Modern Japan: A Historical Survey

by Mikiso Hane

In this newly revised edition of his readable and thoughtful survey, Mikiso Hane presents the essential facts of modern Japanese history. He integrates political events with the cultural and economic activities of each period and is particularly sensitive to the conditions of life in all strata of the population. The new edition covers a variety of important developments through the early 1990s, giving special consideration to how traditional Japanese modes of thought and behavior have affected these recent developments.As background for his study of the modern era, Hane summarizes the early history of Japan, with due attention to institutions that have molded the nature of Japanese society—including Shinto, the Emperor system, Buddhism, and feudalism. Hane then sets the stage for modern Japan with a detailed and analytical discussion of the Tokugawa period.The survey takes on immediacy as it chronicles the growth of Westernization in the nineteenth century and the ascendancy of militarism in the twentieth. The chapters on Meiji Japan balance politics and economics with a close look at social conditions, education, and religion. The story of Japan's role in World War II, its defeat in 1945, and the occupation is told dispassionately but from a Japanese vantage point. Hane's portrait of life in postwar Japan is enriched by material on contemporary literature, Japanese youth culture, and other intellectual developments.The last chapter focuses on the dramatic economic surge since 1970 and the accompanying social changes in life-style and attitudes, particularly for women and the working class. Reiterating themes that permeate the book, a final section reviews Japan's relations with the outside world, especially with the United States, and the ongoing tension between the old and the new, the traditional and the modern. A useful bibliography and well-chosen illustrations enhance the text.

Genres: History, Japan, Nonfiction, Asia, Japanese History

488 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1970

About the author

Mikiso “Miki” Hane was a Japanese American professor of history at Knox College, where he taught for over 40 years. He wrote and translated over a dozen books, wrote many articles, and was appointed a member of the National Council on the Humanities in 1991.

Hane was born in California, lived in Japan during his teenage years, and was interned in Arizona during World War II. He taught soldiers Japanese at Yale, then studied there, where he attained a bachelors in 1952, a masters in 1953, and doctorate degree in 1957. Hane studied in Japan and Germany, then taught at the University of Toledo and studied in India before coming to Knox College in 1961. He lived in Galesburg for the rest of his life, and both wrote and taught up until his death.

Reviews

[Yalin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a brilliantly written historical survey of modern Japanese history, that does not spare the reader important details which any other mainstream history of Japan might ignore for various reasons. It is a history that pays homage to those downtrodden, ignored, and left behind during the advent of Japan's modernity, as well as discuss those major events and personalities that have had an important role in achieving this situation. The appendix includes a number of links - although some by the time of this review (03 May 2020) are dead - which are good further sources to check.

[Chelsea Henry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another book I had to read for history of modern Japan. This book is very interesting, it is also very technical college level textbook reading, meaning lots of names and lots of dates. It tells a very detailed history of Japan though from the Edo/Tokugawa era all the way to modern Japan in the 21st century.

[machinaheart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read in parts.