Unit 3

From Isolation to Adaptation

Introduction

How do beliefs, values, and knowledge shape worldviews and contribute to a society's isolation or adaptation?

Unit 3 is about Japan’s journey from isolation to adaptation.

In this unit, you will learn about the following:

1. How Japan’s geography helped shape the beliefs and values of the people
2. How the isolation policy of the Edo period and contact with other peoples in the Meiji period affected the Japanese identity
3. The effect of Western cultures on the Japanese worldview
4. The tension that occurs when a society must adapt very quickly 
5. How different cultures can learn to appreciate each other and to benefit from each other

Background Information

Remember the social studies units you have completed in this course and in previous courses.

Frequently, you studied the development of identity in various groups of people – in Canada and in other parts of the world.

In Unit 3, you will continue to study the development of identity, this time in Japan. You will also focus on how rapid changes in a society can result in some aspects of identity remaining the same and other aspects changing.