The cost of putting down the recent Samurai rebellions has drained government funds. Samurai, although still angry at being stripped of their power by the Meiji government, are not in a hurry to try rebelling again after their crushing defeat by the modern Japanese army.
Masayoshi, the new Minister of Finance, has plans for extensive
financial reforms. He plans to encourage industry, reduce inflation,
and create a national bank, among other things (2) The new financial
reforms are only part of a series of reforms since Emperor
Meiji took power in October of 1868, when he was only sixteen.
Among his many reforms have been the abolition of the feudal system;
new mail, telegraph, and railway services; a public school system;
and a standard paper currency.
Many people see this period of reformation as living up to its name: "Enlightened Rule". Several of these new reforms have improved general quality of life in Japan, and most praise the Emperor for modernizing Japan before it came to the same sticky end as China. This modernization of Japan is, in essentials, the Westernization of Japan. Japanese scholars in the Iwakura Mission went to Europe and America to study life and society there, and their reports helped shape the modernization. There are some that resent the Western influence in our country, but Fukuzawa Yukichi, founder of Keio University, disagrees. He states "that to abstain from intercourse with foreign nations is against the laws of nature and human nature" (3). The only way to keep Western influence out is to keep all outsiders out, which, as Yukichi says, is against nature. As Japan becomes more like the West, it gains power, which is what we will need to keep our country alive. We may lose some of our traditional values and practices, but we will gain equality with the other powers of the world and freedom from the threat of colonization.
However, not everybody agrees with the new government. Some of the dissentious people include farmers who are dissatisfied with the heavy land taxes. During bad crop years, the taxes strain their funds, forcing some farmers to sell their land. Other dissenters include those who dislike the westernization of Japan, stating that this causes a decrease in Japanese culture. Prominent writer Natsume Soseki, when asked about his views on the Meiji government and its aims, responded, "We will be able to boast of this fantastic acquisition of knowledge, [&] the inevitable result will be a nervous collapse from which we will not be able to recover" (5). He, and others, believe that we are sacrificing our culture to gain transitory power.
The most disputatious and angry of all are the Samurai.
The abolition of the feudal system stripped them of their land
and power. They were paid for the land with government bonds,
but it was small repayment for their power. They were set on an
equal footing with the people they had once ruled over. The Samurai
were forbidden to wear their swords, a traditional symbol of their
class and power. This made them incredibly angry, and so they
rebelled against the Meiji government, believing they could win.
The new Japanese army is based on European armies; they fight
with Western weapons, and in a Western style. They were pitted
against Samurai armies, who were powerful but using techniques
of the past. The Japanese army was able to put down the numerous
rebellions, but at a cost. The expenses of fighting the Samurai
were heavy, leading to financial problems. These financial issues
lead to the appointment of Masayoshi as Minister of Finance. The
government, and Japan, can only hope that his new financial reforms
can bring the country out of debt and into the glory of the New
Japan.
Sources:
1. "Japanese Old Photographs in Bakumatsu-Meiji Period." [http://oldphoto.lb.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/unive] 30 January 2002
2. Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia. 1993 ed., s.v. "Meiji Period."
3. Tanya Grassley, "Is it right to call Meiji Art Derivative?" [http://www.euroent.nl/users/artnv/meiji.html], 28 January 2002.
4."Japanese Old Photographs in Bakumatsu-Meiji Period."
[http://oldphoto.lb.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/unive]
30 January 2002.
5. "Natsume Soseki." [http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Psci/Inst21/Soseki.htm] 30 January 2002.
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