The Last Samurai is a film that is often used to teach history in classes. The last Samurai represents the end of an era. The film does a good job of teaching many parts of Japanese History. This movie teaches us about the way of the Samurai, and their beliefs and traditions. The movie also expresses what life was like during the Meiji Restoration. You can see in the movie that technology started to advance, gradually decreasing the amount of Samurais. The Satsuma Rebellion, which lasted for 6 months, was shown in the movie as a battle between tradition and modernisation. Even though this film is not entirely accurate, it has some key historical events which are good for learning about this historic period. What do we learn about Samurai?
The movie shows Samurai as warriors in the Edo period, during the 1800’s. They used a sword called a Kataran and a wakizashi which is a smaller sword, much like a dagger, that was used as a samurai's "honour blade" and never left the samurai's side, this was to protect them from harm and they were all taught a martial art called koryū, (which the character’s practice and some are being taught the martial art) which is the way of the Samurai people. The harakiri is a form of ritual that involves suicide, which was shown in the final battle and the last samurai had to
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In also shows that the Japanese samurai were warriors of the shogun rulers during feudal times and they were fearsome in combat and were fast on horseback. In the movie the Samurai wore armor made of metal plates and leather, held together by cords and buckles, carrying their sword or bow. The movie shows Samurai were the only people in Japan who could carry swords and they wore their hair tied back at the top of their head in a knot. The brow and crown, at the top of the head, were shaved bare to represent that they were a
In the book Samurai, Warfare and the State in Early Medieval Japan, Karl Friday focuses on war in early medieval Japan. A central thesis could be the political primacy of the imperial court. (Lamers 2005) This is the tenth through fourteenth centuries, before the samurai became prominent in Japan and were trying to form themselves into more of what we think of them today. Friday focuses on five aspects of war in his book; they are the meaning of war, the organization of war, the tools of war, the science of war, and the culture of war.
Knights and samurai have a lot in common. For example, they both follow a code and protect land. Although they are very similar, there are a lot of things that set them apart. Samurai had a different social status, had different weapons, and expectations. While knights and samurai have many similarities, in a one on one battle, the advantage would be to the knights and this can be seen in their honor code, training, and armor.
A samurai warrior was a member of a powerful Japanese military. On the other hand, a knight warrior was a man of noble birth who after a couple stages, would be raised to honorable military rank. While knights and samurais have many similarities, in a one on one battle, the advantage would be to the samurai and this can be seen in their armor, beliefs, and their training techniques. The first way that samurais have an advantage is with their armor. In document D written by Terry Bennett it says that the knights have pure metal on them which weighs from 40-60 pounds.not only do the knights have tons of weight, but they also put armor on their horses which slowed them down a whole lot.
In the ancient Japanese culture, one great aspect was on how they emphasized on the intrinsic themes of loyalty and honor. They had fierce warriors known as samurai’s. A samurai was a traditional warrior who would protect and be loyal to their masters no matter what. They were known to be skilled soldiers, benevolent men, self-sacrifice, sense of shame, along with other major characteristics that embodied them as a samurai. While this class of warrior no longer exist today, the remembrance of a samurai is present in the minds of the characters in the novel, The Samurai’s Garden by Gail Tsukiyama. Tsukiyama does a fascinating piece of work by really elaborating and describing the great attributes that Matsu possess of a true samurai. In the
European knights wore armor that is made of metal. Due to the metal armor, their whole body was protected very well, and yet it was too heavy. In addition, it sometimes even limited knight’s vision and breathing ability because of the large protection of the helmet. In contrast, samurai’s armor was very light compared to the knight’s. “Samurai wore armor that is made of leather and steel laced together with silk cords.” Therefore, samurai was able to move quickly and agilely. However, samurai’s armor had less protection for their body, making them more vulnerable than knights. Their weapons had some differences as well. The primary weapons of knights were the long lance and the sword, but they also used poleaxe, dagger, and mace. The sword was always the foundational weapon of knights, whereas, the sword was not the one of the major weapons for samurais. Samurais primarily used the bow and arrow and the Yari that is, “One of the Japanese traditional blades in the form of a
This film over glorifies bushido which leads to the misconception that bushido was the representation for all of Japan. At the start of the film, the narrator said, “and yet to know the story of 47 ronin is to know the story of all Japan.” (47 Ronin) Although the legend of forty-seven ronin was often used as an example to illustrate the samurai’s ethics and code of conduct, the narrator was speaking as if
Akira Kurosaw’s Seven Samurai is a film that encompasses various ideologies in order to allow the audience to understand the lives of Japanese people during the 1600’s. The film delves deep in social issues of the roles of the people within the society, the expectations as well as the obligations within the respected castes and elements within groups of ; suffering, working together, protecting family and working for the better good of the community.
Bushido - ???- the feudal-military Japanese code of behavior; the way of the warrior [samurai] Japanese chivalry [knighthood]
Throughout History, there have been many different groups or events that are still widely known today. Groups of people such as the Indians or Vikings are popular groups which are referenced constantly in today’s society. However, none of these groups is more known or referenced than the Japanese Samurai. Originating in 646 AD, these Japanese warriors developed from a loose organization of farmers to the dominant social class in Feudal Japan. Along with their dominant military and political standing, the samurai brought with them a unique code or moral belief that became the core of Samurai culture. Because of this, the Samurai and their principles still affect modern day Japanese society with social customs today deriving directly and indirectly from the beliefs of the Samurai.
... in body and mind, to governing of the Emperors, to the study of the martial arts. Their code of honor and loyalty are traditions that all Japanese respect and try to live up to even today. The self sacrifice of ones own life for a common cause was even seen in World War II when Japanese pilots deliberately crashed their planes into United States ships anchored at Pearl Harbor. This was a devastating attack and can show the horror caused by revenge and their belief in sacrifice and honor. They were even called kamikaze pilots after the famous samurai battle of long ago. The influence of the samurai continues to be seen in Japan today in a positive way with the stories and legends of heroic samurai and the bushido as their guide.
The samurai have had a long time in Japan and stayed around for centuries. They led Japan and created many government systems that would be used through that time. They helped cities be destroyed and flourish. Their ways of life and honor have influenced and their spirits stay with Japan to this day.
According to Document C “Japan Memoirs of a Secret Empire”, talks about how the samurai and knights both started training at a young ages. The knights started training at ages 4-5 a little earlier than the Samurai who started training at 6-7. The Samurai training only lasted until they were 14 unlike the knights whose training lasted until they were 21. Although, the samurai training was shorter they still covered all the important areas. They also had similar armor and both consisted of metal. The samurai had a little bit more movement in their arms, but the armor was used for the same reasons, protection. Document D by Terry Bennett says, “Samurai did not wear armor on their right arm so they could easily draw their bow.” These similarities were significant because without these things both classes would lose the battle every time, and if they didn’t have armor they would get killed, and these similarities is one of the reasons the two groups are so alike. Both of the classes were so a like that’s it’s hard to acknowledge their
“In samurai armor, small iron plates were tied together, lacquered, and then bound into armor plates with silk or leather cord. Samurai did not wear armor on their right arm so they could draw their bow… In response, knights began to wear complete suits of plate armor, constructed from metal. Not only was the entire body covered but knights also wore helmets, gloves, and shoes of steel.” This shows a huge difference in the samurai and knights by showing us that samurai left their right arm exposed so that they could draw a bow and hit long range targets while knight had to battle in close sword battles. The samurai armor was bound together with leather cords while the knight's armor was made of plates of iron. “The rigorous training of samurai began in childhood… At about age 14 the trainees officially became samurai… A prospective knight training began at age 4 or 5… By age 14, pages were eligible to become a squire. He would usually become a knight around age 21.” This is a pretty big difference because this means the knight had to train longer and serve another family member before becoming a knight. Samurai became a samurai at age 14 when a knight would usually become a squire.
The jidaigeki samurai film genre has been through a significant change in the pre World War II and post World War II periods. Due to the social circumstances, the earlier samurai films were more dramatic, with more dialogue than action. Post World War II films diverted towards action based, producing more violent characters with darker themes. The samurai is usually seen as a physically or psychologically damaged fighter, with dramatization of death and violence. In addition, the protagonists are solitary figures who try to avoid fights and conceal their abilities rather than exhibit them to the enemy.
There are many historical aspects of the Japanese, but the most interesting is the history of the Samurai. In Japans history war played a large role in the country. Controlling clans fought for parts of the land and overall control of the country. These clans were powerful families that resided in the country and who all wanted power and control of Japan for themselves. The families that would be in control were known as Shoguns. These shoguns would have warriors that fought for them if any of the other clan families would try to attack him in order to overthrow him and take his power from him. The Samurai followed a code that developed from Chinese beliefs when in battle. The Samurais code was known as the Bushido. This code was also known as “The Way of The Warrior” which was the main belief s...