Topic: Compare the similarity and difference between the self-strengthening movement in China and the Meiji-ishin in Japan. What is the background of the self-strengthening movement in China? Why is it failure at last? Why is the Meiji-ishin successful?
Details of the trading procedure
It is a police that China want to control trade with the west in its own country. The Canton System limited the ports in which European traders could do business in China. It also forbade any direct trading between European merchants and Chinese civilians. The European presence was restricted to the Thirteen Factories on the harbor of Canton during the trading season, but the foreign traders were permitted to remain on Chinese soil at Macau in the off-season. It prohibited the foreign people and west culture to enter its own country. The first trade that existed with China was for silks, fine china and most lucratively tea. Low Chinese demand for European goods, and high European demand for Chinese goods, including tea, silk and fine china forced European merchants to purchase these goods with silver, the only commodity the Chinese would accept. The British began to sell opium to Chinese lead to financial deficit..
All in all, Japan and China had different reasons for either accepting or rejecting Western influences during the late 19th century. It seems that each country made the wisest decision it could given its current political situation. Both countries are among the wealthiest and most powerful in the world---perhaps just powerful enough to one day rule a predominantly Western-controlled globe.