China's Westernization Movement and Japan's Meiji Restoration

Comparison between China's Westernization Movement and Japan's Meiji Restoration Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation Comparison between China's Westernization Movement and Japan's Meiji Restoration Introduction Meiji restoration was the source of modernization in Japan while westernization brought about modernization in China. The modernization resulted in both and positive and negative impacts to both Japan and China (Jansen & Rozman, 2014). During the modernization period, both Japan and China were impacted similarly in aspects such as; development of military forces, adoption of western education, exploitation of the native people by foreign investors and new systems of marriage was adopted in both nations. However, Japan advanced more than China did, more Japanese engaged in entrepreneurial activities than Chinese and western exerted more pressure on China than they did to Japan. Difference China was a heterogeneous country ruled with real monarchy power with feigners being the minority in the leadership which was known as Manchus. In contrast, Japan was a homogeneous country rule by two systems of leadership known imperial court and Shogunate and this made Japan face difficult times in the event of adjusting to its political control after having slipped out of control. Toward the end of 19th-century dynastic cycle experience a downfall but shogunal cycle persisted making Japan rea free from external turbulent through 1850. However, there was some degree of social tension in Japan since the ethics of samurai Confucian still penetrated the country, and the entire political form remained unshaken (Walker, 2019). Tokugawa system was unable to remain without major change since encroachment into Japan from foreigners were very rampant. Furthermore, the administrators in the Ch'ing government were very corrupt and graft while leaders in the government of Japan demonstrated higher levels of integrity, more active and efficient in their work than the China government officials were. Japan had patrimony which facilitated its ability to replicate and refine approaches from the rest of the world. For example, the great reform which ranged between 645 and 702 resulted in the legal Codes and hence the formation of the central government of Japan in relation to the centralized model of government in China. When comparison of aspects such as efficiency, homogenous country, timing of dynastic cycle, integrity, activeness, and dual-political system and the ability to replicates the alien model, Japan did better on such factors than China for commencing its modernization (Mesoudi, Chang, Murray & Lu, 2015). Both China and Japan used feudal armed military forces which were too weak to maintain both internal securities to prevent the nations from external attacks during the mid-19th century. In addition, the military forces in both nations were highly decentralized making each region of the country had its independent military forces (Paine, 2017). The main difference that existed between the two countries in relation to military force is that in China, the elite of the Confucianism –rooted and thus were very loyal to their tradition making them very conservative. They showed loyalty to the court of China, finally took contro...