Four Classes of Society (Shinokosho): Warrior, Farmer, Artisan and Merchant

After years of civil war in Japan, the military rulers of the Edo period (1615–1868) created a stable social order organized into four hierarchical and largely hereditary classes in which social mobility was highly limited: warriors, farmers, artisans, and, at the lowest level, merchants. But some citizens were excluded, such as the emperor, nobility, Buddhist monks and Shinto priests, actors, and social outcasts (beggars and prostitutes). In this painting, each of the four classes is personified in descending order by a representative member engaged in a typical activity. The military order called samurai was the elite class because this group maintained civil order and set a high moral example for others to follow. Next in social rank were rural peasants and fishermen because they produced the food that all classes of society depended upon. Craftspeople formed the economy of the cities and towns. Although these artisans produced luxury goods and weaponry for the warrior class and such necessities as clothes and cooking utensils for all social classes, they were nonetheless considered less important than farmers. Because they did not produce anything, merchants were at the bottom of the social ladder. Despite such low-ranking status, itinerant traders and shop-keepers accumulated great wealth.