Download Assessment: The Influence of Neighboring Cultures on Japan

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Assessment: The Influence of Neighboring Cultures on Japan
Mastering the Content
Circle the letter next to the best answer.
1. Which sentence below describes cultural diffusion?
A. Warships and armies from Japan attacked Korea.
B. Practices and beliefs spread from Korea to Japan.
C. Written languages developed separately in Japan and Korea.
D. Korea and Japan grew different crops because of different climates.
2. What is one important way in which Prince Shotoku changed Japan?
A. He turned it into an agricultural society.
B. He divided power among the chiefs of clans.
C. He increased contact with neighboring cultures.
D. He introduced the craft of bronze and iron smithing.
3. When Korean workers settled in Japan, how did they change the lives of the Japanese?
A. They set up a new government over the country.
B. They worked as slaves for middle-class families.
C. They brought knowledge and skills from the mainland.
D. They became the customers who bought Japanese crafts.
4. Before the time of Prince Shotoku, Japanese government
A. ruled over Korea and China.
B. depended on local leaders.
C. had a bureaucracy of officials.
D. filled jobs based on examinations.
5. Prince Shotoku’s creating ranks for government officials was based on
A. Shinto ideas.
B. Muslim ideas.
C. Buddhist ideas.
D. Confucian ideas.
6. Emperor Tenmu and Empress Jito made changes in land ownership to strengthen imperial power. Who
would have been most upset by these changes?
A. merchants
B. clan leaders
C. peasants
D. military leaders
7. If a visitor compared the Chinese capital Chang’an and the Japanese capital Nara, what difference might the
visitor notice?
A. Nara lacked a wall for protection.
B. Nara lacked an imperial palace.
C. Nara lacked temples and monasteries.
D. Nara lacked an orderly street pattern.
8. The design of a Shinto temple would most likely draw attention to
A. a code of moral rules.
B. worship of foreign gods.
C. the cycle of pain and suffering.
D. respect for the beauty of nature.
9. The dots on the timeline show about when Buddhism arrived in four different countries: India, Korea, China,
and Japan. Based on the timeline and your knowledge, where did Buddhism arrive between 1 and 500 C.E.?
A. India and Japan
B. India and China
C. Korea and Japan
D. China and Korea
10. In Buddhist teachings, how does meditation help lead to wisdom?
A. by teaching the steps to a moral life
B. by emptying the mind of distracting thoughts
C. by providing a time to regret one's sins
D. by encouraging the study of books by enlightened teachers
11. A central teaching of Mahayana, the form of Buddhism that reached Japan, was that
A. life on Earth is the only life.
B. all people can reach nirvana.
C. all buddhas hold false beliefs.
D. only the material world is real.
12. After they learned about Chinese writing, the Japanese
A. changed their grammar to be more like Chinese.
B. began speaking Chinese in everyday conversation.
C. invented a new set of characters based on objects in Japan.
D. used simplified Chinese characters for sounds in Japanese words.
13. How can one tell whether a Japanese poem is a tanka?
A. by counting the syllables in each line
B. by identifying the social class described
C. by analyzing the symbols described
D. by checking whether pairs of lines rhyme
14. As a result of foreign influence, the Japanese began creating sculptures of
A. Shinto kami.
B. emperors.
C. the Buddha.
D. armored warriors.
15. Which architectural style did Japanese Buddhists adopt for their temples?
16. How did gagaku, a form of Chinese court music, influence music in Japan?
A. The Japanese hired Chinese musicians.
B. Japanese chants became more popular.
C. New musical instruments were used.
D. The Japanese sang only Chinese songs.
Applying Social Studies Skills
Use the passage and your knowledge of history to answer the questions.
Excerpts from the Seventeen Article Constitution, Issued by Prince Shotoku in 604 C.E.
1. Harmony should be valued and quarrels should be avoided. Everyone has his biases.
3. Do not fail to obey the commands of your Sovereign. He is like Heaven, which is above
Earth, and the vassal is like Earth, which bears up Heaven. When Heaven and Earth
are properly in place, the four seasons follow their course and all is well in Nature.
4. The Ministers and offi cials of the state should make proper behavior their first principle, for
if the superiors do not behave properly, the inferiors are disorderly; if inferiors behave
improperly, offenses will naturally result.
7. Every man has his own work. Do not let the spheres of duty be confused.
10. Let us control ourselves and not be resentful when others disagree with us, for all men have
hearts and each heart has its own leanings.
11. Know the diff erence between merit and demerit, and deal out to each its reward and
punishment.
16. Employ the people in forced labor . . . in the winter months when they are at leisure, but not
from Spring to Autumn, when they are busy with agriculture. For if they do not attend to
agriculture, what will there be to eat?
17. Decisions on important matters should not be made by one person alone. They should be
discussed with many people. Small matters are of less consequence and it is unnecessary to
consult a number of people.
17. According to Article 3, why should people obey the emperor?
18. List three instructions that those in government, in particular, should follow.
a.
b.
c.
19. What view of government and society does the Seventeen Article Constitution seem to express?
Exploring the Essential Question: In what ways did neighboring cultures influence Japan?
20. Each diagram gives one element of culture: government, religion, and the arts.
•In each “China” circle, describe how that element existed in China.
•In each “Japan” circle, describe how that element existed in Japan before Chinese influence.
•In the third circle, describe how that element evolved in Japan as a result of Chinese influence.