Old Meets the New

 Because of all the stuff I talked about in the last few posts, the Japanese obviously weren't real pleased with foreigners. Their new slogan was "Revere the emperor, expel the barbarians." However, if they wanted to do that they would have to make some changes, and the Emperor and the Shogun realized it. Japan was turned into a more democratic and even a more free nation. The dominant samurai class died out. Before, they had been the warriors of society. Peasants were left to farm while the samurai pretty much went around and killed each other and teamed up when there w a bigger threat to the nation. Now the peasants were allowed to wield weapons, and a lot of them had guns instead of the samurai's traditional sword, meaning that the samurai class was no more. The samurai themselves either squandered in poverty or hung up their once-honored blades and got a job. Some married into rich families to get by, and others became politicians in the new social order.