido has also been said to be an integral element in the fabric of Japanese culture and society. Although there is no formalized official written document specifically stating what Bushido is, it remains an entity that has become the quintessential element of Japanese society. Of all the interpretations on what Bushido is, two of the most popular are the Hagakure by Yamamoto Tsunetomo and Bushido, the Soul of Japan by Inazo Nitobe. However, both of these writings are influenced by the time period in which they were written, and experiences of their respective authors. By evaluating certain influences on the interpretations of Bushido and the contradictions in them one is able to see how each is using their own version of Bushido to justify the author’s position or achieve a certain end. Bushido as a term itself was not used much later on, but the code itself, although unspoken, can be seen Japanese literature throughout the ages. Starting with the Shoku Nihongi the term “bushi” is used as well as the term “Saburau”, which was applied to those who accompanied nobility. One of the earliest forms of a type of written code of conduct that has Bushido...
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...disasters throughout history, including the massive tsunami of 1498, generated by the Nankai earthquake which destroyed the temple housing the Daibustu. The area is often struck with powerful Typhoons which cause huge storms surges and severe winds. These events were so unpredictable that they had a profound impact on the early Japanese cultures and the development of the Shinto religion. The city of Kamakura has a very historical value in history as it was once considered the de facto capital of Japan during the Kamakura period. There are many historical sites and shrines in the city that date back to the 11th century, with the most recognizable being the Daibustu, or better know in English as the Great Buddha. Tsurugaoka Hachimangu was first established by Minamoto Yoriyoshi in 1063 as a base for the Minamoto clan, " He returned to Kamakura, and built a small shrine for the Hachiman Kami (the Japanese word for Shinto deities) near the coast to give thanks for success in suppressing the rebellion. The Hachiman Kami was regarded as the protector Kami of the warrior class" (History Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, n.d.). Tsurugaoka Hchimangu is the most important shrine in Kamakura, as it is devoted to Hachiman, the patron god of the Minamoto family and founder of the Kamakura Shogunate. The descendant of Yoriyoshi, Yoritomo Minamoto who was the founder of the Kamakura Shogunate (1185-1333) , known as the Kamakura Period, constructed the current Tsurugaoka Hachimangu shrine in honor...
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...Samurais have greatly contributed to the structure to the pre-modern Japan. When Japan first emerged, the Heian period took place from 794 to 1185. During this time, Japanese and Chinese cultures blended to form a sophisticated and elegant period filled with literature and militaristic values. After the Heian period, Japan became feudal and in feudal societies, all people had feudal obligations to the other social classes in return for their support and land. In feudal Japan, samurais were the warrior class and had the obligation to protect and serve the other social classes for land and food. Samurais also had strong fundamentals and morals of life. The fundaments of a samurai in medieval Japan are exemplifying their valor by their willing...
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