Description
Book SynopsisThis new history of modern Japan covers its remarkable transformation from a small country on the fringe of international politics to the major world power it is today. Professor Tsuzuki traces Japan''s pursuit of power, first by military and then by economic means, from her attempts to replace China at the centre of the Confucian Middle Kingdom; through the Meiji nationalist response to the inroads of nineteenth century western imperialism; and on to the post-war USJapanese alliance powering the economic miracle of the last half of the twentieth century. He examines Japan''s political, intellectual, and industrial development throughout the last two centuries, with special attention to the wars that were fought, and argues that the history of Japan''s modernization was closely linked to the growth of Japan''s own imperialism. Tsuzuki goes on to reveal how some of the factors which contributed to remaking Japan as an economic giant have also been responsible for her recent economic and political difficulties.
Trade ReviewOverall, this is a very valuable addition to the general literature on the history of modern Japan. It highlights aspects of the country's recent past that other authors have shied away from, particularly in regard to social history and the tribulations of the Japanese people, and as such provides a useful rejoinder to those who would paint too roseate a picture of the Japanese state. It is a book that deserves to be on every modern Japanese history reading list and should be singled out as a recommended text, that is to say that Professor Tsuzuki has produced a very fine and useful work. * International Relations of the Asia-Pacific *
Table of ContentsPreface ; Introduction: Land, People, and their Shaping by History ; PART I: FROM SECLUSION TO EXPANSION, 1825-1900 ; 1. Japan in 1825: A Crisis in Seclusion ; 2. The Opening of the Country ; 3. The Meiji Restoration ; 4. The Decade of Democratic Ferment: Liberty and People's right ; 5. The Meiji Constitution ; 6. The Sino-Japanese War and its Aftermath ; 7. Meiji Industrialization and its Critics ; PART II: THE ROAD TO CATASTROPHE, 1900-1945 ; 8. The Russo-Japanese War and the Annexation of Korea ; 9. Taisho Democracy and the First World War ; 10. Taisho Politics and Society: From the Rice Riot to the Public Order Preservation Act ; 11. Economic Crises and Overseas Colonies ; 12. Fascism, Militarism, and Thought Control ; 13. The Undeclared War against China ; 14. From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima ; PART III: RECONSTRUCTION AND REORGANIZATION, 1945-1995 ; 15. The American Occupation: The New Constitution and the Tokyo War Crimes Trial ; 16. Occupation Reform: Education, Women, Land and Labour ; 17. Post-war Reconstruction ; 18. From Political Conflict to Economic Growth, 1950-1965 ; 19. Japan Incorporated and Radical Challenges, 1965-1973 ; 20. The Heyday of the LDP: From Tanaka to Nakasone ; 21. The End of Showa and the End of the Bubble Economy ; Epilogue; Appendices; Chronology; Glossary; Index
