Name________________________________________________Date________________________Period_____________ Life in Feudal Japan Peasant Women: The lives of peasant women contrasted greatly with the lives of women in the upper classes. Since most accounts from the period deal with the concerns of the aristocrats, who were only about one-tenth of one percent of Japan's population, we know very little of the lives of the vast majority who were commoners. We do know that women worked alongside men in a kind of rough equality and had some control over household decisions. They held some property rights, including rights of inheritance and divorce, although they could not remarry. In contrast to aristocrats, peasant women often wore their hair short and, since families needed their hands for labor, married late, usually to someone in their own village or group of villages. Farmers only took one wife. As time went on, however, the later feudal age samurai ideal of the obedient, submissive woman was accepted by the common people and peasant women lost much of their earlier independence. Farmers The most important element of society during the castle period was the farmers and their villages. Villages were little societies that consisted of a farmer's house, the rice field, mountains, and the seashore. There was autonomous organization, which supported the farmers in each village. The majority of these villages were farm villages, but there were also a few fishing and mountain villages too. Each of them had different populations and incomes, but on the whole, they had similar functions and features. Usually, three officers, called "Nanushi", "Kumigashira", and "Hyakusyoudai", governed the village. Officers were also called "Honnbyakusyou""; they managed the race and land, and worked on the disaster prevention. This was very important because the villages were the food source for the castle town and order was needed to make sure everything needed was provided. The expenditure was called "Murairiyou" and was paid by each person in the village. People were separated into groups of 5 people. These groups were called "Goninngumi", and they had a joint responsibility. There were several social classes in a village. The upper class had its own rice field, but the lower class did not even have a steady job. One can see the separations in social classes not only here, but within the living quarters of the castle grounds and where different ranking officials stayed. The farmer's burden was called "Nengu", and is like a tax. About half of their harvest was taken away by the lord of the castle. The farmers grew a lot of rice, but could rarely eat it, because they were forced to pay high taxes and the price of rice was expensive. Instead, they would usually eat barnyard grass or millet. With no money even for rice, of course their clothing style was simple. It was usually made of cotton or hemp. They had a few days off in each year, and the farmers enjoyed their vacation drinking, or arm wrestling. Sometimes a few days break was allowed to do annual events and festivals.
Welcome message from author
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Related Documents
