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Hunter VanDuzer The Sign of the Chrysanthemum By- Katherine Paterson

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The story takes place in 12th century Japan during the Genji and Heike war. The main character Muna is a young boy, who after his mother died, began a search to find his father. The only way to identify his father is by a tattoo of a Chrsyanthemum. The other main characters in the book are Fukuji and Takanobu. Muna searches for his Samurai father and along the way he meets some people who betray him and some who help him. He goes through many difficulties such as finding enough money to support himself and finding courage to defend himself against others. He also gets mixed up with a man who claims to be his father. Muna meets a respectful swordmaker who takes him in. Muna wants to be an apprentice to the Swordsmith but he is busy searching for his father. He feels the need to find his father because he is lost and feels he will be a whole man only if he finds his father. His father would give him his name and the boy would be whole. After much hardship, Muna gives up on his search of his father and realizes that he doesn't need a father to become a man. He needed only to look within himself to become confident and strong.

=__Author__ =  Katherine Paterson moved around a lot as a child (18 times in 18 years). She spent several years living in Japan and China until her family finally settled in Virginia. Katherine went to King College in Tennessee where she studied English and American literature.

As a child Ms. Peterson never wanted to be a writer. She dreamed of being a movie star or a missionary. When she grew up she never became an actress, but she did become a missionary in Japan.



Some other books written by Katherine Patterson include: - Bread and Roses, Too - Preacher's Boy - The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks - Bridge to Terabithia

She has won several awards including: - Parent's Choice Award - Newbery Medal (1978, 1981) - National Book Award (1979)

Historical Research:

=__Heike and Genji War__ =

The Heike and Genji War took place in 12th Century Japan. The war broke out between two main warrior clans, the Heike and the Genji, who were fighting over land and power. The war started when the Heike threatened to kill the emperor of the Genji which got both sides ready for war. The Heike invaded and demolished the Genji in a swift victory. The Heike followed through on their threat and as the Genji emperor Kiyimori was trying to escape they caught up to him and beheaded him.

=__Samurai__ =

The Samurai were highly skilled warriors in Japan that developed in 646 A.D. The government began to redistribute land and they taxed the people heavily. Rich lords needed protection to defend their riches and recruited armies of Samurais to be loyal to them. Whenever two powerful clans fought bittter wars against each other, each clan's Samurais were their most valuable soldiers. Samurais played a big part in the war between the Taira and the Minamato (referred to in __The Sign of the Crysanthemum__ as the Heike - Genji War). These tribes fought for land because only 20 percent of Japaneses mountains can be used for agriculture.

Samurais had several privileges. A Samurai could carry weapons, but a commoner could not. The Samurai had the power to behead a commoner who had offended him. In this way Samurais were above the law.

Samurais were divided into three groups. The lowest ranking group was the Kenin who were administrators and house helpers. The next group was the footsoldiers. Finally, the Mounted Samurai were the highest ranking warriors and were allowed to fight on horseback. The ranking of a Samurai was passed down from previous generations.

Samurais are famous for their swords that they used in battle to finish off wounded enemies. Samurai wore two swords called "daisho" which were long and short. A "katana" sword is a curved blade over 10 inches long that was suitable for slashing. The "wakizashi" was the shorter sword and was used for stabbing. =__Samurai__ = media type="youtube" key="LNmGoigMBUY" height="344" width="425"

=__Daisho__ =



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__Resources__


www.taots.co.uk- The Age of the Samurai- Gempei Wars 1180-1185 www.asianhistory.about.com www.wsu.edu:8080- Feudal Japan: The Heiji War www.terabithia.com