The Meiji Era and the Modernization of Japan...Part 1 - Page 2
© Maria Christensen
As deeply humiliating as the western show of force had been, many realized that until Japan caught up with the west technologically, the unequal treaties and their own perceived inferior status would remain intact. While culture and the arts had flourished during the period of isolation, the scientific and industrial revolutions had raged around the blissfully unaware Japanese. This had to change for Japan to compete in the modern world. Accordingly, the oligarchs set the nation upon a course of modernization which would produce dramatic results. The first step was to foster a sense of nationalism and unity. Until then, most Japanese had identified themselves as loyal to their daimyo first. The emperor was a revered but very distant figure. The oligarchs placed the Meiji emperor upon a high and sacred pedestal and every reform was carried out in his name. Education in this highly literate nation promoted patriotism and the military were taught the virtues of "unquestioning obedience and sacrifice"(2).
With this sense of national pride in place, the oligarchs were ready to administer sweeping reforms, the first of which ended the status of the samurai. By 1876, samurai were forbidden to carry their traditional swords and the warrior class evolved into bureaucrats. Peasants who had previously been forbidden to carry arms were conscripted into a centralized army. The old class system of Japan was abandoned. With astounding speed, universities were founded, telegraph and railroad lines cross-crossed the country and a national postal system was set up. The shipping and textile industries took off, as shown by the facts that "by the end of the Meiji period, more than a third of the world's supply of silk came from Japan" and the percentage of exports carried on Japanese built and owned ships rose from 7% in 1893 to 52% by 1913(3). How was such progress at such a rate possible? The answer lies in the Japanese traits of flexibility and adaptability. Simply put, they borrowed the best of the West and molded it to fit Japan's needs.
To read more, visit The Meiji Period in Japan for an interesting and in-depth look at this crucial period in Japan's history.
Next Week: The cultural aspects of the Meiji Era and the price of modernization.
Notes: All notes taken from Modern Japan: The American Nexus by John Hunter Boyle. Harcourt Brace & Co., 1993. 1. The fourteen-year-old emperor's actual name was Mutsuhito (p.82). 2. These 2 factors played a prominent role in the national consciousness as Japan later embraced imperialism and moved ever closer to WWII (p.84).
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