Session 3 (10/3) - Japan Becoming a Pacific Power

[Betsy Telle]

This session made me very curious about the lasting effects of the fires on Tokyo and Japan's approach to housing. I have learned that in Japan they put very little value in the actual house itself. Japan is one of the few places in the world where houses depreciate rather than appreciates. The value is in the land rather than the building. I was curious that if the expectation of fires led to this attitude, as it seems like if you know that the building is likely to burn and you will need to rebuild, you would be less value in that building itself.

[Betsy Telle]

I have travelled to Tokyo several times. I knew a little about current Japanese culture, but was severely lacking in my knowledge. I really enjoyed learning about the history of Edo from both Professor Pitelka and Professor Wills' lectures. It was interesting learning how it transformed from an old small fortress to a massive city with a complex societal structure. And over time the city had phases of modernization that were necessary, due to fires and wars, but resisted by some.

[Thomas Pineda]

It was an interesting mention by Prof. Pitelka that ukiyo-e was used as wrapping paper and became refuse when shipping goods. Those woodblock prints being so ubiquitous and then discarded must have been exciting treats or souvenirs for those receiving the goods on the other end. Then that rediscovery of cultural art and rebranding as “tradition” is such interesting pivot of the artform. This would be an interesting comparison to bring up in a science class that talks about human impact on environment. Are there things that we “upcycle” or “reuse” that are refuse in our nation, but become useful, valuable or relevant to other parts of the world? I’m sure the list is very long, in terms of the vast amounts of consumer goods our culture creates and discards- but it is a helpful perspective to take in a science class, stepping away from the bubble that could be our culture to examine human impact all over the planet.

[clay dube]

Hi Folks,
I've atttached Prof. Wills's presentation and mine. Please feel free to write to him at: [email protected]. Also - if you'd like to thank the Japan Society for making this possible, you can reach Dr. Nagasawa at: [email protected].

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[clay dube]

Ukyio-e are fantastic. Ernest Fennollosa was a key figure introducing them to the West. Here's a Metropolitan Museum essay on the links between them and the impressionists. Someone noted chinoiserie -- yes, there was great interest in East Asia, especially among the wealthy.

Here's a challenge -- who can find and share (click on the image button or just give us the link) wood block prints illustrating:

industrialization

shopping

work

women

kids

education

Go for it!

[Thomas Pineda]

It was interesting to learn that Japan’s light governance of social programs (firefighting, charity for poor, etc;) was to be met or fulfilled voluntarily by population. I suppose it was similar to principals put forth later in the Charter Oath, that virtue and a sense of morals were expected of all members of society- so that communities were on their own to fill in the gaps for those types of social services. I suppose in that way, they could be designed to best serve the local community. Another interesting cultural norm was the idea of minimalism in urban areas, in terms of belongings. That urban aesthetic that is relevant now, and Marie Kondo is teaching people how to tidy up. It is a necessity in urban areas around the world, especially where housing is sparse. Some things that were brought up in class that would be interesting comparisons  for a science class would be disasters in terms of urban sense- what did they look like through time and how did humans impact these disasters vs. disasters impacting humans? Essential Question for a unit project: How do characterize disasters? And how do we respond? - examples of Kanto earthquake vs SF earthquake. Questions to students: How do we learn about ourselves through disasters, how do we build cities/how should we build them, how do we learn from other places? Collective culture v. Individual culture and community response?

[Maria Cardenas]

Professor Steven Willis video about Japan or Edo was interesting. The fact that Japan had so many fires is incredible. The reading, “Governance, Arson, and Firefighting in Edo, 1600-1868” by Sand and Willis was interesting to read. The lecture let us know that there were many fires and that people would grab their valuables and leave the fires instead of trying to put out the fires. The reading let us know that there were orders that were published that informed the people that they needed to be on the lookout for fires and the needed to try to prevent fire and they also needed to partake in firefighting duties. The reading continues to say how some of the fires were caused by Arson because people were trying to get out of debt. Finding out that some arsonist were dealt a lesser punishment depending also on their intent was fascinating to me.   

[Maria Cardenas]

I am including a Wood Block prints illustrating women. This was found in the Worcester Art Museum. It shows five wood block prints images that demonstrate women. The main one has three women who are wearing kimono which I was able to include below. In order to see more wood blocks prints illustrating women you need to go to the website. The website includes a description "The Kimono in Print: 300 Years of Japanese Design is the first show devoted to examining the kimono as a major source of inspiration and experimentation in Japanese print culture, from the Edo period (1603-1868) to the Meiji period (1868-1912)." 

https://www.worcesterart.org/exhibitions/kimono-in-print/

[Zoey McKinney]

I found the lecture and reading on firefighting and arson in Edo particularly interesting. For me, spanning large periods of time or looking at very big picture historical trends can be overwhelming or harder to connect to. As a student, I love to read about some of the very specific topics such as this that historians specialize in. The fact that the people of Edo had to consider fire safety just as we do in Southern California makes the history more easily accessible, and I try to include details like this when teaching history to hopefully draw my students in. I thought the section on punishment for arson was especially interesting, as there are parallels to our modern conception of an "insanity defense." There is also the idea of "intent," since one of the arsonists received an easier sentence because he "had not set the fire for any 'cunning purpose." I also thought the idea of arson threats as blackmail was really interesting. I wonder if anyone was ever caught using that method, and how such a case might have been handled. It really emphasizes the point that fires spread so easily, since a threat to a neighbor could be enough to put you on your guard. Reading about such conflicts between neighbors really helps bring the city to life in a way that a general overview of its history does not, for me.

[Tara Corral]

This section really was interesting because I don't recall ever reading about this information in any of my History Classes. What really stood out to me through this was how Japan came to Power during the the Meiji Era. When Japan created the National Seclusion Edict from 1633-1641 they were able to stregthen their own culture by focusing on their country. At the time they were also looking outward at other Westerner cultures acknowledging that they needed to make a change to their own country so that they could remain free from European Culture. They looked to their neighbors and advanced but ensured that their culture continued by placing importance on what was practiced at home. I didn't know that Japan had become such a powerful country in the Pacific that it's equal rival was the United States, or that it had a war with Russia as it had taken over parts of Korea. So much of this history is left out of the books. 

I'm also really intrigued the surge of development in Tokyo that started Tokyo's Fire History which lasted for 260 years. Its interesting to think how Japan did not adapt to building safer homes but by building homes that were quick and easy to rebuild in case they got burned down. I think its interesting how they adapted to the fires and felt like they would happen no matter what rather then learning to create safer environments. Well not until the Giza Brick Town. 

[Katherine Caneba]

I honestly was unaware of the fire history of Tokyo before we studied this topic and the accompanying presentation by Dr. Wills, so this has been a very eye-opening topic for me. I also did not tend to think as much about the amount of devastation to buildings and loss of life that the average Japanese people in Japan suffered during WWII (not including the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, nor the people who developed cancer in the decades afterward). Given my personal background as an American, I think that my focus has generally been on the millions of people in other countries (e.g., US military personnel and civilians in the Asia-Pacific) that the Japanese military killed during the war. I have never visited Tokyo so I haven’t seen Ginza District for myself, but it was fascinating to learn the influence of Western architecture there. If and/or when I do get the chance to visit, I’ll especially be on the lookout for signs of Western influence in the city planning.

The idea of living a “portable lifestyle” is one that is not so familiar to modern people in a relatively stable environment, but refugees from wars, famine, and climate-related disasters have always been there, and as we move into a future of increasing climate emergency, ever more people will lose their material possessions due to displacement from their homes. It will be difficult for adult mentors of young people to nurture a sense of hope for the future when it seems (to me, at least) that we as a human species will inevitably suffer more as consequence for endlessly taking from the environment. I hope that children today will grow up asking more questions than we were taught to: Why is society the way it is? Who and/or what benefits from these systems? And why are the people in power so resistant to changing things for the better?

[Serece Tascione]

I found this wood block print to be quite fitting. It is titled, "Japanese women & girls. in Western dress with various hairstyles" from 1887.   In the 1600s there was not much of a 'fashion' in Japan, and uniforms and expensive materials were only worn by nobles. Western clothes were introduced to Japan during the Mieji period. Military uniform and other official uniforms were already adopted by this time, as the need for change in the government was so relevant. Once the emperor and  the government officials started to wear Western clothing in public, the elite began to follow. My,  how trends unfold! I am assuming the women depicted here must be wealthy as the western dresses were expensive. I admire and am astounded at the detail put into a woodblock. I can't imagine the delicate hand it would need to create, not only the fine details in the fabric designs, but in the characters of the written language. 

[Thomas Pineda]

In this woodblock by Hiroshi Yoshida, it seems like a daily shopping scene is depicted in front of a gate. It’s called “Hoten Ichiba” or “Market in Mukden” and it looks like a a relative snapshot of Chinese market made by a Japanese artist. Compared to other woodblocks I’ve seen of daily life in Japan, this picture seems more composed like a souvenir picture of a foreign place, which it may well have been for the artist. I wonder if there are many other ukiyo-e style prints made of places outside of Japan.

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[Jennifer Cutler]

What struck me most was how much power the emperor still had - the MCO and the writings from progressive commentators didn't mention anything about the role of the emperor, or even having an emperor. So to see a whole section in the Constitution devoted to the responsibilities of the emperor, and read that the emperor was still from the same lineage, was a little surprising. Perhaps the reason the emperor is not mentioned in the MCO or the other docs is b/c it was tacitly understood that Japanese gov't, no matter how it changed, would include an emperor. And to see how much power the emperor had over the other houses (Imperial Diet and House of Representatives) made me question how much the new gov't was really "new." Because all there were certainly more "rights" for the subjects (articles 23, 24, 25 certainly evoke that idea - although most of that section includes more rights) the emperor had power over the legislative bodies. Perhaps Meiji critics were happy to have the rights recorded that they didn't bother to think about how little effect the changes actually had. Anytime a gov't doc includes "rights" of the people, it can seem similar to the US DOI or Constitution. However, in reality, the way the US defined people at different times in her history certainly changes the meaning of rights and liberties. So, like the Japanese Constitution, which decried for the emperor to continue reigning, and almost reigning supremely, the US President has often had the same luxuries afforded that position. We may vote for our president, but that vote isn't a direct election (just ask Al Gore or Hilary Clinton in recent years) and because voting rights have been denied to so many people, those in our gov't are not always true representatives. Maybe the US does end up with a presidential role similar to the Japanese emperor - and they may find themselves in the role through different venues, but neither can claim they are "representatives" of all the people. It doesn't seem like the emperor is subject to rule of law, while the president, in the words of the Constitution and later laws, is.

[Jaclyn Wall]

Much ilke Zoey, I find connecting to pieces of history can be overwhelming and harder to connect to personally. This was not the case when the Arson in Edo was discussed a couple of Saturday's ago. I'm originally from South Carolina, so when I moved to Southern California I soon realized how often these unfortunate wildfires are happening. This made it a lot easier to connect to the Arson of Edo lecture. I was particularly fascinated by the different levels of punishments which would happen to the aronists causing the fire and the different reasons they were starting fires to begin with: out of spite, for revenge, to showcase their anger, etc.

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