To what extent might "National Learning" be viewed as an intellectual expression of the so-called, and supposedly effective, sakoku, or "closed country," foreign policy?

What does the development of "National Learning" tell us about Japanese attitudes toward the outside world during the 18th and early 19th centuries?

In this context be sure to note Kada Azumamaro's call for the establishment of a "school of national learning," Kamo Mabuchi's critique of Chinese learning, Motoori Norinaga's writings on the Sun Goddess, the Tale of Genji, good and evil, etc.

How did Hirata Atsutane's involvement in Dutch learning (Rangaku) affect his outlook on Japan, Japanese learning, and its relationship with the world?

Chapter 23: Reformers of the Late-Tokugawa Period
1. How did Honda Toshiaki's involvement in Dutch learning influence his attitude towards his own country, and its need to involve itself in shipping and colonization?

2. What role did Sato Nobuhiro envision for Japan in relation to the remainder of the world? Again, how does his experience with Rangaku seem to have shaped his thinking?

Chapter 24: The Debate Over Seclusion and Restoration
1. What is the nature of Aizawa Seishisai's thinking about Japan's barbarian problem, at least as that thinking is evident in his New Proposals (Shinron)? What does he mean by the term kokutai?

2. How would you characterize Sakuma Shozan's belief that "eastern ethics" can be combined with "western science"? Is this naive? realistic? practical? romantic? a sensible compromise? a bridge to total westerization?

3. Briefly compare Yoshida Shoin's seeming obsession with death and samurai values, and Fukuzawa Yukichi's with the west. What is the common ground of both? In what sense are they closer intellectually than might appear on the surface?