Wow, this is completely unexpected. I’m dying to find out about sushi in Bismarck. Too cool.
An “everything you know is wrong” moment: the cogent explanation of why Commodore Perry went to Japan in the first place. Schoolbooks usually explain Perry had a goal of opening Japanese markets up to US goods. But the explanation here makes far more sense, doesn’t it?
Thanks for your comment. I’m from the everything is connected, everything is complex school of history, so when someone says, “it’s to open trade” I have to ask, “trade with whom?” It’s a long, long way to New York from Yokohama, but not so far to California.
Oh, dear “This is a lie” is a rather telling (and galling) note on which to end. On the edge of my seat, though — this is great stuff, thank you!
Very interesting article, but there seems to be an odd amount of time spent in adulation of Japan that I think could give an impression of less history and more “rose tinted glasses.” It wasn’t that long before the focused time period that Westerners were not treated so kindly in Japan.
“And that, in microcosm, was the general attitude of 19th century Americans to both the Chinese and the Japanese; one despised, the other admired. Over and over in newspapers and magazines of the era, the Japanese are praised as a clean, well-bred, delightful race, the “most civilizable” in Asia. The Chinese? Not so much.”
This seems to be laying it a bit thick on the generalizations. The Japanese weren’t exactly welcomed with open arms by everybody (and I’d love to see some citations about the implied universal hatred of the Chinese [and some more background information on why that is so wouldn’t hurt if we’re going to be throwing that in there anyway, but that too could fill its own article]). Indeed, the Japanese, too, were excluded once the “yellow” fear descended upon them just like the other East Asians.
Speaking of gyoza (which btw I think you’ve misspelled), there’s a bit of “delicious” irony there when considering that it very likely has Chinese origins (even when just purely considering an etymological analysis), and yet, as your article points out, from a 19th century Westerner’s view, it’s good riddance to the Chinese folks, in with the Japanese folks!
Fine piece of history writing. Refreshing to read one with no ideological axe grinding.
Fascinating stuff. Looking forward to part two.
Seems a bit of a stretch to say there was a sushi craze just because one group of ladies had sushi at someone’s house.
It would be a stretch, wouldn’t it, if it were only ONE group of ladies, but then it’s not only one group of ladies. Perhaps reading part two would help sort this out.
Wow, this is completely unexpected. I’m dying to find out about sushi in Bismarck. Too cool.
An “everything you know is wrong” moment: the cogent explanation of why Commodore Perry went to Japan in the first place. Schoolbooks usually explain Perry had a goal of opening Japanese markets up to US goods. But the explanation here makes far more sense, doesn’t it?
Thanks for your comment. I’m from the everything is connected, everything is complex school of history, so when someone says, “it’s to open trade” I have to ask, “trade with whom?” It’s a long, long way to New York from Yokohama, but not so far to California.
Oh, dear “This is a lie” is a rather telling (and galling) note on which to end. On the edge of my seat, though — this is great stuff, thank you!
Very interesting article, but there seems to be an odd amount of time spent in adulation of Japan that I think could give an impression of less history and more “rose tinted glasses.” It wasn’t that long before the focused time period that Westerners were not treated so kindly in Japan.
“And that, in microcosm, was the general attitude of 19th century Americans to both the Chinese and the Japanese; one despised, the other admired. Over and over in newspapers and magazines of the era, the Japanese are praised as a clean, well-bred, delightful race, the “most civilizable” in Asia. The Chinese? Not so much.”
This seems to be laying it a bit thick on the generalizations. The Japanese weren’t exactly welcomed with open arms by everybody (and I’d love to see some citations about the implied universal hatred of the Chinese [and some more background information on why that is so wouldn’t hurt if we’re going to be throwing that in there anyway, but that too could fill its own article]). Indeed, the Japanese, too, were excluded once the “yellow” fear descended upon them just like the other East Asians.
Speaking of gyoza (which btw I think you’ve misspelled), there’s a bit of “delicious” irony there when considering that it very likely has Chinese origins (even when just purely considering an etymological analysis), and yet, as your article points out, from a 19th century Westerner’s view, it’s good riddance to the Chinese folks, in with the Japanese folks!
Fine piece of history writing. Refreshing to read one with no ideological axe grinding.
Fascinating stuff. Looking forward to part two.
Seems a bit of a stretch to say there was a sushi craze just because one group of ladies had sushi at someone’s house.
It would be a stretch, wouldn’t it, if it were only ONE group of ladies, but then it’s not only one group of ladies. Perhaps reading part two would help sort this out.