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As a result of these nested zones of autonomy, those within the system came to perform or enact different roles depending on the context, using different terminology, and often even representing facts differently. Generally speaking, following the letter of the law was less important than maintaining the peace,<ref>Luke Roberts, "Mori Yoshiki: Samurai Government Officer," in Anne Walthall (ed.), ''The Human Tradition in Modern Japan'', Scholarly Resources, Inc. (2002), 33.</ref> and so private internal matters were often represented differently to outside authorities. This dichotomy of ''uchi'' ("internal") and ''omote'' ("front" or "facing") representations can be seen in the terminology used in different contexts, as for example a domain's internal documents might refer to the domain as a ''kuni'' ("country," or "state"), while external documents (e.g. communications from a domain to the shogunate) would refer to the domain in more humble and personal terms, e.g. as ''shiryô'' ("private territory"), while in those documents ''wagakuni'' ("our country") would always refer to the realm (Japan) as a whole, and not to one's own domain. [[omote and uchi|''Uchi'' and ''omote'']] can also be seen in the way domains often reported the ''daimyô's'' succession, smoothing over cases where a lord might have fallen ill or died before naming an heir, or where the heir might have been too young to be officially designated, instead reporting in official documents to the shogunate that the lord was not yet ill, or had not yet died, when he named his heir, who of course was of age; so long as a domain's internal affairs did not need to concern the shogunate, and everything at least appeared to be done in accordance with protocols, the shogunate generally did not get involved.<ref>Luke Roberts, ''Performing the Great Peace: Political Space and Open Secrets in Tokugawa Japan'', University of Hawaii Press, 2012.</ref>
As a result of these nested zones of autonomy, those within the system came to perform or enact different roles depending on the context, using different terminology, and often even representing facts differently. Generally speaking, following the letter of the law was less important than maintaining the peace,<ref>Luke Roberts, "Mori Yoshiki: Samurai Government Officer," in Anne Walthall (ed.), ''The Human Tradition in Modern Japan'', Scholarly Resources, Inc. (2002), 33.</ref> and so private internal matters were often represented differently to outside authorities. This dichotomy of ''uchi'' ("internal") and ''omote'' ("front" or "facing") representations can be seen in the terminology used in different contexts, as for example a domain's internal documents might refer to the domain as a ''kuni'' ("country," or "state"), while external documents (e.g. communications from a domain to the shogunate) would refer to the domain in more humble and personal terms, e.g. as ''shiryô'' ("private territory"), while in those documents ''wagakuni'' ("our country") would always refer to the realm (Japan) as a whole, and not to one's own domain. [[omote and uchi|''Uchi'' and ''omote'']] can also be seen in the way domains often reported the ''daimyô's'' succession, smoothing over cases where a lord might have fallen ill or died before naming an heir, or where the heir might have been too young to be officially designated, instead reporting in official documents to the shogunate that the lord was not yet ill, or had not yet died, when he named his heir, who of course was of age; so long as a domain's internal affairs did not need to concern the shogunate, and everything at least appeared to be done in accordance with protocols, the shogunate generally did not get involved.<ref>Luke Roberts, ''Performing the Great Peace: Political Space and Open Secrets in Tokugawa Japan'', University of Hawaii Press, 2012.</ref>
Still, despite the considerable autonomy built into the very fabric of the system at every level, the shogunate was very wary of political dissidence, and at least nominally issued strict edicts against the formation of political cliques or cabals (徒党, ''totô''). While groups such as ''[[ikki]]'' and ''[[za]]'' were formed in the medieval period largely with the direct intention of collective defense against threats to their independence, everyone in the realm was now to be subject to the hierarchical layers of authority, and was not to stand apart from them. Scholar [[Eiko Ikegami]] argues that in such an environment, artistic social circles and networks came to hold all the more importance, as a venue in which people could interact outside of their formal status identities, and across status divisions, such that these circles and networks served societal functions akin to what in Europe has been called the "public sphere" or the emergence of "publics."<ref>[[Eiko Ikegami]], ''Bonds of Civility'', Cambridge University Press (2005). For Japanese conceptions of the "public," see ''[[oyake|ôyake]]''.</ref>
Communications from Nagasaki to Edo by the fastest means possible could take about a week, while messages traveling through official channels could take at least a month. Adding in the time it took for shogunate officials to deliberate and make decisions, the overall decision-making process could take a considerable amount of time. During the Bakumatsu period, this would prove a source of irritation to representatives of Western countries, accustomed to steamships, railroads, and telegraphs, which allowed for faster communication times.<ref>Mitani Hiroshi, David Noble (trans.), ''Escape from Impasse'', International House of Japan (2006), xxxiii.</ref>
Communications from Nagasaki to Edo by the fastest means possible could take about a week, while messages traveling through official channels could take at least a month. Adding in the time it took for shogunate officials to deliberate and make decisions, the overall decision-making process could take a considerable amount of time. During the Bakumatsu period, this would prove a source of irritation to representatives of Western countries, accustomed to steamships, railroads, and telegraphs, which allowed for faster communication times.<ref>Mitani Hiroshi, David Noble (trans.), ''Escape from Impasse'', International House of Japan (2006), xxxiii.</ref>
