S DURING THE SAME PERIOD. IN ORDER TO AT LEAST UNDERSTAND-IF NOT RESOLVE-THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE JAPANESEAND WESTERNERS, IT'S NECESSARY TO HAVE A BRIEF LOOK AT THE HISTORY OF JAPAN ITSELF. BECAUSE OF ITS LACK OF A CONSISTENT AND RELIABLE WRITTEN LANGUAGE, WE DON'T KNOW AGREAT DEAL ABOUT JAPAN DURING THE PERIOD PRIOR TO THE EIGHTH CENTURY. FROM THAT POINTON THERE WAS AN ENORMOUS INFLUX OF CHINESE CULTURE IN MUCH THE SAME WAY AS THEINFLUENCE OF AMERICAN CULTURE IS FELT WORLDWIDE TODAY. CHINESE INFLUENCE MADE ITSELFFELT IN JAPAN IN MANY WAYS-THROUGH TRADE, THROUGH ADOPTION OF THE CHINESE WRITTENLANGUAGE AND ADOPTION OF MANY OF THE SOCIAL SYSTEMS OF CHINA BY THE JAPANESE. THEREWERE ALSO SIGNIFICANT INTERCHANGES OF SCHOLARS BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES, AND THEIRINFLUENCES WERE FELT ONE WAY OR ANOTHER IN VIRTUALLY EVERY LEVEL OF JAPANESE SOCIETY.THE DEGREE OF THIS CHINESE INFLUENCE WAXED AND WANED OVER HUNDREDS OF YEARS, WITHINTERMITTENT ATTEMPTS BY JAPANESE LEADERS TO TERMINATE IT. THAT EXTRAORDINARY NOVEL, SHOGUN, DEPICTS THE LATTER PART OF THIS ERA WITH AMAZINGACCURACY. ABOUT 1600 A.D. THE SHOGUN TOKUGAWA (THE TITLE ACTUALLY MEANSGENERALISSIMO) EFFECTIVELY SEALED ALL JAPAN FROM ALL CONTACT WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLDBY IMPOSING A SERIES OF EXTREMELY HARSH PUNISHMENTS FOR NOT ONLY JAPANESE ATTEMPTINGTO CONTACT OTHER COUNTRIES, BUT ALSO FOR NON-JAPANESE (SUCH AS SHIPWRECKED SAILORS)TRYING TO COME INTO JAPAN WITHOUT EXPRESS PERMISSION. THE ONLY EXCEPTION TO THESEPUNITIVE MEASURES WAS THE TOLERATION BY TOKUGAWA OF TINY TRADING ENCLAVESMAINTAINED BY THE DUTCH AND PORTUGUESE. THIS ENFORCED INSULARITY, WHEN COUPLED WITHTHE PRE- TOKUGAWA JAPANESE ATTITUDES, EVOLVED INTO A TRULY EXTRAORDINARY SET OFSOCIAL AND ECONOMIC RELATIONS AMONG ALL STRATA OF JAPANESE SOCIETY. THEHIERARCHICAL STRUCTURE WAS THUS ESTABLISHED IN WHICH EVERYONE KNEW HIS PLACE ASBEING EITHER SUPERIOR OR INFERIOR TO THOSE AROUND HIM. THIS GAVE RISE TO WHAT EVEN TODAY IS REFERRED TO AS ...
