How did Hokkaido fit into the imagination of Japanese settlers and the agenda of the Japanese government in the late 19th century?

1. How did Hokkaido fit into the imagination of Japanese settlers and the agenda of the Japanese government in the late 19th century? What was attractive about Hokkaido? What kinds of images did people have of it?

2. What happened to the original inhabitants of Hokkaido? How was Hokkaido transformed during the Meiji period?

3. What happens to the main character of “Officer Ukuma”? How is he transformed by what happens? How do people in the village view his transformation?

4. How was the Okinawan case, as described in “Officer Ukuma” and in the analytical essay, different from the one in Hokkaido? How was the relationship between Okinawa and Japan perceived differently from the relationship between Hokkaido and Japan?

5. What was the outcome of the First Sino-Japanese War?

link:The Ainu: Beyond the Politics of Cultural Coexistence https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/ainu-beyond-politics-cultural-coexistence
Disputatious Legacies: Examining the Historic Ties that Bind Okinawa and China
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2017/04/08/lifestyle/disputatious-legacies-examining-historic-ties-bind-okinawa-china/