Compare and contrast the Japanese and Chinese reactions to the arrival of the Europeans.

The European arrival in both Japan and China significantly affected both societies. Following the isolation of the Ming Dynasty in the 14th century, the Christian missionaries attempted to further penetrate the population of China. In Japan, with the rule of emperor Nobunaga, the Christian missionaries were encouraged to convert populations of Japanese. When the Christian religion was seen as a threat to the social hierarchy of Japan, the missionaries were either expelled or persecuted. The missionaries from Europe were some of the first Europeans to influence society in Japan and China. In Japan and China, the European arrival affected the technologies and economies of both societies similarly, whereas the integration of the Christian religion differed in these societies.

The technology of the European's following their arrival penetrated both the Japanese and Chinese societies significantly. In China, in order to gain the elites interest in the Christian religion, the Jesuit missionaries introduced the technology of cannons and clocks.

Portrait of Matteo Ricci, the first Catholic missi...

Chinese Brush for Writing Calligraphy

Flickr Chinese Dragon Year Statue

Additionally, the Chinese calenders were corrected by the Jesuit missionaries. The ability of the Europeans to predict eclipses and the precision of their scientific instruments astounded the Chinese scholar-gentry. The technology introduced into China by the Europeans allowed the Chinese to advance remarkably in the field of science. In Japan during the 1540s, the Portuguese technology of clock and gun making strongly influenced society. With the introduction of firearms to the Japanese society, the unrest between warring daimyos was further increased. These firearms also enabled the three unifiers of Japan, Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and Ieyasu, to diminish the power of the daimyos. The Japanese and Chinese both openly accepted the new European technologies because they felt compelled to accept the technologies to keep up with the Europeans, who seemed more technologically advanced. This acceptance of European technology allowed for the Europeans to impress...