Japanese Isolationism
Jared Peet
Warm Up
• Pretend you are the ruler of Lebanon today.
• Outside forces (other countries, foreign ideas,
etc.) threaten to hurt your country.
• How would you prevent these outside forces
from hurting your country?
Objectives
• Explain why the Shoguns sought to isolate
Japan
• Compare and Contrast the reasons for Ming
and Japanese isolation
• Write the BESTEST body paragraph ever on
why the Ming Dynasty and Tokugawa
Shogunate isolated themselves
Essential Question
• Why did the Japanese move towards
isolationism during the Tokugawa shogunate?
Read and React
• Read the textbook excerpt and answer the
two questions at the bottom of the page.
– Be detailed in your response
– Remember to use the language of compare and
contrast in your second answer
Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire
• As we watch this film clip, think of these
questions:
– Why did the Shoguns see Christianity as a threat?
– What was life like for Japanese Christians?
Primary Source Analysis
• Skim the “Closed Country Edict of 1635”
– Cite THREE specific ways that Japan kept foreign
ideas and people out of the country.
• Read “The Exclusion of the Portuguese 1639”
– What happened to Portuguese ships and their
crew that landed in Japan?
– Do you think this is fair? Why or why not?
Exit Ticket
• Topic Sentence: One reason the Tokugawa
Shogunate sought to isolate itself was to
preserve their culture and prevent the spread
of Christianity.
• Write the BESTEST body paragraph to finish
off this topic sentence.