About the Book
The Routledge Handbook of Modern Japanese History is a concise overview of modern Japanese history from the middle of the nineteenth century until the end of the twentieth century. Written by a group of international historians, each an authority in his or her field, the book covers modern Japanese history in an accessible yet comprehensive manner. The subjects featured in the book range from the development of the political system and matters of international relations, to social and economic history and gender issues, to post-war discussions about modern Japan’s historical trajectory and its wartime past. Divided into thematic parts, the sections include:
Nation, empire and borders
Ideologies and the political system
Economy and society
Historical legacies and memory
Each chapter outlines important historiographical debates and controversies, summarizes the latest developments in the field, and identifies research topics that have not yet received sufficient scholarly attention. As such, the book will be useful to students and scholars of Japanese history, Asian history and Asian Studies.
Table of Contents:
Chronology Part I Nation, empire, borders 1. Japan in the global twentieth century, Akira Iriye 2. Alliances and enmities: Relations with Great Britain and Europe, Antony Best 3. Japan and Asia, Christopher W. A. Szpilman and Sven Saaler 4. Unequal treaties, consular jurisdiction, and treaty port society, Harald Fuess 5. The English-language press networks in the transnational history of East Asia, 1850–1950, Peter O’Connor 6. Japan’s colonial empire, Sandra Wilson and Robert Cribb 7. Race and racism, Rotem Kowner 8. Overseas migration, 1868–1945, Martin Dusinberre 9. Ryukyu/Okinawa’s trajectory – from periphery to centre, 1600–2015, Gavan McCormack Part II Ideologies and the political system 10. From Edo to Meiji: The public sphere and political criticism in nineteenth-century Japan, Matsuda Kōichirō 11. State Shinto, Kate Wildman Nakai 12. Conservatism and conservative reaction, Christopher W. A. Szpilman 13. The military and politics, Sven Saaler 14. Liberalism, internationalism, and democracy, Michael A. Schneider 15. The bureaucracy and politics, Roger H. Brown 16. The debate on fascism in Japanese historiography, Katō Yōko 17. Japan’s 1930s: crisis, fascism, and social imperialism, Ethan Mark 18. Japan’s war of words: World War II propaganda, Barak Kushner Part III Economy and society 19. The path of economic development from the late nineteenth century to the economic miracle, Penelope Francks 20. The yen – Japan’s national currency, Mark Ravina 21. Urban life and the city idea in the twentieth century, Louise Young 22. Cooperatives and grassroots developments, Tessa Morris-Suzuki 23. The emergence of trade unions, Christopher Gerteis 24. The postwar employment system, Charles Weathers 25. Genders, sexualities and bodies in modern Japanese history, Vera Mackie 26. Religion in the postwar era, Ian Reader 27. Washoku, heritage and national identity, Katarzyna J. Cwiertka 28. Environmental history, Philip C. Brown Part IV Historical legacies and memory 29. Debates over historical consciousness, Yoshida Yutaka 30. History and the state in postwar Japan, Hatano Sumio 31. The politics of Yasukuni Shrine and war memory, Jeff Kingston
About the Author :
Sven Saaler is Professor of Modern Japanese History at Sophia University, Tokyo. His publications include Politics, Memory and Public Opinion (2005) and Pan-Asianism in Modern Japanese History (2007).
Christopher W. A. Szpilman is Professor of Modern Japanese History at Teikyo University, Tokyo. His recent publications include Pan-Asianism: A Documentary History (2011, co-editor) and Radicalism and Pan-Asianism in Modern Japanese History (2015, in Japanese).
