Unit 3

From Isolation to Adaptation

Chapter 15 Introduction

In what ways does a society's worldview affect its ability to adapt to rapid change?

After American ships under the command of Commodore Matthew Perry arrived on Japan’s shores in July 1853, Japan began a rapid process of change. Japan began the process that ended its isolation.

The arrival of Perry’s ships must have been a huge surprise to the Japanese people who had not seen foreigners or large ships for hundreds of years. They were unfamiliar with modern technology.

Read page 327 of your textbook to learn about the surprise visit by Commodore Perry and his ships.

Chapter 15 is about the beginnings of the transition of Japan from the closed Edo period to the open Meiji period.