The Samurai

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Ancient and modern Eastern Civilizations were some of the most influential civilizations in shaping the world. The three major civilizations in the east are China, Japan and the Middle East. The Chinese brought the world the ideas of Confucianism along with powerful dynasties and modern day communism. Japan starting with an isolationist view changed drastically when they adopted a modernized society and later imperialism. The Middle East, lead strongly by religious beliefs is the center of much conflict that affects the world. The Chinese brought many gifts to the world from simple objects and customs to major government ideas. On of the most influential idea to come from China is Confucianism, which is now used worldwide. Confucius …show more content…

In the era of rising use of guns, Japan depended on their protectors, the Samurai. As shown in the educational film “Warrior Graveyard: Samurai Back From the Dead,” the Samurai were fearsome warriors who left horrific wounds on their enemies. The Samurai followed a strict behavioral code and were expected to show reckless courage, discipline, reverence of the gods and fairness. The main weapons of these warriors included a long sword called a katana and a short blade called wakizashi. One of the most well known characteristics of the Samurai is how they believed dying an honorable death is more important than a long life. In the case of being dishonored, the Samurai would commit seppuku, which is a ritualistic suicide, to regain their honor. The decline of the Samurai began when the emperor Tokugawa Shogunate Fell in the eighteen hundreds wanted to modernize Japan so it could compete with the modern world around them. This lead to the Samurai to be no longer needed due to the country a much more modern organized military. Modernization of Japan lead to Japanese imperialism which meant they sought to dominate other countries politically, economically or socially. Japan imperialism reached it peak during World War Two which resulted in atrocities such as the Rape of Nanking and mass killings of many Chinese civilians. In result of the war Japan lost all rights to having military forces but with help from the U.S. to rebuild, Japan became the world's second largest

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