Lesson Plan Template



|Lesson Title: |European and Japanese Feudalism |Date: |

|Unit Central Historical Question(s): | | |

|Subject / Course: |World History: Medieval Europe |

|Grade: |7 |

|Lesson Duration: |90 min lesson |

|Lesson Objective, Historical Thinking Skill, as well as California Content & Common Core Standards |

|Lesson Objective – Students will be able to compare and contrast European and Japanese feudalism by writing a short essay. |

|Historical Thinking Skill: Comparison |

|Standard 7.6.3 – Understand the development of feudalism, its role in the medieval European economy, the way in which it was influenced by |

|physical geography (the role of the manor and the growth of towns), and how feudal relationships provide the foundation of political order. |

|7.5.3 – Describe the values, social customs, and traditions prescribed by the lord-vassal system consisting of shogun, daimyo, and samurai and |

|the lasting influence of the warrior code throughout the twentieth century |

| |

|Narrative Summary of Tasks / Actions |

|For my lesson I will start off with a brief overview and discussion of the content covered in the previous lesson. After the discussion I will |

|introduce the topic of today’s lesson and show them a short video that will serve as an introduction to the lesson. |

|After the video I will have a lecture that will consist of PowerPoint slides with images and bulletpoints. During this lecture I will also be |

|discussing the material presented and asking my students questions along the way. |

|After the PowerPoint lecture, the students will split up into groups and read a short handout article and then create a poster consisting of a |

|Venn diagram, on European and Japanese Feudalism, and two images that relate to the topic. After students will share their work with the class. |

|The students will then write a short essay to demonstrate their understanding of the material presented in the class. |

|Finally, the class will close with the students writing one thing they like and disliked about the lesson and why. |

|Materials / Equipment |

|Computer with PowerPoint |

|Handouts |

|Poster Paper |

|Coloring Material |

|Textbook |

|Videos |

|Images of both Japanese and European Feudalism |

|Notebooks |

|Szczepanski, Kallie. 2013. “Feudalism in Japan and Europe.” Asian History. . |

|. |

Inquiry-Based Lesson Plan for History-Social Science

|1. Anticipatory Set |Time: |

|For the introduction to the lesson I will open up with a class discussion providing a short review of important topics covered in the last |

|lesson. I will do this to make sure they have the appropriate background knowledge. After the discussion, I will introduce them to the focus of |

|the lesson, which is the comparison of feudalism in Europe and Japan. After, I will have them watch a short video as a review of one aspect of |

|feudal Japan. The video is titled, “The Samurai and the Bushido” After this video I will instruct the students to take out their notebook and be|

|prepared to take notes on the following PowerPoint lecture. |

|2. Central Historical Question |Time: |

| |

|3. Teacher Input (delivery of historical context) |Time: |

|For the teacher input I will be giving a lecture, reviewing the two feudalistic societies. I will start with the Japanese Feudal system. The |

|PowerPoint will go over main topics that make up feudal Japan, such as shogun, daimyo, samurai, and peasants. After going over the information |

|that makes up Japanese feudalism the PowerPoint will shift over to a review of the previous lesson, the European feudal society. The PowerPoint |

|slides will show a number of images such as maps, pictures, and charts. The slides will also contain bullet point items help the students gain a |

|better understanding of key information in the lesson. During the lecture I will be engaging my students in discussion and be asking questions |

|checking for understanding. |

|4. Student Activity and Investigation (w/ differentiation) |Time: |

|Students will be split up into groups of three, to read a handout of a source discussing European and Japanese feudalism. The source consists of |

|an article from Kallie Szczepanski, a historian that has studied and lived in Asia for more than five years. After reading the article the |

|students will discuss what they have learned from reading the source and lecture. The group partners will be instructed to develop a Venn Diagram|

|regarding the subject, on poster paper supplied with the reading handout. I will also ask the groups to draw two images on their posters, one |

|that relates to Japanese feudalism and one that relates to European Feudalism. I will also encourage the students to draw images of topics they |

|find interesting. I will be looking to see what the students list regarding comparing and contrasting the two feudal societies. I also be looking|

|to see what my students find interesting about the lesson, by observing what my students draw. After the students have had enough time to |

|complete the poster, I will have them post them around the classroom. I will have one member from each group stand next to their poster and |

|describe to the class the Venn diagram the prepared and images they drew and why. |

|5. Lesson Assessment (w/ differentiation) |Time: |

|After the group activity and discussion, I will instruct my students to write a short essay on what society they would like to have lived in and |

|why? I will also instruct the students to choose to be from one of the classes from this society. They can choose any class and must use |

|specific examples from the lesson. I will also instruct my students to use information from both feudal societies to argue their point. I will |

|not grade strictly on grammar or structure, but will focus on the examples and reasons presented in their essays |

|6. Closure |Time: |

|For the closure I will ask the students to rip a piece of paper in half and write one thing they liked about this lesson and why and one thing |

|they disliked and why. I will use this slip to look at ways to better my lessons and also use this as a exit ticket for my class. |

|7. Student Reflection (metacognition) |Time: |

|For homework I will have my students research any Medieval European Lord and any Feudal Shogun. For their assignment I will ask the students to |

|create a brief research paper. The paper will consist of an image and five brief bullet points about each person. |

Feudalism in Japan and Europe

Comparison of the Feudal Systems

By Kallie Szczepanski,

Although Japan and Europe did not have any direct contact with one another during the medieval and early modern periods, they independently developed very similar socio-political systems. Often, these systems are labeled as feudal.

What is feudalism? The great French historian Marc Bloch defined it this way: "A subject peasantry; widespread use of the service tenement (i.e. the fief) instead of a salary...; supremacy of a class of specialized warriors; ties of obedience and protection which bind man to man...; [and] fragmentation of authority - leading inevitably to disorder."

In other words, there are peasants who are tied to the farm land and work for protection plus a portion of the harvest, rather than for money. Warriors dominate the society and are bound by codes of obedience and ethics. Finally, there is no strong central government; instead, lords of smaller units of land control the warriors and peasants, but these lords owe (at least theoretical) obedience to a distant and relatively weak duke, king or emperor.

Similarities between Japanese and European Feudalism

Feudal Japanese and European societies were built on a system of hereditary classes. The nobles were at the top, followed by warriors, with tenant farmers or serfs below. There was very little social mobility; the children of farmers became farmers, while the children of lords became lords and ladies. (One prominent exception to this rule in Japan was Toyotomi Hideyoshi, born a farmer's son, who rose to rule over the country.)

In both feudal Japan and Europe, constant warfare made warriors the most important class. Called "knights" in Europe and "samurai" in Japan, the warriors served local lords. In both cases, the warriors were bound by a code of ethics. Knights were supposed to hew to the concept of chivalry, while samurai were bound by the precepts of bushido, or "the Way of the Warrior."

Both knights and samurai rode horses into battle, used swords, and wore armor. European armor was usually all-metal, made of chain mail or plate metal. Japanese armor included laquered leather or metal plates and silk or metal bindings. European knights were almost immobilized by their armor, needing help up on to their horses, from where they would simply try to knock their opponents off their mounts. Samurai, in contrast, went with light-weight armor that allowed them quickness and maneuverability, at the cost of providing much less protection.

Feudal lords in Europe built stone castles to protect themselves and their vassals in case of attack. Japanese daimyo also built castles, although Japan's castles were made of wood rather than stone.

Differences between Japanese and European Feudalism

Japanese feudalism was based on the ideas of the Chinese philosopher Kong Qiu or Confucius (551-479 BCE). Confucius stressed morality and filial piety, or respect for elders and other superiors. In Japan, this functioned as the moral duty of daimyo and samurai to protect the peasants and villagers in their region, and the duty of the peasants and villagers to honor the warriors and pay taxes to them in return.

European feudalism was based instead on Roman Imperial laws and customs, supplemented with Germanic traditions, and supported by the authority of the Catholic Church. The relationship between a lord and his vassals was seen as contractual; lords offered payment and protection, in return for which vassals offered complete loyalty. It is interesting that these two very different legal/moral systems ended up creating such similar socio-political structures.

Another difference between these two feudal systems is their timing. Feudalism was well-established in Europe by the 800s CE, but appeared in Japan only in the 1100s as the Heian period drew to a close and the Kamakura Shogunate rose to power. European feudalism died out with the growth of stronger political states in the sixteenth century, but Japanese feudalism held on until the Meiji Restoration of 1868.

A key distinguishing factor between the two is land-ownership. European knights gained land from their lords as payment for their military service; they thus had direct control of the serfs who worked that land. In contrast, Japanese samurai did not own any land. Instead, the daimyo used a portion of their income from taxing the peasants to pay the samurai a salary, usually paid in rice.

Samurai and knights differed in several other ways, including their gender interactions. Samurai women, for example, were expected to be strong like the men, and to face death without flinching. European women were considered fragile flowers who had to be protected by chivalrous knights. In addition, samurai were supposed to be cultured and artistic, able to compose poetry or write in beautiful calligraphy. Knights were usually illiterate, and would likely have scorned such past-times in favor of hunting or jousting.

Finally, knights and samurai had very different approaches to death. Knights were bound by Catholic Christian law against suicide, and strove to avoid death. Samurai, on the other hand, had no religious reason to avoid death, and would commit suicide in the face of defeat in order to maintain their honor. This ritual suicide is known as seppuku (or "harikiri").

PowerPoint Slides

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Short Essay Prompt

On your own write a short essay, no longer than a page in length, stating whether you would rather live in a feudal European or Japanese society. In addition, select a status in the society and list the reasons why you choose your status and society. Also include information on why you did not choose the other society. Include information you have learned in this lesson.

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