Question

What inference can you make about Japanese attitudes toward Korean culture in the late 1500s?

Answer 1

We can infer that Japanese wanted to learn and absorb korean technologies to develop art, infrastructure and transmission of knowledge.

Japanese leader Toyotomi Hideyoshi invaded Korea between 1592 and 1598, the invasion resulted in Japan losing the war, but Hideyoshi and his generals took advantage during this period because it was the opportunity to kidnap skilled Korean craftsmen and take them back to Japan.

Japan gained cultural benefits from the spoils of war, also due to the contact with Ming China.

Korea had a refined technology of moveable type printing, during the late-sixteenth century, Japan benefited from this.

Before 1590, there was a monastic monopoly on printing in Japan.

Japanese invasion of Korea is sometimes referred to as the "Teabowl War" or the "Pottery War", because japanese soldiers made great efforts to find skilled Korean potters and transfer them to Japan once quality ceramic pottery was prized in Japan, particularly the Korean teabowls used in the Japanese tea ceremony.

Korea also made  important contributions to tiling Japanese houses and castles, among the skilled craftsmen removed from Korea by Japanese forces were roof tilers . The  Nagoya Castle was constructed using Korean stonework techniques.

Answer 2

Japanese conflicts with Korea began when Japanese ruler Toyotomi decided to conquer China, and asked Korea for help, using its territory to have geographical access. Korea didn't help because it was ruled by Ming dynasty. In 1592, Japan invaded Korea, and used armies and modern weapons, which destroyed many of its arable land, and forced migration of Korean artisans and academics to Japan. Another major loss happened in the historical and cultural aspect, since many records were burnt along with several imperial palaces in Seoul.