| Japan is a country that is widely known for its | | | | believed and stood by a rule that if a son was |
| technology. But the more popular interests of the | | | | born into a Samurai family, his sure destiny was |
| people lie in the history of the first descendants | | | | to be Samurai. The father would teach him |
| and protectors of Japan.The first protectors of | | | | "Bushido" which is the "way of the warrior" and |
| the people were called Samurai. In order to | | | | the term is the code that is used by all the |
| understand the way of the Samurai, you have to | | | | warrior classes.Skill in battle was the primary |
| first look at the aspects of their education, their | | | | qualification for becoming a Samurai and the |
| lifestyles, and then the end of their era. The term | | | | higher ranked warriors would usually get to marry |
| "Samurai" is derived from a common term in | | | | higher ranked women. Divorce was frowned upon, |
| pre-industrial Japan meaning "warrior". Most | | | | as it damaged a warrior's reputation. Only one |
| Japanese Samurai were brought up to respect | | | | reason for divorce was accepted among the |
| the attributes of honor and loyalty and were | | | | people, and that was if the woman could not bear |
| expected to set an example to all those below | | | | a child.The coming end of the Samurai period first |
| them. If a Samurai were to be disgraced such as | | | | became apparent during the "Tokugawa" period. |
| losing a battle, or shamed for something they had | | | | Their status was still high, but their incomes |
| done, they believed that the only way to retrieve | | | | became more unstable, and the need for warriors |
| their honor was to commit suicide. More | | | | started to decline. Many lower class Samurai |
| specifically they had to stab themselves in the | | | | would be seen in the streets on their knees |
| stomach with their own weapon. It was also said | | | | begging for money as people walked by and they |
| that a friend or co-combatant had to be there to | | | | often had to do dirty deeds or manual labor for |
| decapitate them after the initial stab.Life for a | | | | the merchants, without any compensation, as a |
| Samurai was very demanding and strict but one | | | | way to pay back their debts. The lower ranked |
| of the recreational activities that they all enjoyed | | | | men also had to obey any order given to them |
| was called "Kabuki". Kabuki was a form of theater | | | | by a higher rank without any complaint. This is |
| performed by other members or guests. The | | | | when the Samurai started to lose all self-respect |
| Japanese men would perform in front of the | | | | for themselves and times were so severe that if |
| audience, singing songs, performing mime tricks, | | | | they somehow could not fulfil an order they |
| and dancing. Not all Samurai were allowed to go to | | | | would actually kill themselves with the honorable |
| the Kabuki, but hardly any obeyed this strict rule, | | | | suicide in order to escape from the impossible |
| and they often went in disguise.The Samurai | | | | situation. |