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Traces the history and discusses the culture of Japan from its first contact with the west in 1853 until the present day. ... Read more

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By 1853 Japan had been transformed from a sparsely populated land of nonliterate tribal peoples into an elaborately structured commercial society sustaining massive cities and a varied array of sophisticated cultural production. In this authoritative survey, Conrad Totman examines the origins of Japanese civilization and explores in detail the classical, medieval, and early-modern epochs, weaving interpretations of the major themes in Japan's cultural and political development into a rich historical narrative. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A summary of pre-modern japan
This book covers the history of Japan in an enthusiastic way from its early histories with the Joman dolls up to the blackships of commodore Perry. I first read this in my Japanese history course, we were required to read parts of the book as a backbone for the lectures, but soon i found that I was reading the entire book. It's actually quite a easy read and Japan's history is quite refreshing for someone who's been embraced in european histories all his life. Chapters about the Heian and warring states period (in the 16th century) are the most interesting and helpful. ... Read more

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By the end of the nineteenth century, the world was ready to adopt the gold standard out of concerns of national power, prestige, and anti-English competition. Yet although the gold standard allowed countries to enact a virtual single world currency, the years before World War I were not a time of unfettered liberal economics and one-world, one-market harmony. Outside of Europe, the gold standard became a tool for nationalists and protectionists primarily interested in growing domestic industry and imperial expansion.

This overlooked trend, provocatively reassessed in Steven Bryan's well-documented history, contradicts our conception of the gold standard as a British-based system infused with English ideas, interests, and institutions. In countries like Japan and Argentina, where nationalist concerns focused on infant-industry protection and the growth of military power, the gold standard enabled the expansion of trade and the goals of the age: industry and empire.

Bryan argues that these countries looked less to Britain and more to North America and the rest of Europe for ideological models. Not only does this history challenge our idealistic notions of the prewar period, but it also reorients our understanding of the history that followed. Policymakers of the 1920s latched onto the idea that global prosperity before World War I was the result of a system dominated by English liberalism. Their attempt to reproduce this triumph helped bring about the global downturn, the Great Depression, and the collapse of the interwar world.

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For years, the Japanese government, the Institute of Cetacean Research in Tokyo, and environmental activists have engaged in a bitter battle over the future of Japan's whaling industry. Proponents of the practice hope to control the debate by limiting the argument to the preservation of Japan's "whaling traditions and whale-eating culture" through "sustainable use," but, as Jun Morikawa makes clear, these terms obscure the true complexity of the issue.

Offering a broader and more objective analytical framework, Morikawa investigates the political actors and forces that create, control, and implement Japan's policy and continue to shape debate. Pro-whalers, Morikawa finds, have largely prevailed by spinning political myths, manipulating public opinion, and exploitating antiwhaling activities to their own advantage. Their efforts have created a domestic consensus that allows Tokyo's whaling policies to continue relatively unchallenged despite stockpiles of whale meat that remain unsold in Japanese warehouses.

Focusing on the gap between political fiction and environmental reality, Morikawa highlights rarely discussed aspects of the decision-making process in relation to this issue and examines how diplomacy and aid have helped Japan secure support for its whaling policies internationally. He also evaluates the long-term future of whaling, especially in light of growing environmental consciousness.

Customer Reviews (1)

provocative, but almost TOO wide-ranging
A collection of short excerpts from various monographs and articles about modern Japanese history. These excerpts are organized topically, usually in opposition to each other. This is a format that encourages thoughtfulreflection on important issues of Japanese history, and there is no othersingle volume I know of that offers so many diverse viewpoints. BUT, it'snot a one-volume source for learning history. Rather, it would be a usefulsupplement to a reliable textbook for stimulating classroom discussions. ... Read more

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The ancient traditions, breathtaking scenery and vibrant culture of Japan continue to fascinate the world. In this beautiful volume, renowned National geographic photographic Michael Yamashita and long-time Japan resident, John Carroll, capture the rich variety that can only be found in 'The Land of the Rising Sun.' This celebration of Japan brings you exquisite images and never-before-seen insights that are an absolute joy to experience.

This compelling photographic study by one of the world's leading photographers will take you from country roads to the skyscrapers of its amoebae-like megacities, from meditation-inducing rock gardens to the other-worldly frenzy of communal festivals. Through initiation into their psychology, mores, and religious and artistic sentiments, you'll learn something of what it means to be Japanese.

CONTENTS: The Japanese Enigma * Traditional Japan * Modern Japan * Country Japan * A Nation of Aesthetes * The Soul of Japan ... Read more

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It is a great book about Japan.
I like the book very much.
I love the photographer. ... Read more

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In this "New York Times" Notable Book, Patrick Smith offers a groundbreaking framework for understanding the Japan of the next millennium. Authoritative and rich in detail, the book is a timely guide to understanding a society whose changed are sure to have profound consequences around the world. "An invigorating blast of fresh air . . . An important book". "Time".Amazon.com Review
For years westerners have viewed Japan as a nation ofdemocratic, hard-working, unabashedly pro-Western people, a viewpointpromulgated mainly by a group of postwar scholars known as theChrysanthemum Club. Journalist Patrick Smith takes a hard, fresh lookat Japan and its relations with the West--particularly the UnitedStates--in Japan: A Reinterpretation. Smith asserts that theeconomic miracle we in the West have long admired was achieved at theexpense of true political reform, creating a corporation instead of ademocracy. Now that the miracle has collapsed, the Japanese are in astate of cultural, political, and social malaise.

Smithapproaches Japan from many different directions: first byreinterpreting the country's postwar history as presented by theChrysanthemum Club, then by delving into the lives of ordinaryJapanese. From the overworked salarymen to the upper echelons ofJapanese politicians, Patrick Smith paints a bold new picture of anation suffering from overdevelopment. In addition, Japan: AReinterpretation focuses on infrequently examined topics such asJapan's educators and writers. Though some of Smith's statements mayseem a bit hyperbolic, his book is solidly researched and impeccablypresented. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (23)

Thoughtful Reappraisal of Postwar Japan
This is a well-written interpretation of Postwar Japan that still offers fresh insight even though it was originally published in 1998.Notably, Smith capably demonstrates that the post-1945 system has broken down (by 2009, this breakdown was effectively complete inside Japan, if not outside it), and that Japan will remain adrift until it determines for itself what kind of nation it wants to be.Stylistically, the book is a bit episodic, but Smith does a nice job balancing narrative on political and cultural developments with the voices of individual Japanese from many different social, professional and economic backgrounds.

On Target
Patrick Smith has taken a lot of flak for his diagnosis (mostly from academics with an ax to grind) but somebody had to come out and state the obvious. Basically, he says that Japan has already undergone two revolutions--economic and political--and needs to undergo one more--a revolution of individualism--before its chronic problems can be solved. Currently, there's way too much groupthink and conformism that stifles creativity and leads to a stagnant, stultified society. This is most evident in Japanese institutions of education, where the primary and secondary schools teach entirely by rote method and enforce consensus thinking, while colleges are nothing but playpens of childish inanity and perpetual drunkenness, four years of riot and respite for overworked, undereducated kids who will soon go off the spend the rest of their lives in unrelieved drudgery for giant corporations where advancement is by seniority only. I've seen the results firsthand and, let me tell you, it ain't pretty.

Very interesting read
What made me add a review here is the following: It is very ironic that Patrick Smith is being excused of peddling stereotypes in his book, given that his main intention is to counter the prevalent stereotypes that people are so fond of. Regardless of what you know about Japan, this book will make you think about it - provided you are willing to do that.

You might also get the impression from some of the other reviews that Smith's book is some sort of academic study or something like that. I haven't found a single occasion in the book where he claims anything like that - and at the end of the book, he says the exact opposite.

So one might ask whether those reviewers who trash the book here aren't showing exactly the kind of behaviour that Patrick Smith discusses in some detail: People, according to Smith, are way too attached to an unrealistic image of Japan, and they don't want to let go of it.

If you want to find out why that might be the case read the book. Smith discusses a fairly large variety of examples, many of which you will not find elsewhere that easily. And even where one is inclined to disagree with him - for example when Smith dismisses most contemporary Japanese literature as fluff - his writing and ideas are still interesting enough to make you think about it.

Good anecdotes, poor conclusions.
Much like the other reviewers of this book, I too have spent time in Japan; a little over two years.Most of that was spent studying at University and thinking about the country and society I was transplanted into.As such, I have read many books on the subject and have had countless conversations with Americans, other foreigners, and Japanese about such subjects that are brought up in Smith's book.

A major problem that books such as these have is that they are either too simplistic and too naive, or they are too academic and thick.Smith's attempt is one of the rare, decent meldings of these two approaches.The problem is that it only succeeds at times.

I had spent years knowing of this book but never bothering to read it.Some friends I studied with offered their insights into it.One commented that he was required to read it alongside John Dower's "Embracing Defeat" in a university class to show the difference between good academic research (Dower) and bad (Smith).A few years later this same friend finally read Smith's book in its entirety and recommended I give it a crack.Another friend had read it twice and recommended I read it too.Both friends have extensive experience studying in and of Japan and had enough first-hand knowledge to be critical of the narrative while also absorbing insights.At least that is what I hope they felt, because that is what I felt after reading this book.

Smith has made a book that dances with academics while inviting the casual reader along for a cut on the sociological rug.It is a tough order for a work just over 300 pages and I feel was destined to be half-appreciated.The history of an entire nation--over 125-million people, 1600 years of written history, and its interactions throughout, especially the last 150 with the United States, all summarized with pronouns such as "Japan" and "they" (meaning Japan), and "us" and "we" (meaning the United States), makes for manufactured pitfalls of perspective and judgment and easy (and deserved) criticism.For me, it was thoughts such as I was thirty-four years unborn when WWII ended.I was a part of this "we" only in the most symbolic sense.The same applies to all the "they"s that I know: my Japanese friends.

As such, "Japan: A Reinterpretation" makes for good anecdotal reading.The conclusions reached can only be appreciated if the reader agrees with them through experience (meaning the reader has studied Japan and spent time there) or if the reader is very gullible.Where this leaves the disagreeing and the ignorant of Japan is in a confusing and unsatisfying world of thought.

At best, Smith's book makes a good spotlight illuminating areas of interest in the reader's mind.Such varied topics as the US occupation, burakumin outcasts, education, sexism, litterature, and the royal family are touched upon in this work.Those who are still curious about certain things brought up should be encouraged to other works.For US-Japan foreign policy, I recommend the works of Chalmers Johnson, despite his obvious polemical tendencies.For insight on the US occupation, a topic covered in the opening chapters, "Embracing Defeat" by John Dower cannot be topped for detail and lucidity.For environmental concerns and bureaucratic problems, Alex Kerr's "Dogs and Demons", though venomous, is a far more detailed account of such topics mentioned in Smith's work.The list of recommendations could go on, but in the end I come away from Smith's work mildly pleased.I was expecting a polemic that over-assumed and was a joke in a research respect.What I got was a decent work that works best as a primer for the already initiated to Japan.A mixed result from a mixed book.

Misleading Hyperbole
Patrick Smith knows a lot about Japan, having lived there for several years and being a journalist specializing in the country.He knows more than I do, to say the least.It is therefore surprising that he should produce a report so reactionary and misleading, and attempt to support so many disparate theses with such poor or virtually non-existent arguments.

My critical antennae came out early in the book when he began commenting on something that I, along with at least 30,000 other native English speakers in the world, do happen to have some expertise on:Japanese education and, more specifically, schools.Ifve been teaching in Japanese Junior High schools and Elementary schools for 2 1/2 years, and Ifve taught (albeit poorly) in my home country of the U.S. as well.So I immediately took issue when he profiled and compared a public Elementary school and a Junior High school, characterizing the former by its exuberant and happy children, and the latter by its silent and downtrodden students, and than further compared this public Junior high to a specialty private one that supposedly encouraged student individuality in which the students were still exuberant and excited to learn, as they were in their elementary school days.

Ifve spent most of my time these past two years in Junior highs schools .While I can say that Smithfs report is based on a widely recognized assessment of the tolls that eexam hellf has exacted on Junior High school students, in comparison with the relatively fun (if not entirely care-free) days of younger school children, his profile of the three schools is an irresponsible caricature of the feelings of students and of Japanese education in general.

As the text proceeds, Smith makes many other points about the state of Japan that are supported mainly by anecdotal evidence and tenuous links to the ancient past (the old stand-by gSamurai traditionh should never be trusted as an explanation alone, without a lot of carefully constructed supporting evidence).

The bottom line is, I don't trust a lot of what he says, though I only have solid contrary evidence for what he says about education.For me, that was enough to abandon the book. ... Read more

Product Description
This is the fourth of six volumes designed to explore the history of Japan from prehistoric to modern times. Volume 4 roughly covers the years from 1550 to 1800, a short but surprisingly eventful period in Japanese history commonly referred to as Japan's Early Modern Age. At the start, much of the country was being pulled apart by local military lords engaged in a struggle for land and local hegemony. These daimyo succeeded in dividing Japan into nearly autonomous regional domains. Before the end of the seventeenth century, however, the daimyo in turn were subjected to a powerful unification movement led by three colorful figures, Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and Ieyasu. It was under Tokugawa Ieyasu, the last of the unifiers, that Japan was brought together under a single powerful command vested in the office of shogun. The Tokugawa hegemony lasted until 1868 when it was brought down by the Meiji Restoration.This volume attempts to flesh out the historical tale with insights into the way that people lived and worked. It examines the relationship between peasant and local lord, and between the lord, as a unit of local government, and the emerging shogunate. It offers new insights into the evolution of indigenous thought and religion and it also deals with Japan's foreign relations, particularly the impact of the Christian missionary movement. Each of these themes is examined by thirteen distinguished Japanese and American scholars. ... Read more

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The controversy over official state-approved history textbooks in Japan, which omit or play down many episodes of Japan's occupation of neighboring countries before and during the Pacific War, and which have been challenged by critics who favor a more historically balanced approach, goes to the heart of Japan's sense of itself as a nation.The degree to which Japan is willing to confront its past is not just about history, but also about how Japan defines itself at present, and going forward.This book examines the history textbook controversy in Japan.It sets the controversy in the context of debates about memory, and education, and in relation to evolving politics both within Japan, and in Japan's relations with its neighbors and former colonies.It discusses in particular the struggles of Ienaga Saburo who has made crucial contributions, including through three epic lawsuits, in challenging the official government position. ... Read more

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Alternate attendance (sankin kotai) was one of the central institutions of Edo-period (1603-1868) Japan and one of the most unusual examples of a system of enforced elite mobility in world history. It required the daimyo to divide their time between their domains and the city of Edo, where they waited upon the Tokugawa shogun. Based on a prodigious amount of research in both published and archival primary sources, Tour of Duty renders alternate attendance as a lived experience, for not only the daimyo but also the samurai retainers who accompanied them. Beyond exploring the nature of travel to and from the capital as well as the period of enforced bachelorhood there, Constantine Vaporis elucidates--for the first time--the significance of alternate attendance as an engine of cultural, intellectual, material, and technological exchange.

Vaporis argues against the view that cultural change simply emanated from the center (Edo) and reveals more complex patterns of cultural circulation and production taking place between the domains and Edo and among distant parts of Japan. What is generally known as "Edo culture" in fact incorporated elements from the localities. In some cases, Edo acted as a nexus for exchange; at other times, culture traveled from one area to another without passing through the capital. As a result, even those who did not directly participate in alternate attendance experienced a world much larger than their own. Vaporis begins by detailing the nature of the trip to and from the capital for one particular large-scale domain, Tosa, and its men and goes on to analyze the political and cultural meanings of the processions of the daimyo and their extensive entourages up and down the highways. These parade-like movements were replete with symbolic import for the nature of early modern governance. Later chapters are concerned with the physical and social environment experienced by the daimyo's retainers in Edo; they also address the question of who went to Edo and why, the network of physical spaces in which the domainal samurai lived, the issue of staffing, political power, and the daily lives and consumption habits of retainers. Finally, Vaporis examines retainers as carriers of culture, both in a literal and a figurative sense. In doing so, he reveals the significance of travel for retainers and their identity as consumers and producers of culture, thus proposing a multivalent model of cultural change. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

One of the Most Important Studies on Edo Period Japan in a Long Time
In his introduction, Vaporis explains that sankin kôtai is perhaps the greatest achievement of the Tokugawa period's leadership as the system intentionally or unintentionally encouraged the development of political, economic and social institutions and practices that helped keep the unprecedented 250 years of internal peace. Sankin kôtai also played a part in the development of the Edo period's rich cultural heritage. Vaporis states that it is because of the blatantly obvious significance and impact of sankin kôtai, historians have only discussed it in very general terms that haven't changed much over time. There is really no single book or volume on the subject that sums it all up. To try to write "that" book would require a massive scale of research that could not be so easily carried out, especially as there aren't any existing full complements of primary resources in han histories that neatly explain and tie everything together. The sheer weight of the project would sink even the best researcher/historian's ambitions. It is therefore quite easy to understand why historians discuss sankin kôtai in broad strokes or look at specific aspects of the system and the lives of those it affected. With Tour of Duty, Professor Vaporis doesn't try to deliver a banal and sweeping treatise on the topic, nor does he zero in on a one dimensional, miniscule aspect of it either. What he has delivered is a rich, 24k creation that I truly admire. This is a very insightful and well-construed book that clearly highlights Professor Vaporis' skills as a researcher and his ability to convey his findings in a straight-forward, easy to understand fashion.

After skillfully panning and sifting through various primary source material scattered throughout diaries, journals, artistic depictions and archeological sites to find valuable content, Vaporis then forged and polished what I would describe as a golden ingot that brilliantly shines some much needed light on how alternate attendance, as a political institution, touched the lives of the samurai who participated in it. Roughly, the first half of the book deals primarily with the preparations for the round trip journeys to and from Edo and life on the road, as part of a daimyo's procession. Readers are treated to a wealth of valuable information ranging from summaries of contemporary journal accounts to tables filled with facts and figures that clearly illuminate just how important of a role alternate attendance played in the deployment of a domain's human and financial resources. Also, the insightful analysis provided on the pomp and circumstance of daimyo processions is fascinating and definitely stands out as one of the highlights of this book. Vaporis describes these processions as "theatres of power" as they combined the intricacies of domain power projection with a certain amount of drama that both awed and entertained those who witnessed them.

The second half of the book covers nearly all aspects of samurai life while on duty in Edo, ranging from financial considerations, issues of place and space within the various types of daimyo compounds, and everyday things like diet and hobbies--including intellectual and cultural pursuits. All of this was really quite interesting and the tables provided of purchases made by individual samurai during their trips to Edo helps to put a human face on those who served in Edo so long ago. These weren't just stoic samurai, but actual people with real consumer-driven wants and needs.

In conclusion, I believe that Tour of Duty is an essential "must read" for anyone with an interest in the lives of the Japanese warrior class during the Tokugawa period as well as those who are fascinated by what it must have been like to travel on one of the five major roadways of the Edo period, such as the Tôkaidô. I'm finding it hard to find serious fault with this work. The topic is interesting. The writing style is clear and straightforward and engaging. The research is impeccable--one look at the extensive bibliography shows how deeply Professor Vaporis dove into researching this topic and the nearly fifty pages of detailed and informative endnotes are testament to this.

A full review of this book can also be found on the Shogun-Ki blog at [...]
... Read more

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From September, 1945 until April, 1954, the U.S. Army of the Occupation set up its headquarters in Tokyo under General Douglas MacArthur. The foremost order to the army was to aid in the restoration of the economy of the country. They were successful, and the result is a variety of products known to collectors as O.J. or Occupied Japan. This wonderful new book documents, with 370 full color photographs, many of the clever toys created in Occupied Japan and exported around the world. Included are most of the boxes that held the objects, a boon to collectors who are highly value authentic packaging. A price guide makes this a complete book for collectors. ... Read more

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In this first social and cultural history of Japan's construction of Manchuria, Louise Young offers an incisive examination of the nature of Japanese imperialism. Focusing on the domestic impact of Japan's activities in Northeast China between 1931 and 1945, Young considers "metropolitan effects" of empire building: how people at home imagined and experienced the empire they called Manchukuo.
Contrary to the conventional assumption that a few army officers and bureaucrats were responsible for Japan's overseas expansion, Young finds that a variety of organizations helped to mobilize popular support for Manchukuo--the mass media, the academy, chambers of commerce, women's organizations, youth groups, and agricultural cooperatives--leading to broad-based support among diverse groups of Japanese. As the empire was being built in China, Young shows, an imagined Manchukuo was emerging at home, constructed of visions of a defensive lifeline, a developing economy, and a settler's paradise. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Fascinating and strange
This was a very strange book.The subject matter is overwhelmingly focused on Japan, not on Manchukuo at all, which is what I hoped for, but was nonetheless very interesting, parts of it much more so than others.The writing was not exceptional, although the author clearly has unparalleled knowledge of the subject matter.Some chapters in the early and later parts of the book were much more interesting than a great deal of the middle, but there was something in every section of note.I really don't feel like the themes and subject matter can be seriously summarized at all here; I would simply suggest reading it if you are interesting in imperialism, fascism, or Japanese history.

Essential reading on pre-Pacific War Japan.
This book is essential reading for any serious student of the Japanese Empire, as well as anyone interested in the history of colonialism or Chinese-Japanese relations.Young shows that Japan's occupation ofManchuria and the subsequent transformation into Manchukuo may have beeninitially driven by the Imperial Army, but became an effort supported byvarious other political and economic agencies.She also describes how aperceived Japanese mission of improving fellow Asian nations may have beensincere, but was ultimately destructive. TOTAL EMPIRE is best read inconjunction with THE ABACUS AND THE SWORD, about Japan's colonialrelationship with Korea.Military historians will find Young's book weakon details of the military administration, but that doesn't seriouslydetract from the social and cultural historical value of the work. ... Read more

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In this timely collection of essays, prominent historians survey the Hiroshima story from the American decision to drop the first atomic bomb to the recent controversy over the Enola Gay exhibit in Washington, D.C.The first essay surveys the literature on the atomic bombing of Japan, while the second and third essays evaluate the decisions that led to that event. The remaining essays discuss how the Japanese and American people have remembered Hiroshima in the years since the end of World War II.They emphasize the construction of an official memory of Hiroshima, the challenge posed by alternative or counter-memories, and the tension between history and memory in the Hiroshima story.The collection thus unites up-to-date scholarship by diplomatic historians with the recent interest in memory that has emerged as part of the new cultural history. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Collective Memory that Should Never be Forgotten
The bombing of Hiroshima was one of many horrific events that occurred in World War II and in human history.World War II was a pivotal time, and only in the present are we able to look back and reflect on the event with a critical eye.Michael J. Hogan's HIROSHIMA IN HISTORY AND MEMORY provides a collection of essays by cultural and diplomatic historians who analyzed the bombing of Hiroshima based on unclassified documents and past commentary that emphasized the how and why the bomb was dropped.Although this historiographical collection is considered revisionist scholarship, it is by all means essential in order to understand the complicated decision that President Truman had to make in dropping the bomb, and the effects it has had decades after.

Several essays reflect on how the bombing has affected commemoration of the event.Without a clear understanding of Hiroshima from both Americans and Japanese, one cannot equally or fully commemorate or represent the bombing of Hiroshima.The essays in HIROSHIMA AND HISTORY AND MEMORY attempts to present the facts within each essay, and each historian, such as J. Samuel Walker, John W. Dower, Barton J. Bernstein, and a host of others emphasize that the decision to drop the bomb and end the war did not only involve justifying saving military casualties, but the fear of an imminent power on the rise -- the Soviet Union (despite their position as an allie at the time, their possible invasion would have helped the Japanese surrender).

HIROSHIMA IN HISTORY AND MEMORY examines basic history as it pertains to the bombing of Hiroshima.The essays are readable and understandable.The events that occurred in August 1945 in Hiroshima and Nagasaki are two major historical events that continue to be a discussion of debate.

Hiroshima books
as far as hiroshima books go. this was the best one i found. i was writting a piece of history coursework on this travesty and this book not only gave me historians views but in the essays they mentioned other historians and their views!! it looked at this event from many different angles and managed to be interesting, factual and collectively unbiased throughout. very thought provoking.

Public Memory V Private Memory
An essential feature of any historical work is the selection ofsources one wishes to present as an argument.The role of memory and access to history, that is public access to 'other' histories, is an area of much contention in the contemporary world.What I most enjoyed about this book is the authors have not shied away from commenting on earlier critiques of the proposed Smithsonian display, involving the restored fuselage of the Enola Gay.What was shameful about the ensuing debacle, I believe, was the attempt to discredit the further development of an alternate memory given 50 years had passed since the atomisation of Hiroshima.After all, was it not possible to show an American and Japanese view of the closing months of the Pacific War, regardless of who the victor was?It is critical to understand that Australians, let alone Japanese, cut a different slant on the way we interpret history, particularly that of Pacific War history.I believe we are richer for the experience.

But, of course, an alternate memory has developed, yet it is often dismissed by the euphemistic expression, 'historical revisionism'.This appears to be some sort of code for 'this sort of history is not acceptable to the conservative elements in contemporary American society, certainly much less to those who actually witnessed combat in the Pacific'.By virtue of fact, it has no legitimate place among orthodox histories. All history is subject to revision, for the simple reason new facts become available and each generation chooses to impose it's own standards.This is certainly the case with Hiroshima.But this shouldn't be construed as 'wrong' or a 'threat', rather it adds to the debate and formation of ideas which underpin the importance of Hiroshima and historiography.Context retains an essential place.

However, for those of you interested in the importance of historicity, of debate, and value the idea of an education as opposed to acccess to information, I cannot recommend this book enough.It has it all.Needless to say Hiroshima touches a raw nerve both in Japan and America.It also has much currency in Australia.So I do not in any way set out to discredit the efforts of those men and women who gave their services to the state during WW2.I do, however, recommend that prospective readers keep an open mind and try avoid getting caught up in the limited rhetoric of the conservative right and the emotional left. ... Read more

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Turning the tide in the war against Japan at the battles of Kohima, Imphal and the Chindit campaigns. ... Read more

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From swift steeds to ritually slaughtered deer to symbolic serpents, nonhuman animals of every stripe have participated from the earliest of times in the construction of the cultural community that we know as Japan. Yet the historical accounts that have hitherto prevailed, claim the authors of this innovative volume, relegate our fellow animals to a silent and benign 'nature' that lies beyond the realm of narrative and agency. What happens when we restore nonhuman creatures to the field of historical vision? This book challenges many of the fundamental assumptions that have shaped contemporary scholarship on Japan, engaging from new perspectives questions of economic growth, isolation from and interaction with the outside world, the tools of conquest and empire, and the character of modernity. Essay by essay, this provocative collection compels readers to acknowledge the diversity of living beings who exist at the ragged edges of our human, as well as our historical, horizons. ... Read more

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This book critically examines the influence of International Society on East Asia, and how its attempts to introduce ‘civilization’ to ‘barbarous’ polities contributed to conflict between China and Japan.

Challenging existing works that have presented the expansion of (European) International Society as a progressive, linear process, this book contends that imperialism – along with an ideology premised on ‘civilising’ ‘barbarous’ peoples – played a central role in its historic development. Considering how these elements of International Society affected China and Japan’s entry into it, Shogo Suzuki contends that such states envisaged a Janus-faced International Society, which simultaneously aimed for cooperative relations among its ‘civilized’ members and for the introduction of ‘civilization’ towards non-European polities, often by coercive means. By examining the complex process by which China and Japan engaged with this dualism, this book highlights a darker side of China and Japan’s socialization into International Society which previous studies have failed to acknowledge.

Drawing on Chinese and Japanese primary sources seldom utilized in International Relations, this book makes a compelling case for revising our understandings of International Society and its expansion. This book will be of strong interest to students and researcher of international relations, international history, European studies and Asian Studies.

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In 1467 the Onin War ushered in a period of unrivalled conflict and rivalry in Japan that came to be called the Age of Warring States or Sengoku Jidai. In this book Stephen Turnbull offers a masterly exposition of the Sengoku Jidai, detailing the factors that led to Japan's disintegration into warring states after more than a century of peace; the years of fighting that followed; and the period of gradual fusion when the daimyo (great names) strove to reunite Japan under a new Shogun. Peace returned to Japan with the end of the Osaka War in 1615, but only at the end of the most violent, turbulent and cruel period in Japanese history. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Civil Wars of Japan
I found this book some what informative. I liked the illustrations, with the armies in period dress.

A Wonderful Book
Turnbull does an excellent job of introducing the Sengoku Period (Warring States Period) of Japanese history.During this period, Japan was shattered into dozens of minor statelets.This period see the destruction of the shogunate, a long period of civil wars between the statelets, and the eventual reunification of Japan and the return of the shogunate under the Tokugawa.This period is of particular interest to fans of the samurai.This period is the last time in history in which samurai were the fierce warriors they are depicted to be.After this period, the samurai become glorified bureaucrats during the 250 years of peace during the Tokugawa shogunate.They only take up arms for a brief period during the fall of the shogunate, but it doesn't match anything that happened during the Sengoku Period.

This book is a fairly thin volume at only 96 pages.However, it is filled with lots of details and colorful illustrations.For samurai fans, this can serve as a great introduciton to the history of the greatest period of the samurai. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (5)

Samurai film primer
"Everyday Life in Traditional Japan" is basically a beginner's guide to the Edo period.It gives a short history of the era, of the isolationist policy that allowed traditional Japanese culture to flourish untouched, and the power shift between the Emperor and the Shogun.It then breaks down the four classes, the samurai, the farmers, the craftsmen and the merchants, and shows the daily life, traditions and laws that bound each class.Also included are the fringe element, the doctors, priests, courtiers, actors, artists and outcasts who lived outside the class system but were still ruled by it.

Aside from being a nice little history lesson, I found this book to be the perfect primer to anyone interested in samurai flicks or historical anime.The easy-to-understand outline of the four classes, and what they were and were not allowed to do, own, eat, etc...gave me more than one "Ah-ha!" moment as something suddenly became clear to me in a movie that I had seen before.This is all the detail work, the background stuff going on, like why a big metal fish hangs over the stoves of peasant houses and why warriors wear those big basket helmets.

A short book at only 171 pages, it is still packed with info and easy to read.A bit on the older side, some of the translations and wording is outdated, but that doesn't have any effect on the book on the whole.I would definitely recommend this to anyone interested in the period, be it in film, anime, books or even woodblock prints.I have read quite a few Japanese history books before, but not one that laid out the class system so clearly and easily.

If rice farming is your thing...
This had some decent information, but it was mostly about rice farming. And while that's neat, I didn't feel that my life was missing a book about rice farming. It would taunt you with the occasional bone of interesting info and then snatch it away cruelly and laugh in your face.
Seriously, this book has useful bits of information, but there are better books out there. Everyday Things in Premodern Japan: The Hidden Legacy of Material Culture
I don't think that I would recommend this book, but I don't feel that my time was wasted in reading it.

A Great Introduction
This book covers the everyday life of the Edo period which is from the 1600's to the 1800's.During this period, Japan was shut off from the outside world and developed a unique culture.When people think of old Japan, this is usually the period they think of thanks to the great number of period dramas that depict this era.

The book examines the social divisions of this period.The four main groups are the samurai, the farmers, the craftsmen, and the merchants.Each group has an entire section devoted to it which details the lifestyle of each group.After this, several outsider groups are considered.The book ends with a general overview of life in the old capital Edo which is now called Tokyo.For those who are looking for a resource for information on the world of the samurai, this book gives a good overview of their world.

My only complaint about this book is that it was published in 1969, so the writing style feels a little dated and it seems it was written for a Western audience which was unfamiliar with Japanese culture.Basically, it's style is dated, but the information is accurate and useful.Anyone who is interested in Japan and doesn't know well about the history of Japan will find this to be a great introduction

Extremely Useful Book!
I've just started to read this book for research of a novel in the planning, and it has been very useful, even within the first few pages! It goes thru all the classes from the samuraiclass to the outcasts. I wouldhighly reccommend this book to anyone that needs to know how the Japaneselived during the reign of the Tokugawa shoguns!

A very informative book
Charles Dunn gives a very detailed book on the traditional way of life of Tokugawa Japan. From the lowly peasant to the nobles Mr. Dunn extensively explains what they did, why they did, & how they did everything.Forthe casual reader this book might be a little too detailed; but for thehistorical interested - it is a must.I have yet to find the kind ofinformation that Charles Dunn presents in this book anywhere else. ... Read more

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